Awards

Best Project – Small: The Greenside Rain Garden, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Council

The Greenside rain gardens in Hammersmith & Fulham are an innovative, community-led scheme that has transformed a flood-prone residential street into a vibrant, climate resilient and people focused space.

Triggered by severe property flooding during the July 2021 rainfall event, alongside ongoing concerns around antisocial behaviour, the project set out to deliver a holistic solution that would address environmental challenges while improving quality of life for residents.

The primary objectives were to reduce surface water flood risk, enhance the public realm, and create a safer, more inclusive street environment. A key ambition was to demonstrate how a highway infrastructure project can contribute to climate adaptation while delivering wider social and educational benefits.

The project scope included the redesign of a section of Westville Road into a pedestrian priority space, centred around the integration of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS).

At the heart of the scheme are three large raingardens, that captures, filters and gradually releases rainwater.

These features significantly improve drainage capacity while supporting urban greening and biodiversity.

A defining feature of the project is its collaborative approach. Residents, community groups, and Greenside Primary School pupils were actively involved in the design process.

Year 5 pupils created designs for the space following hands-on learning about climate change and SuDS, highway design and engineering, directly shaping the scheme.

Residents, parents and guardians and school pupils participated in planting and requested to re-name the space, fostering a strong sense of ownership and long-term stewardship.

Best Project – Large: Colindale Station Redevelopment (CSR), Morgan Sindall Infrastructure

The Colindale Station Redevelopment (CSR) is a landmark achievement by Morgan Sindall Infrastructure (MSI) for Transport for London (TfL), transforming one of the Northern line's most constrained and inaccessible stations into a modern, step-free transport gateway that is already changing lives and unlocking regeneration.

Located on the Edgware branch, Colindale Station had long suffered from congestion, poor accessibility and restricted passenger flow which had become entrenched problems, made worse by rapid local housing growth. CSR tackled all of this head-on.

The outdated station was replaced entirely with a bold new facility built directly above the operational railway. This ingenious approach simultaneously freed land on both sides of the tracks to support housing development, in direct alignment with the Mayor of London's Transport Strategy.

The result is a station that works for everyone with full step-free access from street to platform, an expanded ticket hall, improved circulation routes, and a distinctive curved glulam roof inspired by the historic Hendon Aerodrome. Blue and green roofs enhance biodiversity and manage surface water, reflecting the ambition to build infrastructure that gives back to its environment.

Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) starting in 2020 was decisive. MSI, AtkinsRéalis, TfL and the supply chain refined the design together, engineered out risk, and developed 20 value engineering proposals worth £4.5m in savings.

Best project – Asset Resilience: Thames Path at Kew, Tony Gee and Partners LLP

The Thames Path at Kew is a high-profile public route along the river, heavily used by residents, commuters, walkers, and cyclists, adjacent to the Royal Botanic Gardens. The project arose following the collapse of a section of towpath, creating an immediate public safety risk, preventing access to all users.

The project objectives were to:

• restore public access between Richmond and Kew
• reopen the route as quickly as possible
• stabilise the towpath embankment and extend the asset life
• deliver a solution that respected the site’s heritage and character, enhance accessibility, and protect the surrounding ecology

The scope included emergency assessment works, investigation of the failure, evaluation of different repair options, stakeholder engagement (Port of London Authority, Environment Agency, Crown Estate), detailed design, and construction of a new towpath.

A defining feature of this project was the need to deliver a robust and safe design solution in a complex hydraulic arrangement between the Thames and its flood plain beyond the towpath embankment, with extremely limited access.

The towpath and assets date back to the 1700s and have undergone numerous undocumented modifications over time. The project approach integrated historic infrastructure while developing a constructible and resilient solution.

The design introduced a carefully considered engineered solution that allowed water to safely and efficiently reach the floodplain at a controlled location.

By doing so, it reduced the volume of uncontrolled overtopping on more sensitive stretches of the towpath, and subsequent damage.

Best Project – Innovation: Whale on the Wharf, Holcim UK

The Whale on the Wharf (Skyscraper) is a 12-metre, four-storey public sculpture by New York-based studio StudioKCA, installed within an impounded dock at Wood Wharf, Canary Wharf.

Constructed from five tonnes of ocean plastic recovered from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the artwork depicts a breaching blue whale and stands as one of London's most striking environmental statements — accessible free of charge to over 120,000 daily visitors to the Canary Wharf estate.

The sculpture's cantilevered, asymmetric geometry generates significant overturning and wind-induced tension forces, demanding robust submerged counterweight foundations.

Rather than resort to conventional high-carbon concrete, Canary Wharf Group (CWG) partnered with Holcim UK and structural engineers Thornton Tomasetti to develop an entirely new concrete formulation: 'Bio-Espresso' — a world-first biochar-enhanced structural mix incorporating spent coffee grounds sourced directly from Canary Wharf's own cafés and restaurants.

Biochar is produced from coppiced UK hardwoods and spent coffee grounds via pyrolysis — heating biomass at high temperature without oxygen.

Incorporated at approximately 7% of fine aggregate volume, alongside GGBS and limestone fines, the Bio-Espresso mix reduces high-clinker cement content while physically sequestering biogenic carbon within the concrete matrix for the full life of the structure and beyond.

Five loads (32m³) were batched at Holcim UK's Battersea Readymix plant and placed underwater by specialist marine contractor DiveCo Marine, using commercial divers in a live dock environment above London Underground infrastructure and adjacent to Grade I listed dock walls.

The result was exceptional: a 66% reduction in embodied carbon versus standard CEM I concrete (GWP A1–A3: 69 kgCO₂e/m³ versus 204 kgCO₂e/m³), while exceeding all structural performance requirements. The mix achieved 45.8 N/mm² at 28 days against a specification of 25 N/mm², with continued strength gain to 50.1 N/mm² at 56 days.

Best Project – Sustainability:

The Richmond Cycle Hub is a landmark sustainable transport infrastructure project delivered at Richmond (London) Station for South Western Railway (SWR).

Completed in October 2025, the scheme provides a modern, secure and highly sustainable cycle parking facility that promotes integrated active and public transport whilst enhancing the wider station environment and public realm.

Originally developed through the Department for Transport’s Cycle Rail funding initiative, the project sought to significantly increase cycle parking capacity whilst maintaining operational railway functionality and minimising impacts on the existing station car park.

The completed facility increased secure cycle parking provision from 172 spaces to 790 spaces within a compact constrained footprint, encouraging long-term modal shift away from private car use towards integrated cycling and electrified rail travel.

Invvu Construction Consultants acted as multidisciplinary lead designer for the scheme, undertaking Architectural, Civils, Structural, Geotechnical and M&E detailed design together with CEM and CRE-D responsibilities for Architecture, Civils & Structures and M&E.

Invvu also managed surveys and stakeholder interfaces, undertook Category 2 internal checking roles and delivered temporary works designs for MEWP and mobile crane operations and construction adjacent to the live operational railway.

A highly efficient lightweight steel-framed structure was developed with Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) floor systems, achieving substantial dead load reductions compared with traditional concrete floor construction.

This enabled the elimination of piling works entirely, significantly reducing embodied carbon, material usage, noise, vibration and spoil generation during construction.

Additional sustainability measures included solar PV integration, intelligent lighting controls, rainwater harvesting and installation of a green wall system.

Team of the Year - Colindale Station Redevelopment (CSR), Morgan Sindall Infrastructure

The Colindale Station Redevelopment (CSR) is proof of what an integrated, high-performing team can achieve and what becomes possible when a client, contractor, designer and supply chain genuinely work as one.

Delivered collaboratively by Morgan Sindall Infrastructure (MSI), Transport for London's London Underground, AtkinsRéalis and an integrated supply chain, CSR transforms a congested, inaccessible Northern line station into a modern, step-free transport hub that supports major regeneration and the Mayor of London's Transport Strategy.

The scheme replaced the outdated station entirely with a new building constructed directly above the operational railway. Together, the team developed a layout that increases capacity, introduces full step-free access, and improves passenger circulation through a larger ticket hall, wider staircases and level boarding.

The station's architectural centrepiece, a curved glulam roof inspired by Hendon Aerodrome, emerged from joint design workshops, with the blue-and-green roof system shaped through combined engineering, sustainability and planning expertise.

Collaboration was central from the very start. Early Contractor Involvement began in 2020, with MSI, AtkinsRéalis and TfL jointly running optioneering, value engineering and constructability workshops that produced 20 proposals and £4.5m in savings.

The redesign of the station superstructure to span fully across the running lines, eliminating intermediate supports entirely, required structural, operational and assurance expertise from across the whole partnership.

The glulam roof installation, pilecap volume reductions of 15%, and delivery of 34 bored piles during the Easter 2024 blockade were all made possible through tightly coordinated, multi-organisation working.

The team's most celebrated achievement, the first ever daytime concrete deck pour over a live London Underground railway, was a product of that culture: jointly designed, jointly risk-managed, and jointly delivered.

PAS2080-aligned carbon management has delivered a 16% whole-life carbon reduction and 36% reduction in operational energy-related emissions while social value delivered to date exceeds £6.9m through digital inclusion sessions, youth engagement, Ramadan outreach, foodbank collections and the establishment of a new Debt Advice Room at the Colindale Community Trust.

The collective efforts of the CSR team have generated tangible wider and community benefits.

ICE London STEM Ambassador of the Year 2026

As an ICE Ambassador, Afua Essel stands at the forefront of inspiring the next generation of engineers.

The judges praised her enthusiasm, her commitment to outreach, and the genuine impact she’s had on young people across the region.

“Afua Essel is a truly deserving winner of the ICE London STEM Ambassador of the Year 2026.

What sets Afua apart is not just the breadth of what she does, but the depth of thought behind how she does it.

She has independently designed and delivered a remarkable range of programmes spanning primary schools, secondary schools, public libraries, and her local community, demonstrating a sustained and genuine commitment to making engineering accessible to everyone, not just those who already feel it is for them.”

This recognition highlights not only her dedication, but her commitment to shape the future engineering.

Afua will now represent the London region in the UK competition final.

Rising Star of the Year - Katie Nicoll, MottMacDonald

Katie consistently goes beyond her day-to-day role, demonstrating innovation, leadership, integrity, and a genuine commitment to inclusive civil engineering practice.

Through her Innovation Early Career Professional (ECP) role Katie promotes innovation within Civil Engineering, leading 17 ‘challenge chats’, engaging 205 staff and capturing 57 project inefficiencies, directly informing technical excellence activities.

Katie led in-person innovation workshops to identify and solve issues in ground investigation and design efficiency.

The workshops generated valuable discussion and colleagues now regularly approach Katie to discuss project and technical delivery inefficiencies.

Mentor of the Year - Si Shen, Rendel

What makes Si exceptional is his ability to combine technical excellence with genuine human connection.

He is an outstanding engineer with deep expertise across major infrastructure and geotechnical projects, yet he remains approachable, patient, and fully invested in the success of others.

Si’s mentorship has directly contributed to the development of highly accomplished engineers.

One example is Arabel Vilas Serín, now a Chartered Principal Geotechnical and Tunnel Engineer with experience on globally significant infrastructure projects including HS2, Thames Tideway Tunnel, Melbourne Metro, and the Lower Thames Crossing.