Sir Ian Dixon Scholarships & Awards Presentation

Sir Ian Dixon Scholarships & Awards Presentation

Join us virtually as we celebrate this year’s Sir Ian Dixon Scholarship Scholar, Jamie Tong, as he presents on his research about the implications caused by utility strikes during construction and their potential mitigation.

Jamie will then be joined by Mike Foy. President of the CIOB, Malcolm Shiels, Package SHE Manager at Costain Group Plc, Alison Nicholl, Head of Constructing Excellence, and Sandi Rhys Jones, Vice President of the CIOB for a round table discussion chaired by Deborah Pullen, Chair of the Scholarships and Award Committee.

Details of the guest speakers and more info on our scholars and their research can be found on Eventbrite.

Scholarship Sponsored by the Worshipful Company of Constructors Charitable Trust and CIOB.

Jamie Tong – Bio

My fascination with buildings started as a child where I spent 5 years growing up in Singapore witnessing some of the most complex engineering marvels being created. After completing senior school back in the UK I took a couple of years out working abroad deciding if I wanted to proceed with higher education and what I wanted to study. During this time I got experience working on the tools as a labourer which developed into me becoming a self-employed handyman. Once settled on engineering, I enrolled at Swansea University for Mechanical Engineering and to pay bills, I worked as an agency handyman part time. It quickly became apparent that university was not providing me with enough on site specific knowledge and therefore I applied for a Degree Apprenticeship with Sir Robert McAlpine. After a year I was managing my own packages and decided to look for an additional challenge, which led me to apply for the WCC Sir Ian Dixon Scholarship.

Research Title

A review of the implications caused by utility strikes during construction and their potential mitigation.

Research Summary

Having witnessed the implications of strikes first hand, I do not believe there are enough safeguards in place to protect operators and utility services from unplanned contact. Whilst health and safety standards have increased across many aspects of construction, I believe that excavation has been left behind. The objective of this report is to summarise the implications and the effect these accidents can have on both personal and businesses. The playbook further aims to provide practical solutions to this issue and highlight some of the risks personal are taking and how best to mitigate this.

Guest Speakers

Mike Foy OBE MBA FCIOB FCMI

President of the CIOB

Mike is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building and the Chartered Management Institute. In addition to his membership of CIOB and CMI he has an MBA from the Open University and a Non-Executive Directors Diploma from the Financial Times. He was awarded the OBE for ‘Services to Education’ in the 2017 New Years Honours List.

He has represented CIOB on the Competence Steering Group – Working Group 11 developing a procurement competence framework which was part of the ‘Building a Safer Future’ report following Grenfell. He is also CIOB’s representative on the Scottish Building Standards Futures Board.

Mike has over 40 years’ experience in the construction industry, mainly client side where he has experience of working with contractors having local, national and international experience.

He was Chief Officer of 3 different departments with a large Local Authority prior to becoming its Assistant Chief Executive.

The last 10 years have been spent with the Department of Education fulfilling a number of roles including leading a multi-disciplinary team responsible for the development and delivery of schools in the West Midlands and North West of England.
Mike has extensive experience of the CIOB having been a member for many years and has served on regional committees prior to becoming a Trustee where he served on a number of committees/boards prior to becoming Vice President and in June 2021 its President.

Aside from the construction industry Mike is a Director of Fordhall Community Land Initiative – Shropshire.

Malcolm Shiels

Package SHE Manager at Costain Group Plc

A competent, qualified and capable Chartered Fellow of IOSH, and Fellow of the APS, professional that specialises in health and safety risk management with over 38 years’ experience in the construction industry. With the last 18 years in project and construction health and safety risk management, and 14 of those in senior positions. I lead by example and champion sensible, deliverable and efficient construction health and safety risk management.

Joined IOSH in April 2002, progressed to RSP in May 2005, became a Chartered Safety and Health Practitioner in November 2005. Regularly retained status as CMIOSH via CPD leading to the achievement of Fellowship of IOSH in 2016. Currently sitting as Chair of the IOSH Construction Group.

Currently providing expertise and leadership as Package SHE Manager for Costain on the RDP North delivery of major infrastructure projects.

Sandi Rhys Jones OBE FCIOB FWES

Vice President of the CIOB

Sandi Rhys Jones began her career in construction, property and engineering as a journalist, working for a variety of technical organisations before forming her management and marketing business. She has worked for contractors, consultants, suppliers, representative organisations and government, both in the UK and overseas.

An advocate for construction and its contribution to society – housing, workplaces, infrastructure – Sandi brings her experience both as employer and non-executive director to help organisations find innovative ways to improve performance and develop new business, including market and customer research, staff recruitment and retention, culture change, talent management and public and political engagement.

She developed and delivers a cross-disciplinary national mentoring programme at Women in Property and leads on Public Affairs, representing the organisation on two All Party Parliamentary Groups. She was appointed OBE in 1998 for her work in promoting women in construction. Sandi is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building, a Fellow of the Women’s Engineering Society and trained as a mediator after completing an MSc in Construction law.

Sandi will take office as CIOB President in 2023

Alison Nicholl

Head of Constructing Excellence

Alison has a background in knowledge transfer, driving innovation and change into the construction sector both in the UK and overseas.  Alison is currently Head of Constructing Excellence, where she works with its members and wider movement to drive positive change in the built environment.  Alison has a passion for transforming the construction sector into a more innovative, inclusive and sustainable industry.