In this guest blog, David Tomlin, Senior Project Manager at Kier, discusses how Bostik met the mark on the recently completed Katherine Warington School project.
As a Senior Project Manager at Kier, it’s my job to oversee multi-million-pound projects, and a big part of this is managing the different companies we work with on each one. Only when we are all working in harmony will a project go to plan, so it’s a crucial aspect of what I do.
For me, there are two key performance indicators when it comes to selecting the best partners: quality and commitment. We need any company we work with to be able to deliver a high-quality product on completion, and we need them to have the right level of commitment to ensure that the installation is on time and to spec, as well as making sure all health and safety requirements are met during their time on site.
Working with Bostik
When we recently collaborated with Bostik on the Katherine Warington School project in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, the company met both of these criteria. The Bostik team came on board many weeks prior to the carpet and vinyl install to survey the screed areas and perform moisture level checks to ensure the substrate was suitable for the installation. The team’s key qualities were ultimately proven in the excellent job they did.
“Bostik’s expertise and professionalism […] played a pivotal role in ensuring that [all parties] were all extremely pleased with the finished project.”
The fact that they visited the site so far in advance was invaluable. The surveys Bostik carried out highlighted a few areas where the specification wasn’t fully met – for example, some drying out of the floor substrate needed to take place prior to the floor finishes being installed. This early mitigation strategy was key to ensuring that the school could be handed over on time, with assurances of a high level of quality.
Bostik’s expertise and professionalism – as well as the first-class products they supplied – played a pivotal role in ensuring that the school, the Headmaster, the Trust and the Department for Education were all extremely pleased with the finished project and the timely handover.
Health & safety above all
Equally important to me, as Senior Project Manager, was the health and safety of everyone on site during the construction period. On any project I work on, I have three main focuses, in this order of priority: health and safety, quality, programme. Only when all health and safety measures are observed, and any injuries are prevented, can a project ever be called a total success.
This is true in all circumstances, but never more so than during a global pandemic, as much of the Katherine Warington School project was. Thankfully, the Kier guidance on COVID-19, in line with the Construction Leadership Council Guidance, was followed to the letter – and, despite interruptions and a host of changes to our working practices, the project was delivered on schedule.
“Only when all health and safety measures are observed, and any injuries are prevented, can a project ever be called a total success.”
Of course, crucial to this was the buy-in we had from all the different companies in our supply chain – including Bostik – who willingly adopted the new methods and committed to the cause wholeheartedly. This collaboration between various parties helped ensure that the project was a success, and was another example of why choosing the right companies to work with is a key part of what I do.
To read a case study about Bostik’s work on the Katherine Warington School project, click here. For more information about Kier, please visit www.kier.co.uk.
