Comment ncc:

1

)f

Id

CONTENTS 30.04.09

~~'---M' . '. ..

NewCivilEngineer

ncc:

www.nce.CO.UK

NewCivilEngineer

1stFloor,GreaterLondonHoUse HampsteadRoad,LondonNW17EJ

EDITORIALINQUIRIES Tel:(020) 77284544 (fax4666) Email:[email protected]

EDITOR1Antony Oliver (020)77284541 antony,oliver DEPUTYEDITOR1JackieWhitelaw (020)77284542 jackie,whitelaw

CONTENTEDITOR1Mark Hansford (020)77284543 mark,hansford

NEWS EDITOR 1John McKenna (020)77284544 john.mckenna SENIORREPORTER1AlexandraWynne (020)77284540 alexandra.wynne SENIORREPORTER(WEB)1EdOwen (020)77284545 ed.owen

TECHNICAL REPORTER 1JessicaRowson (020)77284546jessica.rowson

ADVERTISING

DISPlAY ADVERTISING1JohnCoates (020)77284523

RECRUITMENT 1 Michael Maunsell

(020)77283824

Le

REÇU

0 5 MAI 2CO9

www.nce.co.uk¹ 30.04.09 NEWCIVil ENGINEER

3

~

NEWS 05

London

Megaportdeveloper looks for way out of funding of a key M25 junction upgrade.

14

COVERSTORY

Cliff Mumm

As Bechtel signs the Crossrail project delivery partner contract, NCE speaks to the man in charge.

18

TUNNELLING SPECIAL HallandsasTunnel

One ofEurope's most chequered rail projects is finally making

goodprogressafter

Aisein thisissue

Letters

Transport, environment, structures,health & safety

06 News 12

Caution overreservoir registerplans

06 News

Bechtelwins Network Rail Crossrailjob

38 ICENews

ICE callsfor national infrastructure baTIk

08 News

EDF'snudear power plans

40 Spotlight

NCElooks at newways to improve site safety

Subscribe to NCE 0844 848 8859

UK1:130

1

1

Comment "Whatisreallyimportant fortheUKand theUKtaxpayeristhatthebestfirms andthebestpeopleareemployed"

Antony Oliver 1

Doing the best job means going global to get the best

So three American firms have now been put in charge of the design and construction of the f15.9bn Crossrail project. And France's EDF this week renewed its commitment to building the UK a new generation of nudear power stations by 2017.

Does it really marrer that UK firms are not leading these initiatives?

Well according to maTIrin the industry the answer is reg. Anecdotally we are told that awarding such important contracts under- mines the ability of our home-grown talent

Building on the platform of the "British jobsfor British workers" row, there is even realfear that it might undermine the govern- ment'srecession busting plan to pump cash intoinfrastructure. By failing to ensure that UKhrms win the lion's share of this public investment cash, it is said, we could jeop- ardisethe skills base of the nation and our abilityto work our way back into the black Rubbish. For all the emotive talk about

now being the critical moment to invest in UK talent, the world has moved on nom such protectionist practice. Tthas had to.

Because whether we are talking about a new underground railway, a nudear power station fleet, road scheme or reservoir, what is really important for the UK and the UK taxpayer is that the best firms and the best people are employed.

And as Bechtel Crossrail project delivery manager Cliff Mumm makes clear this week, we are in a global construction industry involving global firms and global people.

That means when US based firms like his work in the UK they employ the best UK based engineers possible.

The result is that only four of the current 92 Bechtel staff on Crossrail are froIDthe us and it is a similar story with Transcend where the vast bulk of CH2M Hill and Aecom staff are also UK based.

Ttworks both ways of course. UK based

firms such as Halcrow, Mott MacDonald and Arup work all around the world employing locally based talent. As a quick scan through last month's NCE Consultants Pile will confirm, all of these firms have seen their overseas workload soar to approaching or beyond 50%of total turnover.

EDF chief executive Vincent da Rivaz was equally robust about the folly of the UK infrastructure industry getting hung up on this global issue. Delivery of a new genera- lion of nudear power was about long term business and not about parachuting skills in. As such it is a massive opportunity to develop the local supply chain and a massive opportunity to grow the UK's skills base.

So forger about such nationalistic protec- tionist nonsense. Infrastructure development is key to the economic rescue package and will be delivered by the best teams available.

Being part of it means being with the best.

. Antony Oliver is NCE's editor