Engineering Excellence Awards

Best infrastructure project – Small (under £5m) - Market Street Oxford

The historic Market Street in Oxford City Centre underwent a green transformation through a collaboration between Urban Movement, Civic Engineers, Oxford City Council, Meristem Design and ODS.

The scheme created a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly space that attracts visitors, supports local businesses, and integrated nature into the city centre.

This initiative revitalised the area to support the historic covered market and enhance the urban public realm, creating a space for people to enjoy the city and relax.

Best infrastructure project – Large (over £5m) - Southsea Coastal Scheme – Sub-frontages 4 & 5

The £185M Southsea Coastal Scheme is the UK’s largest Local Authority led FCERM Scheme.

The scheme stretches 4.5km from Old Portsmouth to Eastney and the new defences will reduce the risk of coastal flooding and erosion to more than 10,000 homes, 700 businesses, 3 scheduled monuments and 74 listed structures. The overall scheme comprises of six frontages.

This submission focusses on the recently completed phases of the scheme which opened in 2024 known as Sub-frontage 4 and Sub-frontage 5 at a cost of £44m.

The Sub-frontages cover 1.2km of coastline with a rich heritage and Southsea Castle and the new ‘Theatre of the Sea’ situated in the centre overlooking the famous Solent waters.

Following an extensive planning, consultation, design development and approval process over many years, construction started in 2023 and completed in 2024 ahead of the Christmas break to allow the local community the chance to explore their new coastline over the holiday season.

The Scheme is a Portsmouth City Council project and delivered using a truly Integrated Delivery Team model.

The project is managed by Coastal Partners on behalf of Portsmouth City Council and funded primarily by the Environment Agency. Royal HaskoningDHV are lead designers supported by LDA Design for landscape and public realm aspects. VolkerStevin Boskalis Westminster joint venture as lead contractor.

Best project – Innovation - Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling Project

The Hampshire Water Transfer and Water Recycling Project will transform the way Southern Water sources, treats and supplies water to its customers across the county.

The project will help the company maintain essential water supplies while taking less from the environment, especially during a drought – when nature needs it most.

Climate change, population growth and increasing environmental restrictions severely limit the amount of water that can be taken from Hampshire’s rare and sensitive chalk stream rivers.

This means Southern Water faces a significant water supply shortfall of at least 166 million litres of water a day in the county during a severe drought.

This project will provide a new sustainable source of water, delivering up to 90 million litres of water a day during a drought.

It will use advanced treatment techniques to turn treated wastewater, normally pumped far out to sea, into purified recycled water at a new water recycling plant in Havant.

New underground pipelines will take the purified recycled water to the Havant Thicket Reservoir where it will mix with spring water.

Another new (40km) pipeline will take water from the reservoir to the Otterbourne Water Supply Works where it will be treated to strict drinking water standards before being supplied to customers.

The project is a central pillar of Southern Water’s Water for Life – Hampshire programme, which sets out to create a new sustainable source of water that will help keep the county’s taps and rivers flowing for many generations to come.

Best project – Asset maintenance - ABP Solent Gateway – Marine Infrastructure

As a multi-modal site, ABP SGL is one of the premier locations for importing and exporting cargo, boasting excellent sea, rail, and road connectivity.

The site is being developed in phases, enhancing both landside and marine facilities.

This development aims to strengthen the Solent's status as a leading trade gateway and increase the Port's capacity to support MoD operations.

ABP Solent Gateway is located within the Solent Freeport. Freeports are designed to encourage investment near ports or airports, fostering new sustainable businesses that boost regional prosperity.

They provide business tax and customs relief, allowing funds to be reinvested in the Solent area for regeneration and to improve skills and employment opportunities.

Team of the year - Port of Dover 2050: Empower Exchange

Port of Dover 2050: Empower Exchange is the Port’s new long term plan to address the challenges and opportunities it faces over the next 30 years, in pursuit of its vision as the UK’s most seamless, sustainable and tech enabled port.

It will deliver local economic development and national growth, create new jobs and support the skills of tomorrow, enabling a globally competitive UK maritime sector, and delivery of UK net zero targets.

As the closest point to mainland Europe, the Port of Dover is a critical national infrastructure, with a third of UK imports travelling through the port every year, making it one of the UK’s most significant ports for travel and trade.