The firms' commitment to partnering and investment in IT impressed the judges of this Barbour Expert-sponsored award
Winner
Citex Project Delivery
The highlight of a fine, and profitable, year for Citex was becoming the only consultant to win a Ministry of Defence prime contract – the culmination of a close 12-year relationship. Citex is taking partnering seriously: its total number of clients has dropped from 985 in 1991 to 354 in 2000, when 65% of all work was done within a partnering framework. Another of the company's outstanding areas was green construction. Although its work has no immediate impact on the environment, Citex has decided to use its influence over the supply chain to promote environmentally friendly practices among clients and suppliers alike, and it has begun to role out its Environment Management System. All of this was accomplished while Citex put in place a considerable expansion in overseas business – operating profit derived outside the UK rose 150%, part of a fivefold increase in the past three years.

Second
Schal
Information and environment management have been at the heart of Schal's development in 2000. The company invested 4.5% of its total turnover in IT, putting in place software to help make e-commerce and internet-based collaboration a reality. The firm's general expertise was on show in its work on the immense £134m Tate Modern conversion, which was brought in on time and to budget – and to almost universal acclaim.

Third
Osprey Project Management
Last year, Osprey teamed up with e-commerce outfit BuildOnline to roll out a cost estimating and tendering package for the European construction industry. It launched a commercial management system, and launched its own intranet, a service that clients will be able to look at in the next year or so. It also found time to produce a string of high-quality Thomas Cook offices, all delivered within 14 weeks of work beginning on site.

Fourth
Turner & Townsend Project Management
A highly educated and loyal staff, a sophisticated client care programme – which includes regular monitoring by directors and independent research – and a meticulous approach to managing client variations have been the bedrock of T&T's success in 2000. It has also achieved a zero accident rate on its £889m of projects and is developing an integrated business management system.

Building Awards 2001