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Technical
CIOB Awards 2022: Client of the Year
CM Staff
Winner: Toby Ward - Sheffield Hallam University’s Estates Team
When the Covid-19 pandemic forced Sheffield Hallam University’s Estates Team to rethink its £720m Campus Plan, developed in 2018, it decided to go for a new approach to procurement.
In 2020 it formed The Hallam Alliance. In doing so it became the first higher education institution in the world to use the NEC4 Alliance Contract to deliver its new Campus Masterplan.
The Hallam Alliance joins the university client, designer, contractor and facilities management provider together in a single delivery vehicle. Decisions are made on a ‘best for project’ basis under a clear governance structure with formal cooperative boards. Any decisions require unanimous agreement.
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The board consists of four people, one from each partner organisation. Benefits of this approach include:
early involvement of the main contractor and subcontractors to ensure designs are buildable and affordable;
early FM engagement to reduce lifecycle costs;
shared management of risk, with risk allocated to the appropriate party;
and standardisation of designs, components and details.
Other finalists
Annabelle Young Quintain David Rowsell University of Hertfordshire
The Alliance also sees upfront agreements of fair margins and payment terms. The university reports that 98% of subcontractor invoices are paid within 35 days.
Securing external investment
In its first year, the Alliance can boast achievements including creating designs for the first £135m of the Campus Plan and securing £70m of external investment. Also, three emergency interventions in very short timescales and a £17m atrium refurbishment delivered on time and under budget.
Ambitious targets for the future include halving carbon emissions and reducing the timescale for the whole plan by 10 years. Additionally it hopes to reduce capital investment by £300m and operating costs by £5m per annum, as well as addressing the backlog of maintenance.
The Campus Plan is a vital element of the regeneration of the Sheffield City Region. The university has therefore set contractual social value targets linked to job creation, training and local spend, some of which the Alliance is already exceeding. An Innovation Fund, with seed funding from partners and a share of any scheme underspends, will be used to investigate new ideas.
The November/December 2025 issue of Construction Management magazine is now available to read in digital format.
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