Specialist Contractor of the Year
Cognition Land and Water
Cognition Land and Water, a leading specialist contractor in brownfield remediation, ground engineering and complex civil engineering, excels at derisking challenging sites. On-time, on-budget delivery, prioritizing practicality, innovation, and sustainability resulted in Cognition’s highest ever turnover and profit in 2023/24.As an Employee Ownership Trust, Cognition has expanded its service offering and developed a team that takes pride and ownership of its work. They care deeply for the environment and the communities in which they work as a Carbon Neutral Company. As one of their clients said recently, “Cognition is a reliable contractor with a pragmatic, collaborative ‘can do’ attitude”.
Creagh Concrete Products
Creagh Concrete deserves the Specialist Contractor of the Year award for our groundbreaking work on the Granary Quay project. From innovative use of precast panels and architectural concrete finishes to delivering 342 new homes and contributing to the Dandara riverside masterplan, we've demonstrated excellence in customer satisfaction, growth, innovation, and quality. Our efficient project completion within a year showcases our commitment to timely, high-quality construction. Creagh Concrete stands out as a leader in the industry, shaping urban landscapes and setting new benchmarks for Specialist Contractors.
Lanes Group
In 2023, Lanes Group plc significantly strengthened its position as the UK’s largest drainage and wastewater contractor with projected turnover breaking through half a billion pounds.Through acquisition, new service start-ups and continuous innovation, it has unrivalled ability to support the largest infrastructure projects with the latest and most capable specialist vehicles and technologies, at any scale.Still a family-run business, Lanes has demonstrated the value of its expertise in many construction projects, is trusted to deliver by the country’s biggest contractors, and is diversifying into new service streams that will be vital for building projects of the future.
McGee
We believe our entry showcases our unwavering commitment to innovation and sustainability across all aspects of our projects. From our employee-driven Ideas Hub, generating and implementing innovative ideas, to revolutionary approaches like the new basement construction methodology and pioneering carbon engineering solutions, we continuously push boundaries and drive tangible value for our clients. Our track record of delivering complex projects with reduced carbon emissions, enhanced efficiency, and groundbreaking solutions demonstrates our leadership and commitment to the industry. With a significant increase in turnover reflecting our success, we embody a culture of creativity and forward-thinking that sets new standards of excellence.
Menard
Menard has continued its upward trend of revenue growth whilst maintaining market leading profitability. Our people are the catalyst of our growth, they take pride in the way we meet the challenges presented to us by our customers and our success is undoubtedly built on our ability to deliver technical solutions which provide cost, programme and carbon footprint benefits.Our most important development of 2023 has been the embedment of our culture, where passion, creativity and ownership are encouraged. Our staff have embraced our Personal Choices behavioural safety programme which has helped us maintain high safety and well-being standards.
Mivan
Mivan embodies unwavering dedication to excellence, innovation, safety, sustainability, and client satisfaction. Our commitment to innovation drives pioneering solutions, setting new industry benchmarks and consistently exceeding expectations. In 2023, Mivan celebrated unprecedented success, with notable financial performance, establishing a Digital Construction Team and securing our largest fit-out contract ever. Our marine portfolio expanded with new clients in new markets, showcasing professionalism and exceptional results. Client satisfaction, built on trust and reliability, helps drives repeat business and numerous accolades. Mivan's exceptional achievements position us as a global leader in specialist contracting.
OKTO Technologies
OKTO provided systems integration for 25 of the most opulent apartments yet built in London. Their innovative off-site Mirror-Build approach, ensured seamless integration and simplifying operations on site. While RWPV testing meant Real World performance was validated. Adept problem-solving extended beyond their original scope to provide bespoke facade automation and a customized traffic management system. Testimonials from Prime Developments, Hong Kong & Shanghai Hotels, and Sir Robert McAlpine affirm OKTO's instrumental role. The evolution of their package from £500,000 to over £10,000,000 underscores client confidence in OKTO's ability to deliver intricate project elements with unparalleled expertise and commitment to excellence.
Selwood
Selwood is renowned as the UK’s leader in pump rental and engineered water handling solutions, employing more than 500 staff across a UK-wide branch network.Its teams provide solutions to many of the UK’s leading construction businesses, on a range of applications from straightforward rental to large, complex infrastructure projects.Selwood launched three key initiatives in 2023, focusing on Sustainability, Community, and Workplace Safety.These initiatives promoted greener ways of working and supply chain accountability, raised thousands of pounds for charity and good causes in local communities, and had a positive impact on workplace hazard reporting and accident prevention.
Statom Group
With an ethos of continual improvement we have been gaining clients and projects year on year. The continual reinvestment of profits into the company had enabled growth above and beyond our competitors. Our commitment to Concrete Zero by 2050 and the early achievement of the 2025 commitment and our work with British Offsite for a quasi modular construction method demonstrates our commitment to building sustainably. Our ability to self deliver many packages from remediation, groundworks, demolition, tower cranes and concrete frames makes us the contractor of choice for our clients.
Structural Soils
Structural Soils Limited had another prosperous year in 2023. We successfully delivered the largest ground investigation in our 60-year history, a £16 million ground investigation on the A66, and a £600,000 technical ground investigation in Dinorwig. We have made significant investments in equipment, including our downhole geologging equipment, high-pressure dilatometer and magnetic resonance. In turn, we have upskilled employees and increased job satisfaction. We are proud of our staff retention rate and promote from within where possible.We expanded our corporate responsibility and sustainability aspirations this year, contributing 957 hours over 39 activities.
Techrete
Techrete are proud of our performance in all aspects of the business last year. We made an exciting break-through with the decarbonisation of our panels, deployed successfully on two major projects and with plans to expand this formula to our range, we are well on track to achieving our goal of reaching net zero by 2030. We completed the facades for three outstanding projects for clients, Mace/LLDC, at Stratford’s Eastbank and with a robust financial performance, we continued to invest heavily in R&D, our facilities, sustainability and our people - our future as a major supplier to the construction industry.