Based in our Aldgate London office, Andy leads our National Security team within the Building Engineering group, while also delivering major multidisciplinary projects for our clients. He specializes in design and delivery of multifaceted complex projects working with government departments as well as Tier 1 construction delivery partners, from inception through to completion. He draws on ArchTam’s extensive subject matter and technical expertise from across the region to solve our client’s challenges.

Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry.

I knew I wanted a career which had variety — something that enables me to deliver tangible outcomes and that didn’t involve an all-day desk job. I started my career at 16 as a trainee engineer while pursuing education at a local technical college. After four years, I studied Building Services Engineering part-time and graduated with honors.

I became a Chartered Engineer in 2001 and having achieved my professional recognition, I realised that I needed to develop my management and business skills, so I undertook a part-time course in Master of Business Administration. Finally, my formal education concluded with a Post-Graduate Diploma in Adjudication and Construction Law with 15 years of formal part-time study in total.

I really enjoyed the fact that you can use science and engineering to design sustainable systems and spaces for communities. From awareness of energy conservation and climate change of the late 1980s and early 1990s, the industry has changed significantly for the better and I enjoy the fact that there are new challenges every day and we need to constantly push ourselves further to be smarter with our design solutions.

To date, my career has involved me working in Hong Kong for 12 months, all over Europe and five years intermittently in India, the Middle East, as well as every part of the United Kingdom.

What is your favorite ArchTam project that you have worked on and why?

An ArchTam client with whom we had an existing working relationship in the UK came to us with a problem. They wanted to deliver several high quality secure technical facilities in three remote locations in India and wanted to know if we could help. As the project director, I worked with the client directly to understand their concerns and needs. I reached out to our team in Delhi, who managed to identify engineers and construction management specialists with local knowledge of regulations and permitting and supply chain challenges.

We supported the client in technical design assurance, procurement, construction quality management, health and safety, and eventual handover and acceptance of the facilities. During the five-year project, we overcame many cultural and geographical boundaries, forged positive relationships and friendships, and even travelled to some very remote areas and braved challenging climates. We exceeded our client’s expectations, despite the notorious monkeys removing everything that was screwed to the outside of the building.

Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.

Early in my career, we succeeded in winning a competition to design a new primary school in an underserved area of Coventry, England. The primary school was sited between two divided communities, and each of them wanted their own school. But with the client’s goal of bringing the communities together, it made sense to combine the available capital budgets and build a single new school.

The school had a ‘fan blade design’ — a concept design that represents the fan blade of a prop engine — that reflected the industrial heritage of the area. The design meant a complex roof/building shape that needed detailed building simulation to maximize the benefit of natural ventilation and daylight. Extensive simulation modelling for daylight and natural ventilation, and sustainable credentials created flexible learning spaces to exceed anything that the city had built before.

The early planning sessions and stakeholder engagement were challenging, but with a strong head teacher leadership and an informed client, the community became engaged. The high-quality design and construction brought a sense of pride for the community, students, and the school staff. I often pass the school on the train to London, and it makes me smile that 20 years on it is still achieving what we set it up to do.

Share a piece of career advice.

You never know how far you can take yourself, so if you keep striving for continuous improvement, you will eventually find what helps you thrive and makes you professionally fulfilled.

Always say yes to every opportunity that comes your way, and actively seek it out. Experience, good or bad, shapes you as a person and each interaction positively builds your character and confidence.

Remember humility costs nothing and you will be repaid many times over during your career if you invest wisely in ‘doing the right thing’.

The post <strong>People Spotlight: Meet Andy Brookes</strong> appeared first on Blog.

Dominic is a graduate project manager in our Project Programme & Cost team in Bristol and works predominantly in the Defense and Highways sectors. He has been with ArchTam since 2020, joining straight after completing his bachelor’s degree at Newcastle University in England.

Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry.

My interest in construction and project management started during my undergraduate degree in geography. Studying both human and physical geography encouraged me to learn about how economic development has an impact on the environment. I was also fortunate to undertake several work placements at construction consultancies, importantly an insightful placement at ArchTam for the summer of second year of university.

This placement opened my eyes to the many ways I could pursue my passion for the environment and allowed me to experience what a career in project management would be like. Working in construction project management blends both technical and soft skills to successfully manage a project and it was this unique mix of skills that really attracted me to the industry.

Our Bristol office welcomed me during this placement, and I am fortunate to be back there now continuing to develop my career in the industry. I am also lucky to have been inspired by my father, who has himself enjoyed a rewarding career in project management.

What is your favorite ArchTam project that you’ve worked on and why?

My favorite project is one that I am currently working on for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) at Kendrew Barracks in Rutland, England. The work is multifaceted, and ranges from delivering an assessment study to assist in the rationalisation of the MoD Estate, to supporting the delivery of over 140 military working dog kennels.

Our team has been engaged to carry out a fully compliant DEO (Defence Estate Optimisation) Assessment study to examine the options of various military units moving to Kendrew Barracks. This optimisation of the barracks will enable the MoD to rationalize their estate and focus several key capabilities at one location.

As part of this process, our team is developing a holistic masterplan for the site that culminates in a RIBA 2 set of drawings undertaken by our in-house design team. This has been a great experience so far, as I have had the opportunity to work with ArchTam colleagues from a range of different offices in the UK.

In parallel, our team is undertaking a technical services role for the DIO (Defence Infrastructure Organisation) to assist in the delivery of the 1 Military Working Dogs Unit to Kendrew Barracks. This scope of works includes the provision of 140 plus dog kennels, squadron offices, scent training facilities, armoury and many more. Having sight of both of these projects provides our client with the ability to de-conflict decisions made for both work streams to optimize future master planning at Kendrew Barracks.

Working in Defence comes with unique challenges that lend themselves to agile and reactive project management. These projects offer an opportunity to help deliver vital capabilities for the UK military, which is greatly rewarding and the perfect opportunity to learn and grow. Alongside the opportunity to develop skills and understanding of the Defence sector, the project has allowed me to collaborate with many great people from a range of different companies. Without the support of all these individuals, I wouldn’t have been able to expand my skillset as much as I have.

Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.

I have been very fortunate to work on projects that support local communities and deliver social value to the areas that they are developed in. Whether this be through direct improvement to the areas in which they are based, or through the provision of infrastructure that supports the residents of these communities.

Alongside my work in Defence, I have been fortunate to work with Somerset Council in South West England to help deliver critical highways infrastructure across the county through their Signal Recovery Framework. The Signal Recovery Framework is aimed at improving the local highways infrastructure across Somerset County, through maintenance and re-design, so that the local traffic network can run more efficiently and better connect the region as a whole.

These projects are so important to the local communities, and it is incredibly rewarding to be one of the project managers on the multi-disciplinary and organizational team of people who are working collaboratively to improve and promote this.

Share a piece of career advice.

I am still very early into my career but my biggest piece of advice for anyone starting or thinking of joining the industry would be to take all the opportunities you can. By fully immersing yourself in the opportunities that will take you out of your comfort zone, you will continue to grow as a professional.

I have also greatly benefited from trying to observe and learn as much as I can from those around me. Across all my projects, as well as through time in the office with my wider team, I have been surrounded by experienced and knowledgeable colleagues. By absorbing as many of your teammates’ tips and tricks as possible you can develop your own styles and methods of project delivery.

Finally, it is important to remember that you’ve got your full career ahead of you – so while keeping that in perspective, try to enjoy your career journey as much as you can.

The post <strong>People Spotlight: </strong>Meet Dominic Marsh appeared first on Blog.

Steve leads defence consulting delivering projects both in the UK and abroad. He is a chartered civil engineer who started out in the water sector before joining the British Army, serving 16 years in the Royal Engineers. Steve joined ArchTam’s Project Management team in 2018 and works from Leeds.

Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry.

The opportunities and challenges that one can experience working in civil engineering was my initial draw to the industry. Early on and prior to joining the Army, I got to work on public health engineering projects in Indonesia studying a waterborne disease and then in Malaysia on a project to improve drinking water quality. I absolutely loved this work and it confirmed my initial impression of what the industry had to offer. This was followed by 16 years in the British Army as a military engineer. The projects I worked on were varied, challenging and took me all over the world.

In the military, the opportunity to work on post-conflict stabilisation projects were the most rewarding. This often required close liaison with the local community leaders, partnering nations and NGOs to help deliver roads, schools, hospitals and irrigation works key to the social cohesion. To date, my career has offered a rich variety of life experience which spans from building complexes in equatorial Africa, to air strips in Arctic Norway as well as bridges in Middlesbrough and Water Treatment Plants in Newcastle Upon-Tyne – long may this continue!

What is your favorite ArchTam project that you’ve worked on and why?

Since 2019, we have been delivering a UK government funded project in Jordan incorporating delivering training facilities at multiple sites across the country. ArchTam has delivered the project management, design and construction supervision services from concept through to handover. The goal was the security and stabilisation of a region impacted by multiple conflicts. The people and the culture of this country are fantastic and the place is well worth a visit. Most satisfying is that the team we built at the start of the journey has remained intact throughout, while continuing to grow, and has thrived on the challenges presented.

We have seen the project evolve from concept to the stage where some of the facilities are now in use. We have developed firm partnerships with ArchTam colleagues based in the region, the client and the supply chain, and which has been built on mutual trust and commitment to delivering the client’s vision. My most memorable project moment was after a hectic week of work visiting sites all around the country, we had an opportunity to relax with an evening swim in the Dead Sea – remember not to drink the water!

Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.

ArchTam’s social value days have allowed me to volunteer as a local enterprise adviser (LEA) at a secondary school in the Teesside area, which is a region targeted for economic regeneration. I have been in the role since 2018 and it involves supporting the school by providing insights into our industry, potential careers, as well as supporting wider STEM initiatives.

Last year, my colleagues helped me to mentor a team from the school in a STEM competition with a ‘Levelling-Up’ theme. We worked with the children on developing the concept for a green leisure facility on the River Tees. After six months and three competition rounds, they won. We subsequently arranged for the team to pitch the idea to their local politician, the Rt Hon Matt Vickers, at the Houses of Parliament, followed by delivering their award-winning presentation to an audience at Aldgate Tower – a memorable day for all involved. If you get the chance to be an LEA, do so.

Share a piece of career advice.

You can often give yourself lots of reasons not to take an opportunity like getting that next qualification, working on a challenging project or getting involved in a wider work-related social or sporting activity. Invert the problem, look for reasons why you should, and you rarely regret it.

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David is a director in our Project Management team in London and works predominantly in the National Security sector. He has been with ArchTam since 2014, originally as a consultant before transitioning to a full-time role in 2018. His projects have been across Europe and the Middle East, as well as Peru, Guyana, Mali, Kenya, Uganda, the Caribbean and Thailand.

Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry

After serving in the British Army for 25 years, I wanted a second career that would let me use the skills I had learnt and the chance to carry on doing work that I felt was making a difference. Military personnel have a great ability to get things done – and this is something in common with project managers (PM) in the industry. Someone once said to me that a project is a series of problems waiting to happen, and PMs are often the ones to sort them out. It seemed like a natural move.

The work I do in the National Security sector sees me working on several UK (and occasionally international) government contracts. This can be very challenging and incredibly rewarding – not only do our projects help secure and protect the British government staff working in fragile locations overseas, but we are making a tangible difference to the lives of the people in the countries in which we work by helping promote stability and security.

What is your favorite ArchTam project that you’ve worked on and why?

My favourite is our three-year project working with the Policía Nacional del Perú or the Peru National Police (PNP) to help improve their forensic capabilities and develop their 10-year strategy, which included guidance on infrastructure requirements.

This project allowed me to work with some outstanding specialist consultants and the PNP officers were also great to work with – always very welcoming, entirely professional and keen to improve their skills so that they could better serve the public. We heard first-hand from the PNP officers how the project was having a direct impact on their day-to-day work, which was very rewarding. I also found the people in Peru very friendly and the food in Lima is fantastic – I would highly recommend a visit.  

Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.

Following hurricanes Katrina and Irma in the Caribbean, we deployed infrastructure advisors to the British Virgin Islands (BVI) to help the local government plan and implement the rebuilding of the critical infrastructure that had been widely destroyed in the storms.

Our team was working under very austere conditions and with limited basic resources. They were key advisors to the Recovery & Development Authority, which had been set up by the BVI Governor’s Office to manage the overall recovery programme. The team led projects to repair and improve essential water, energy, communications and transportation services, as well as design and manage the reconstruction of elements of the local prison and school on the main island of Tortola.

Share a piece of career advice

Grab opportunities when they are presented, even if it puts you outside your comfort zone and means challenging yourself. The personal and professional benefits you will get from working with other teams or on different types of projects, will make you more employable, you’ll be a greater asset to the business and it will broaden your horizons.

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Darren Carlile leads the national security market sector across UK&I and is based in ArchTam’s London office. His work focuses on providing a full range of multidisciplinary services delivering infrastructure solutions to the UK’s Ministry of Defence, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), UK Intelligence Services and the U.S. Department of Defense around the world.

Tell us about what inspired you to join the industry

I joined the British Army at 16 years of age as an apprentice and went on to pursue an education in building and civil engineering. I was responsible for designing and delivering military infrastructure projects around the world in support of military operations. Delivering infrastructure projects that can improve people’s lives or provide military capabilities to keep the world safe inspires me to continue doing what I do in the Defence and National Security sector.

Being a veteran, I have many transferable skills to offer. For example, I champion mentoring and support to service leavers as they transition away from the military. In my role leading the National Security sector, I actively support Armed Forces charities and events and lead the revalidation of our UK MOD Employers Recognition Scheme Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. This is the highest award that recognizes ArchTam’s support to veterans and reservists.

In addition, as an industry leader, ArchTam has been selected as a finalist in the Ex-Forces in Business Awards as Employer of the Year and was a finalist myself for the Service Leaver of the Year award, with the awards ceremony held in London in September 2022.

What is your favorite ArchTam project that you’ve worked on and why?

As the lead for the National Security team, it has been fantastic to build on our relationship with our key client, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), supporting them with specialist services including climate and resilience. ArchTam works with all branches of the UK FCDO and other Partners Across Government (UK Intelligence Services, UK Home Office, UK MOD, National Crime Agency) and the United Nations as part of the World Food Programme and Conflict Stability & Security Fund (CSSF) across the UK&I and globally.

Since 2017, we have delivered projects for the FCDO across five continents and over 35 counties. This has included securing several high-profile and multidisciplinary British Embassy projects, notably Washington DC, Cairo, Mumbai and Nairobi, refurbishing the UK’s diplomatic missions globally.

More recently, we have delivered social value workshops in Jordan. As suppliers to the CSSF, we have supported our client, Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) working with FDCO in using a whole-of-government approach to find creative solutions to meet the most complex national security challenges and promote international peace and stability. ArchTam is the first-ever international leader to provide engineering and technical skill support in Jordan. This valuable endeavour further fortifies a strategic relationship/objective between the UK and Jordanian government as part of the CSSF Fund.

The activities were for underprivileged Jordanian youth, both males and females, within the age group of 18-23 who lack skills, opportunities, and/or resources in technical and soft skills. The social value workshops allowed the youth to learn about the engineering industry, network with ArchTam and local contractor’s engineering specialists and learn the fundamentals of resume and cover letter writing. It also provided a six-month paid internship with the local contractors. This allowed the supply chain (EUBC, SABTI and Al Hassanah and other stakeholders) to hire talent that helps enhance project delivery standards in Jordan.

The project work and added value we are supporting FCDO with, truly deliver our key mission within the national security team – safeguarding nations for a better world.

Tell us a story of how your work positively impacted the community.

I am proud to have been involved in the creation of London’s Olympic Park, which provided a setting for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. I was involved in creation of the athlete’s village dining tent, which was built to the size of four football pitches, catering for 6000 diners at any one time. There were walk-in fridges built to the size to two tennis courts and required kitchens to cater for different cultures and cuisines – meeting these specifications was a key deliverable of the project.

The temporary dining facility was nestled amongst the athlete’s village, which as part of the legacy of the project, provided over 9,100 new homes for local residents. This is just one part of the incredible legacy left for the local community to celebrate sport within their economic, cultural and social development.

The project was particularly challenging – the date of the Olympics opening was non-negotiable, and building a temporary building was reliant on the permanent buildings meeting their deadlines. Security was also an everyday challenge with airport-style checks across the site.

With multiple stakeholders, communication and regular on-site meetings meant we were kept up to date on the constant changes and requirements of the Olympic organising committee.  

Share a piece of career advice

Believe in yourself, seize opportunities and seek your goals, you can achieve anything if you set your mind to it—anything is possible!

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