Movers and shakers: Biggest construction and engineering appointments in May 2021
Final section of Northern Irish dualling scheme complete
June 1, 2021
Government extends TfL funding deal
June 1, 2021
A new Buro Happold boss with ambitious plans and shake-ups at the top of Atkins, Kier and Mace are among May’s high-profile appointments.
A round-up of the biggest moves and appointments during May is below.
To feature on next month’s appointments roundup, please email [email protected]
New Buro Happold chief to double staff in six years
He takes over as chief executive officer with plans to double the number of staff from 2,000 to 4,000 globally within six years. Bruce said the expansion would create a better balance and resilience across regions.
Prior to joining Buro Happold in 2018, Bruce’s background was in building businesses outside of building engineering and consultancy. He was previously the finance chief for several Omnicom and WPP subsidiaries, including Interbrand and Landor.
Atkins raids Skanska for new finance director
Skanska UK infrastructure finance director Jo Jarman has left the contractor to return to Atkins as finance director for its UK and Europe business.
She returns to Atkins after nearly eight years at Skanska in various senior finance roles at the UK contracting business. Prior to Skanska, Jarman was finance director at Atkins Highways Services arm.
Kier adds to executive team
Sophie Timms and Alpna Amar have joined the Kier executive team.
Timms joined Kier as group public affairs director in October 2020 from Zurich Insurance where she was head of UK corporate affairs. Her promotion to the executive team is accompanied by a change in job title, to corporate affairs director.
Amar joined Kier as finance director of transformation in February 2020. She is now corporate development director. Prior to joining Kier, Amar spent four years as head of investor relations for TI Fluid Systems, an automotive supplier owned by Bain Capital.
Atkins appoints new construction chiefs
Atkins has appointed Rami Mansour as head of design for manufacture and assembly (DfMA) and Eugene Smethurst as head of lean to lead the company’s drive to help increase the efficiency of design and construction across the infrastructure sector.
Mansour will help clients understand the suitability of different Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) systems to their projects, while looking at a sliding scale of standardisation within their designs. Smethurst’s role will focus on applying lean techniques from manufacturing and other industries into the infrastructure sector, ensuring lean processes are embedded in the way Atkins delivers its services.
Mansour joins Atkins from Capita, while Smethurst joins from Arcadis.
New defence director joins Mace
Mace has appointed Andy Oldham as its new business unit director for defence, nuclear, energy and utilities. Oldham is joining Mace’s growing Consult business, where he will be responsible for delivering its ambitious 2026 targets and growth, and completely transforming the way Mace delivers infrastructure projects.
He joins from Atkins, bringing 30 years of consultancy experience in global infrastructure programmes. At Atkins, he has supported the organisation’s United Arab Emirates (UAE) leadership in delivering its ambitions in the nuclear sector, as part of the team helping the UAE to produce 5.6Gw of carbon free power.
Prior to this, Oldham worked at British Nuclear Fuels and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
Laing O’Rourke appoints first sustanability leader
Laing O’Rourke has appointed experienced environmental, social and governance leader Vicky Bullivant as its first ever group head of sustainability. She will join the company from Drax, where she was head of sustainable business.
Bullivant will lead a newly created, dedicated sustainability function and be responsible for the implementation of detailed road maps to deliver the new sustainability targets in both the company’s operating hubs – Europe and Australia.
Skanska makes key senior appointment
Maggie Chandler has been appointed to oversee Skanska’s customer engagement strategy, customer account management and lead the customer engagement team.
Chandler has an impressive 20-year track record of transforming the customer experience at a range of blue-chip names, including BT and Thames Water. She joins Skanska UK from Lloyd’s Register, where she was group customer experience director.
Former WSP and Network Rail strategist takes the helm at Midlands Connect
Midlands Connect has welcomed Karen Heppenstall as its new head of rail. She joins after six years at WSP, following roles at the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Network Rail.
As well as developing a rail strategy for South-West STB Western Gateway, Heppenstall has also spearheaded the production of business cases for reopening railway lines as part of Government’s Restoring Your Railways fund; led the development of a number of new and relocated stations (including Teesside Airport Station); and shaped station Masterplans such as that included in Stoke-on-Trent’s Transforming Cities Fund bid.
Ferrovial names new directors
Ferrovial has appointed Alicia Reyes and Hildegard Wortmann as independent directors, succeeding Joaquín del Pino and Santiago Fernández Valbuena.
Reyes is currently an independent director of Banco Sabadell and a guest lecturer at University College London (UCL) Institute of Finance and Technology. She has also worked at Deutsche Bank, Abengoa and Barclays Bank.
Wortmann joined Audi AG in 2019 and is currently a member of its board of management with responsibility for sales and marketing. She is also a non-executive member of the Supervisory Board of Porsche Holdings. She began her career at Unilever and has also worked at BMW.
Keltbray appoints engineering consultancy directors
Stuart Vaughan and Tim Lohmann have taken over as joint managing directors of Wentworth House Partnership, Keltbray’s in-house engineering consultancy.
Wentworth House Partnership specialises in temporary works design and geotechnical engineering consultancy. Vaughan and Lohmann will take on the responsibilities of Stuart Marchand, who formed the company in 1999, and retired at the end of April 2021.
Stantec reveals environmental director
Stantec has appointed Nicky Hartley to its UK Environmental Services team as director of major infrastructure and environment. In this newly created role, Hartley will help to accelerate the growth and diversification of Stantec’s work in planning, consenting and delivery of major infrastructure projects and complex land development schemes.
She has managed various projects for clients such as National Grid, HS2 and Highways England from inception to completion with a particular focus on larger and complex schemes under multiple consenting regimes.
Former Kier utilities director joins MEICA specialist Bridges
Mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, control and automation (MEICA) contractor Bridges has appointed former Kier Services chief Toby Harding as new operations director.
Harding will be responsible for growing the £31M turnover business after a successful bidding run for AMP7 frameworks. He spent seven years at Kier, becoming an operations director before leaving last June.
Henry Boot rejigs senior management
Henry Boot is rejigging its senior management team with Tony Shaw promoted to the lead role at construction.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Fisher, UK sales director at modular specialist Elliot, will join as managing director of Banner Plant.
Shaw joined the Henry Boot as an apprentice in 1985, before working his way up to his current position. Fisher will be tasked with progressing the digitalisation of Banner Plant’s sales systems and growing its position within plant hire.
Engie recruits northwest regional director
Engie has recruited a new regional managing director to strengthen its construction operations in north west England. Tim Wood, former group commercial director at United Living, has taken up the role of northwest regional managing director with Engie’s Places & Communities division.
Tilbury Douglas appoints head of social value
Tilbury Douglas has promoted corporate social responsibility manager Lucy Davies to the new role of head of social value.
Davies joined Interserve, as it was then known, in October 2020 as a corporate social responsibility manager for South Wales. She has now been tasked with consolidating and developing the whole company’s CSR activities, including apprenticeships, community volunteering, local employment and supply chain engagement.
New MMC chamption for the CIC
The Construction Industry Council (CIC) has appointed Nick Mead as its champion for modern methods of construction.
Mead will lead a drive by the Construction Industry Council to encourage the use of modular, offsite, volumetric and prefabrication construction methods. He is a technical director at Laing O’Rourke and a former president of the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers. He has been on the CIC board as a member-appointed director for the past five years.
New chair for BRE Trust
The BRE Trust has appointed Phil Wilbraham as its new chairman. Wilbraham joins after an extensive career in civil engineering and aviation, which includes a four year stint as expansion programme director at Heathrow. During his time at Heathrow Wilbraham led the completion of Heathrow’s Terminal 5 and the delivery of the airport’s Terminal 2.
Prior to this, he worked as director of civil engineering with TPS Consult, where he was involved in private and public sector schemes from feasibility stage through to design, construction and completion. This included projects at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.
New sales vice president joins Sensat
Sensat has appointed Duncan Kneller as vice president of sales. Kneller will be responsible for leading the sales department, developing strategic relationships with clients and partners, and scaling the go-to-market of the common visualisation platform and data products.
Prior to joining Sensat, Kneller spent three years at Oracle, where he had a key leadership role in new business. His appointment follows his 20 year career building high performance sales teams, implementing sales strategies and driving growth for cloud-based construction software.
Women in Transport welcomes new president
Women in Transport has elected Jo Field as its new president, succeeding Katie Hulland.
Field’s election for a four year term was confirmed at Women in Transport’s annual general meeting. Members also elected five new board members from within the membership, including Marny Moruzzi as vice president.
Roger Bullivant appoints director of foundation systems
Foundation engineering specialist Roger Bullivant has announced the promotion of Richard Taylor as its new foundation systems director.
The newly created position will focus on the strategic growth for all foundation operation activities and projects across the companies eight regional offices in England, Scotland and Wales.
New Midlands Highway Alliance Plus manager revealed
Midlands Highway Alliance Plus (MHA Plus) has appointed Karen Notman as manager.
Notman has previously had an active role on MHA boards and steering groups, involvement in several Midland Service Improvement task groups and a short spell working in the West Midlands.
Scape Scotland role to boost public sector construction
Scape Scotland has appointed Lillian McDowall as senior relationship manager, as it continues to support the nation’s economic recovery and help the Scottish public sector meet its net zero target.
McDowall joins Scape Scotland from the Scottish Cities Alliance where she led the seven city collaboration’s investment promotion workstream, working with leaders to help secure significant inward investment for cities including Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.
Topcon promotes managers
Topcon Positioning GB and EMEA have promoted two senior managers to head up the development of its UK and Ireland subsidiaries.
Andrew Flood has been promoted to UK business manager and David Bennett to UK and Ireland regional director.
GHD appoints sustainability guru
GHD has appointed James Viray to the newly created role of sustainability leader. He will help drive GHD’s commitment to ESG (Environmental Social and Governance) principles with an early focus on achieving carbon neutrality by 2025.
Department of Civil Engineering Department of Civil Engineering – International Burch University (ibu.edu.ba)
