Chartered company steps in to pick up marooned project

Named after the local Blackfriars Priory, the Blackfriars student accommodation is part of the regeneration of Gloucester: the two-block, 190-bed development stands in place of an old rundown car park bridging the gap between Gloucester docks and the city centre.

Midas Group, a multimillion-pound construction group with seven offices around the south-west and Wales, had been appointed by the developer Cityheart as main contractor but went into administration in February 2022.

With the start of the academic year in September, and students already booked, the occupation date was already set. Cityheart had to move quickly. Vitruvius Management Services was appointed as construction manager.

Vitruvius was an existing contract adviser to Hartpury University and already had a detailed knowledge of the project. It brought a multi-stemmed approach to the rescue.

To begin with, it moved the project onto a construction management contract. To ensure continuity, save time and reduce the risk to the budget, it employed the Midas onsite team and through retendering and use of modern methods of construction (MMC) – modular offsite bathroom pods and integrated wall panelling – a selection of apartments were handed over for the start of the academic year. The remainder were handed over by Christmas.

This approach saved the client money – the unknown cost of many elements to the end user, such as students needing to be housed in hotels or alternate accommodation until accommodation finalised. And the developer would have potentially incurred a financial penalty for not meeting the deadline.

“Cityheart’s other option would have been to retender the whole project and appoint a new contractor to take on the risk of the unfinished works,” says Mark Price, Vitruvius’s founder and managing director. 

“This would be at considerably higher price than original, due to higher construction cost and to cover any risk from the previous contractor. Timewise, this would be up to a year’s delay going out to retender, at the cost to the businesses [Hartpury and the developer].

“Construction management was an open cost with the developer limiting time waste. And it meant completing most of the project within the timescale.”

More than building a building

Price founded Vitruvius Management Services 17 years ago, following multinational experience working as regional director for major contractors and national project management companies including Laing O’Rourke and Buro Four.

Working across any sector from education to manufacturing, Price says he has put together a team which is “quite rare for a small SME”.

“The team has international project management, quantity surveying, commercial management and design management experience in vast projects down to bespoke specialist project elements,” he says.

“The way in which we approach our clients’ needs differs from the large firms,” Price continues. “Vitruvius’s client relationships are as a project partner. The team manages the risk and operates a collaborative approach where clear decisions can be made quickly. We bespoke the client needs and look at the problems to solve the business cases, rather than just building a building.”

Price says this approach allows clients to explore what they might not have thought possible, via step‑by-step routes. “Early involvement with Vitruvius gives our clients an opportunity to see which routes of construction are best for them to grow their business,” he explains.

Vitruvius manages the project from conception to delivery, combining commercial skills and managing the risk. “The construction management route offers our clients a cost-effective route to have flexibility (much needed in this pivotal changeable current climate) while retaining maximum control over the delivery and build process.”

Chartered competence

Key to this is competency which Vitruvius addresses by encouraging staff to take on CIOB status.

“It provides a route to keep up to industry standards, reflects a high level of skill and experience, setting professionals apart from others working in their field,” says Price. 

Vitruvius was one of the first companies to achieve CIOB chartered company status – a move that it says helps to instil trust in clients.

“Our role as construction managers spans many services and aspects of our client’s construction journey, which means a client needs confidence in our team to deliver their business goals,” says Price.

“CIOB accreditation requires meeting stringent criteria and so for us it demonstrates to our clients that our team has the skill set and practical knowledge base to achieve their business goals efficiently and competently.”

CIOB company membership: For more information on becoming a CIOB company member, please visit: www.ciob.org/company-membership.