Double success for Cookstown firm at building awards

Paul Marlow, was named overall Construction Manager of the Year (CMOY) – the most-coveted award, chosen from the winners of the eleven individual categories – having secured the Gold Medal in the ‘Residential Over 7 Storeys’ category earlier in the evening.

The accolade – awarded on the basis on his work as construction manager on Unite’s 759-unit, £30 million Angel Lane student accommodation project in Stratford, East London – saw Paul, who joined the company as a graduate 9 years ago, beat 85 finalists and 10 gold medallists to become the first overall winner to come from a residential category in the awards’ 38-year history.

McAleer & Rushe had a second reason to celebrate on the night, with Ciaran Tiffney winning the Gold Medal in the ‘Residential 7 Storeys and Under’ category for his work on 73 Great Peter Street in Central London for Taylor Wimpey.

Chris Blythe, chief executive of CIOB, commented: “This has been another extraordinary year for CMYA. In every category we have seen project managers of all ages delivering exceptional projects, mastering multiple challenges, and achieving world class quality with exemplary leadership skills. Congratulations to Paul and all our finalists and medallists. You are helping us take our industry to the next level.”

Martin Magee of McAleer & Rushe said: “For Paul to be crowned (CMOY) is a fantastic achievement and testament to a creative, commercially-aware approach that delivered a superb project as part of a wider team. To have Ciaran win the Gold Medal for his category too underlines the strength in depth of McAleer & Rushe. As the youngest ever winner of the main award Paul is testament to the company’s approach of basing responsibility on ability rather than length of service.”

McAleer & Rushe Contracts UK will report design-and-build turnover of £225m for 2016, up from £180 million in 2015 and with contracted work pushing turnover towards £300m in 2017. This will be achieved across the company’s core sectors of office, residential, hotels and student accommodation, with 22 current projects representing target activity levels going forward.

McAleer & Rushe currently has 22 active design-and-build projects, with Belfast projects including three city centre schemes: 1,200 rooms across two student schemes for Queen’s University Belfast and a 230-bed Maldron hotel. Other site locations include Dublin, Edinburgh, Portsmouth & London.

The firm’s increased footprint has been achieved without sacrificing its delivery-focused, non-litigious approach. It takes pride in projects teams remaining intact throughout contracts and in having received further positive feedback for its dedicated After-Care team.