Project of the Year (over £50m): Winner

Winner: Robertson – The Macallan

Robertson brought together 400 people from 25 specialist contractors to deliver what it describes as “the world’s greatest distillery” – a tourist attraction that blends into the countryside in which it is situated.

The Macallan Distillery and Visitor Centre in Moray was built to be largely subterranean, and has a spectacular parametric five-domed roof, with each dome being unique in its structural performance.

The facility is covered in a natural meadow to ensure it sits in harmony with its surroundings.

The domed roof comprises 1,750 timber beams and features a glued laminated core, as well as a total of 380,000 individual roof components.

The project as a whole used 20,000 cu m of concrete, which needed to be poured from up to 12 m high, while still achieving the required detailing and high-quality finish.

Judges for the category were impressed by the manner in which the contractor took a brief from its client and pushed it to make the best design possible. “They purposely made it harder,” the panel said.

“They pushed for the best possible outcome rather than the simplest or cheapest; the client upped the budget to get the best possible outcome they could.

“Quality rather than programme and budget was their priority.”

Visitor numbers to the facility doubled in the first year of opening, drawing an average TripAdvisor score of 4.5 out of 5.

The expanded facility has also created 50 new jobs.

The category judges praised “really strong client feedback” as evidence of the quality of the project.

Other innovations on the project included the recycling of 250,000 cu m of excavated materials, none of which left the site.

The firm also employed soil-stabilisation techniques and re-engineered poor-quality subsoils by injecting lime to allow for their use in the final landscaping.

Highly commended – Wessex Capacity Alliance (Network Rail, Skanska, Aecom, Mott MacDonald and Colas Rail)

The partnership had just 48 months to rebuild the former international platforms at Waterloo, upgrade signalling and track, and extend platforms 1-4. Throughout the project, train services remained largely uninterrupted.

Judges said: “This was a very complex project in a busy operational environment. They seemed to get the right balance between engineering excellence and customer focus, which can often be lost. The team’s personal commitment was apparent from their presentation.”

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