Appointed as Employer’s Agent and Cost Consultant, our team delivered a new build residential development, consisting of 18 affordable home apartments, redeveloping a previous car park site at the Slippers Estate.
Located in Bermondsey, the apartments benefit from a balcony terrace and surrounding areas have had landscaping works and S278 highways improvements.
We supported our local authority client in pre-contract project management from RIBA stage 1, developing the project brief, progressing early design with consultants and procuring site surveys, which resulted in our client securing planning permission for the project delivery.
Martin Arnold further developed the client scope including Employer’s Requirements and tendered the scheme as part of a batch procurement. Following scrutiny and negotiation from Martin Arnold in the tendering process in respect of contract terms, proposed programme and costs, a contractor appointment was made. We produced the JCT contract and finalised the project finances for scheme delivery in line with the clients’ internal needs.
Martin Arnold administered the building contract as a Client Agent, driving contractor performance and coordinating and monitoring external client consultants including Clerk of Works, design guardians and technical advisors. We also monitored construction quality throughout the design and build process, up to handover with the client’s development team.
Martin Arnold were also appointed as Party Wall Surveyor and ensured all neighbourly matters and notices were served throughout the project. As project Principal Designer CDM, MA ensured compliance and satisfaction under the CDM Regulations – arranging project notices, auditing site facilities and championing practical and safe access being embedded in the project design from the outset.
Our team played an integral part in the delivery of this project to ensure a quality and compliant scheme was delivered, including negotiating preferrable client terms in a Deed of Variation to the original contract, securing scheme viability.
Client
Southwark Council
Contractor
Glenman Corporation Ltd (Frencon)
Contract Value
£8.5m
Duration
3 years 3 months
Address
Slippers Place Estate, Bermondsey, SE16 2ES
Critical Challenges
A number of challenges on this project required careful contract and relationship management due to substantial adjustments to the RIBA stage 3 design being needed, in relation to the internal layout of the ground floor lobby and staircore. We navigated the technical and contractual resolves for our client, securing the projects continued viability for Southwark’s housing delivery pipeline.
As part of our technical project management, we coordinated multidisciplinary workshops with early designers and the later appointed contractor. Successful collaboration of the project team saw us alleviate the client design risk by identifying a design solution to achieve Building Regulations and fire safety compliance, which the contractor adopted for their own further design development and risk management. Contractually, Martin Arnold thoroughly assessed the risk impact of unforeseen design changes, in relation to costs set out in the original contract and the impact of instructing a design variation. Martin Arnold advised the client on their options with consideration to their internal budget and delivery requirements. We created an options appraisal report that considered a Deed of Variation and termination, also providing support in assessing the associated cost and programme impact of both. MA negotiated a Deed of Variation to the original contract, securing scheme viability and delivery, following unforeseen internal staircore design changes in relation to fire safety.
A key constraint of this infill site is that a major Thames Water sewer asset runs beneath the footprint of the new build. This necessitated an additional development control of a Thames Water Build Over Agreement (BOA), as well as a technically challenging ground floor slab design. Unable to avoid entering into a BOA, MA ensured that the client engaged in the statutory procedures pre-contract to de-risk the technical agreement and main works programme.
MA facilitated meaningful client stakeholder engagement regarding the connection of the new building to the wider estates’ SELCHP District Heating Network. These works were a construction programme critical path activity, also affecting road access and hot water to neighbouring residents during the connection period. Through proactive project management and engagement with client stakeholders and residents, minimal resident disruption was achieved and the client’s internal stakeholders and subcontractors were kept well informed of works design and programming, facilitating awareness and input across the project team.
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