‘The Best Public Library in the World’ – ‘A Library Like No Other’

Library of BirminghamContractor: Carillion

Client:  Birmingham City Council

Architect:  Mecanoo (Concept), TPS (Detail) 

Engineer: Buro Happold (Concept), TPS (Detail)

Quantity Surveyor: Capita Symonds

Contract Type: NEC   

Form of Contract: Option A Lump Sum

Contract Value: £145M

Project Timescales: Jan 2010 - March 2013

Background

The Library of Birmingham will occupy a prime site on Centenary Square between the Birmingham Repertory Theatre (The REP) and Baskerville House and will be a major flagship for the regeneration of the City.

At 35,000 sq metres, the Library of Birmingham will provide greater than 20% more space than the existing Birmingham Central Library and will be capable of taking up to 10,000 visitors per day, doubling the current figure, as well as providing extensive space for both the storage and viewing of the ever-increasing archive collection from the present library.

The project includes the integration with The REP at both ground floor and mezzanine levels as well as the construction of shared entrance areas and a studio theatre.

Carillion is developing a Sustainability Programme for the project, alongside the Birmingham City Council (BCC) ‘Big City Plan’. Carillion has entered a partnership with the Employment Access Team to target 250 new jobs for targeted residents of Birmingham. As a result job training and sustainability plans will be developed for each trade on site to maximise the impact of the project on the City’s Regeneration. This is through partnership with Birmingham Council, Job Centre Plus, and the Learning and Skills Council.

The Library of Birmingham project has achieved National Skills Academy status a first for Carillion as a stand alone project. The National Skills Academy has a focus on recruiting people into construction, upskilling the local workforce and developing the skills and culture with in the project team.

Carillion is also one of the official Arts Sponsors in the community, working with the client team to undertake exhibitions in Centenary Square to reinforce the regeneration message within Birmingham.

The project is working towards a BREEAM Excellent rating.

Targets

In order to measure and monitor the projects performance a number of key performance indicators (KPI’s) for the delivery of the project were identified with WMCCE. These are as follows:

Lay Assessors Visit

Getting Into Construction

Since January 2010 the Library of Birmingham site has hosted a number of events ranging from School and Teacher Visits to inviting Birmingham City Councils Lay Assessors to audit at the site. Carillion hosts the local resident’s forum on a bi-monthly basis, providing updates on the progress of the project and receiving feedback on how the residents think we are performing! In addition this platform allows us to raise awareness of any opportunities that may be coming up in terms of employment such as Apprentice places and local labour opportunities.

Bob the Builder visitIn 2009 we invited Bob the Builder to the site to raise awareness of construction for primary school aged children. In the autumn it is our intention to invite the local primary school to meet Ivor Goodsite were they can learn about health and safety on site in a fun and interesting way.

Schools agreements are in place with Castle Vale College and Perry Beach School. We intend to have similar agreements with Solihull College and King Edwards Grammar School in the near future. These agreements enable us to provide the schools with work experience placements, site visits, careers information and support for events through our Construction Ambassadors.

Site VisitIn May 2010 we trained 8 members of the project team to become professional, craft or role model Construction Ambassadors. This will enable us to attend events at local schools and in the local community throughout the duration of the project.

Supporting People into Construction

In February 2010 we supported a two week Princes Trust ‘Get Into Construction’ course and over July and October we plan to host a further 3 courses. These future courses will be lead by Carillion Training Services who have tailored the courses to the specific needs of the Employment Access Team (EAT). At the end of the February course the current Home Secretary, Theresa May MP, visited the 15 young people on the course.

Iain McCollSince the beginning of 2010 Carillion have hosted 3 two week work experience placements for the Business Action on the Homeless (BAOH). The most recent placement resulted in Iain McColl securing work with one of our sub contractors.

‘I was made to feel very welcome and like I was part of the team straight away….I think this is a fantastic in helping people back to work and gaining extra confidence’ Iain McColl - BAOH placement on LoB May 2010.

Assessing Individual Needs

In order to capture individuals training needs we have modified our standard induction form to include a skills and training profile. In addition to this we ensure that there is good visibility of those involved in training so that the work force finds these individuals approachable and training is always accessible.

Training Room Opening - June 2010Training and Upskilling of the Workforce

 BCC are very keen to ensure that not only do we employ local people but we upskill the workforce on the project to ensure continuity of employment. As such provision was made for a training room on the site which was launched on 9^th June. This has enabled us to conduct much of the training required on site.

To date we have had one apprentice progress from his NVQ2 to NVQ3 supervisor’s course, 1 x new NVQ2 start, 1x NVQ3 start, 1x On Site Assessment (OSAT) as well as 2 x people registered for Basic Skills training.

Develop an Infrastructure of Support and Leaving a Legacy for Birmingham

The Library of Birmingham in addition to being a demonstration project was also awarded National Skills Academy Status at the beginning of 2010. This helps to further reinforce both the BCC and WMCCE KPI’s, as well as improving the culture, skills within the construction industry.

Working closely with the BCC Employment Access team (EAT) is a real asset for the project and certainly something that others should consider if they are not already doing so. By linking all our employment opportunities through EAT we are able to ensure that the individuals we are working with will be considered for future opportunities and will have every opportunity of enjoying continuity of employment across Birmingham and beyond.

Written: June 2010