UK Geotechnical Team of the Year
This award celebrates any multi-company collaborative project team involved in the UK geotechnical industry either on a specific project or as part of a framework on multiple projects.
The success of the project team should be demonstrated in terms of how the team culture led to improved project delivery, how the entire project team was focused on mutual goals and joint activities that highlight outstanding performance.
Aecom and the EEFIT Team
EEFIT mission to Morocco
The EEFIT Mission to Morocco, led by a UK team of geologists and structural engineers, from both Industry and Academia, with key support from Moroccan Universities and NGOs, provides an exemplar case study of collaboration, working in a challenging condition in a complex post-disaster environment. The mission, integrating local knowledge with cutting-edge technology, evaluated a complex geophysical phenomenon utilising both remote sensing and field reconnaissance techniques to support Morocco in understanding their resilience to earthquakes with the aim of reducing the impact of future events. The culture of collaboration, but also the shared goals of learning from earthquakes to support communities to improve resilience to future events, enabled the team to develop a detailed understanding of the impact of the earthquake and contributing factors to aspects such as landslides and the geological controls on building damage.
Amey Consulting
Trackbed design team
The W4 TRU design process required close collaborative working between the Amey Geotechnical and Permanent Way design disciplines, Network Rail’s Route Track Engineer and trackbed team, CVL and TRU Project Engineers and Construction teams. This ensured a balance between efficient, carbon-reduced design and the timescales required for the logistical challenges involved in prebooking volumes of material in advance. Review and analysis of the W4 TRU track scope offered a track formation specification reduction for 6.5km, enabling a reduction in direct construction costs, a 25% increase in construction efficiency and an 860T CO2e carbon saving. By investing £50k in the assessment, the W4 design team demonstrated tangible benefits, with potential multimillion pound savings across the TRU scheme which the programme can incorporate into upcoming works and demonstrate MVP. The design team’s collaborative approach, and the analysis undertaken, is a best practice template for conducting track scope reviews on detailed design datasets.
Arcadis
Guildford STW
The Guildford Sewage Treatment Plant project exemplifies exceptional collaboration, innovation, and engineering excellence, achieved through the combined efforts of the geotechnical team during the design and construction phases. Delivered for Thames Water by the Geotechnical Team of Arcadis, BAM Nuttall, and Foundation Piling, the project transformed a former landfill into a state-of-the-art facility, overcoming significant geotechnical challenges. By employing cutting-edge techniques, including a combination of ground improvement methods such as Rapid Impact Compaction (RIC) and Vertical Rigid Inclusions (VRIs), as well as advanced collaborative tools like Leapfrog 3D, GIS, and BIM360 modelling, the team successfully met stringent settlement criteria for pipelines and critical structures while incorporating value engineering — one of the project’s most significant challenges. Open communication fostered a strong team culture, ensuring efficient problem-solving and maintaining an enjoyable working environment despite the technical complexities. The project has delivered lasting benefits to Guildford’s community.
Arup Typsa Strabag JV, HS2 and Skanska Costain Strabag JV
HS2 Northolt Tunnels West: Asset protection team
The Northolt Tunnels West asset protection team brings together geotechnical, tunnelling, damage assessment, and instrumentation and monitoring specialisms from the Arup-Typsa- Strabag Design JV, Skanska-Costain-Strabag (SCS) Construction JV, and High Speed 2 Ltd to ensure the safe and efficient completion of tunnelling activities and manage the risk to assets owned by third-parties. For projects of this type, which interface directly with the public and other stakeholders, it is vital for the engineering team to be able to operate effectively. A deliberate focus on creating a strong and cohesive team has created the best possible environment for solving the real-time technical challenges created by tunnelling through a congested urban environment.
AtkinsRéalis, Network Rail and Octavius Infrastructure
Crewkerne cutting emergency works: One team Wessex
The Network Rail-Octavius-AtkinsRéalis-Tony Gee & Partners CP6 Earthworks Framework team (One Team Wessex) had to tackle not one but two landslips adjacent to the London End Tunnel Portal in a cutting on the Salisbury to Exeter railway line at Crewkerne, Somerset. Through round the clock working, collaborative site workshops and engagement with the local community, the team were able to reopen the railway quickly and ensure public safety. The temporary and permanent works designs needed to be in sync and meet Network Rail approval efficiently while maintaining constructability. Difficult access and poor ground conditions required innovative construction methods and sequencing and a phased approach balancing risk needed buy in from the whole team in an open and trusted environment. Geotechnical evaluation including understanding movement triggers and ground characterisation through rope access mapping and LiDAR interpretation allowed forward planning to limit impact of the second landslide during a further storm.
Bam Nuttall
South west rail resilience programme: Dawlish to Holcombe cliff resilience phase 4 project
This was a large, technically complex cliff stabilisation project in a geologically sensitive area over 1.2km in nine Cliff Behavioural Units (CBUs) in a harsh marine environment above a live mainline railway. It was undertaken by multiple geotechnical teams working concurrently, suspended from cliffs including subvertical areas up to 40m high, with up to 18 drill rigs working simultaneously to install 6,200 soil nails totalling 60km length with netting to stabilise the cliffs. From tender stage our integrated team comprising Network Rail, BAM rail and drilling specialists, designer Tony Gee, drilling specialists CAN and material supplier DYWIDAG worked closely together to complete the design and construction works. To overcome funding problems our team collaborated to provide an innovative solution during both the design and construction process, challenging all of the existing designs and developing and employing the first-of-its-kind combination bar without compromising the required 100-year design life.
British Land, Cementation Skanska, Ramboll and Sir Robert McAlpine
2 Finsbury Avenue
The redevelopment of 2 Finsbury Avenue showcases exceptional collaboration between Ramboll, Cementation Skanska, Sir Robert McAlpine and British Land. This project involved transforming two existing single-storey basements into a three-storey substructure, supporting 37- and 23-storey towers above. The team adopted a unified “project first” culture, enabling innovative solutions to overcome significant site constraints in a dense urban environment. Highlights include eliminating external bearing piles to maximise basement area, using bespoke plunge columns to facilitate top-down construction - saving nine months on the programme – and employing advanced instrumentation and monitoring, value engineering, and market-beating low-carbon materials. Delivering engineering excellence, sustainability, and high-quality outcomes, the project is a landmark for Broadgate and London. The collaboration and innovation exemplified by this team are why British Land called it “A Team Like No Other.”
Robert Bird Group
Wet Dock Hall, Govan
There are certain projects that, due to their complexity and constraints, simply aren’t possible without all parties collaborating from the start and it was immediately obvious to the entire design team that Wet Dock Hall was one of them. Wet Dock Hall, Glasgow, will facilitate the construction of 26 naval frigates, has a footprint of 170mx80m and will provide the largest column-free internal space within the UK. It has been constructed over the footprint of a previous 280mx90mx14m deep dock, that was infilled as part of the scheme. It will sit above a 1500mm thick base slab which is supported by over 6000 driven piles. Over the course of this project, the Main Contractor, Structural Engineer, Civil Engineer, two geotechnical teams and a piling contractor worked together in collaboration, rather than simply cooperating. This unlocked opportunities to significantly reduce project cost, programme and, importantly, its carbon footprint.
Soil Engineering Geoservices
The landslip, Leeson Road, Ventnor
The Leeson Road landslip in December 2023 displaced 16 hectares of land and 14 million cubic meters of material, causing significant disruption. The emergency response, led by Ringway Island Roads and Isle of Wight Council, included road closure and safety assessments. AtkinsRealis provided technical guidance, while Socotec installed real-time monitoring equipment. Soil Engineering conducted ground investigations and installed deep boreholes for further monitoring. Public engagement was key, with updates via press releases, social media, and public meetings. Regular collaboration among specialists ensured transparency and accountability. By November 2024, the road was reopened to two-way traffic, restoring normalcy for residents and businesses.
Soil Engineering Geoservices
Northumberland Park station grouting
The Northumberland Line project aimed to stimulate economic growth and community development by re-opening rail lines and adding six new stations from southeast Northumberland to Newcastle. The team’s success was driven by a culture of trust, respect, and commitment to quality. Key factors included early stakeholder engagement, continuous collaboration, and a focus on safety and the environment. Coaching empowered team members, and the mix of experienced engineers and recent graduates fostered creativity and problem-solving. Regular progress tracking and clear communication ensured alignment with objectives, allowing the team to exceed expectations and deliver exceptional results despite challenging conditions.