Aggiornamento sulle attività FIDIC di ottobre 2021
Vasto report sull'Annual Global Infrastructure Conference degli scorsi 10 e 13 settembre e link all'Annual Report 2020/2021
Issue 20: October 2021
Dear colleagues
Welcome to issue number 20 of the FIDIC CEO’s Update, my regular round-up of the latest FIDIC activities, initiatives and events. As you might expect, this update is a bumper edition to update you on our comprehensive activities during the month of August and September.
Introduction
September is always a busy month for FIDIC as it is the time that we hold our annual infrastructure conference that sees hundreds of international delegates from across the world attending our flagship annual event. Of course, given the Covid pandemic, we were unable to hold the event in person this year and like in 2020 the conference and our business week events were all held online. I would like to thank everyone who attended the conference and also all the members of the FIDIC family – our board, the MAs, Presidents, committee members, regional groups and Future Leaders – for taking an active part in what were crucial discussions and debates for FIDIC and our industry. It is my earnest hope that next year’s conference in Geneva 2022 will see us all being able to meet in person for the first time in nearly three years, so let us keep our fingers crossed for that.
Annual Global Infrastructure Conference
FIDIC’s Annual Global Infrastructure Conference was held online on 10 and 13 September 2021 for the second year in a row. A packed programme of keynote speeches, panel discussions and debates were held at the two-day event - Investing in future infrastructure - governance and leadership in a post-pandemic world – which looked at the global need for high-quality and sustainable infrastructure in the context of a world coming out of the Covid crisis. The top line up of speakers included Børge Brende, president of the World Economic Forum, Dr Kevin Kariuki, vice president of the African Development Bank, Sir John Armitt, chair of the UK National Infrastructure Commission, Mark Thurston, CEO at HS2, Enzo de Laurentiis, chief procurement officer at the World Bank, Chris Chijiutomi, head of infrastructure at CDC Group and Richard Abel, managing director - UK climate investments at Macquarie Group. I was also delighted to welcome William Cox and Louise Adams, group CEO and COO at Aurecon Group Australia, Anthony Bouchard, president and COO at CDM Smith, Mike Haigh, chairman of Mott MacDonald Group, Jens-Peter Saul, president and CEO at Ramboll group, Benoit Clocheret, CEO of Artelia Group, Stephanie Hottenhuis, CEO and chair of KPMG NV and Robin Greenleaf, president of Architectural Engineers Inc. The conference was widely reported on our Infrastructure Global online platform and you can read all the articles, interviews and features about the conference by clicking at the button below.
Click here for the full Global Infrastructure Conference 2021 reporting on Infrastructure Global
FIDIC business programme
As always, a key part of our conference is the business week of events specially arranged for FIDIC members and this year was no different. We held a series of meetings which gave our member associations the opportunity to receive updates from the board, from each other and our committees, which are undertaking some key work on behalf of the federation and our MAs. The gathering of our committee chairs was a particular highlight and gave an update on their work over the past 12 months – work which has continued despite the challenges of the global pandemic. As our outgoing president Bill Howard said at that meeting, our committees are “the lifeblood of FIDIC and so important to what we do as an organisation”. I know that, following the reorganisation and revamping of our committee structure last year, FIDIC’s committees are heading in the right direction and we will make further changes to their scope and composition in the months ahead to ensure that we remain ‘on point’ and attuned to the changing needs of our industry. All MAs will receive the links to the recordings of these business week meetings in due course.
Global Leadership Forum
During our annual Global Infrastructure Conference, a very significant development was the formation of a new forum which brings together industry leaders from across the globe to discuss the key issues facing society and the wider infrastructure sector. Members of our new Global Leadership Forum (GLF) have been selected based on their key position, knowledge and expertise of the construction, infrastructure and related sectors. As our world faces up to the realities of dealing with various challenges and also the consequences of climate change, at FIDIC we have recognised that these challenges are no longer the problem of generations to come, but current generations, and that’s why we need to bring key influencers together to help address them. I was delighted that Baroness Brown of Cambridge joined us to deliver an excellent keynote speech on climate change at the inaugural meeting of the GLF, which was attended by global leaders from Africa, North America, Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Asia, Australasia and China. I look forward to the new forum playing a key role in helping FIDIC towards addressing key global challenges such as climate change and bringing together such a vital and influential group of stakeholders.
Click here to find out more about the Global Leadership Forum
New FIDIC president
Following our annual General Assembly Meeting and a vote of our members, FIDIC now has a new president in Tony Barry from Australia. There cannot be many people in the FIDIC family who are not aware of Tony and his outstanding work in our industry and also on behalf of FIDIC. He has almost 40 years of experience in civil engineering and infrastructure projects and until June 2016, he was Aurecon’s managing director for Asia. Previously, Aurecon’s chief business development officer and its chief executive for the Asia-Pacific region, Tony was also national president of the Association of Consulting Engineers of Australia from late 2004 to 2006 and was listed three times by Engineers Australia among the 100 most influential engineers in the country. Throughout his distinguished career, Tony has been a brilliant and articulate advocate for our industry and the key contribution it makes to society and I look forward to him continuing that approach over his next two years as FIDIC president.
Thanking Bill Howard
In welcoming Tony Barry to the FIDIC presidency, it would be remiss if I did not also pay tribute and thank our outgoing president William Howard for the extraordinary leadership that he has provided throughout what has been an unprecedented period of office during the global pandemic. As we know, Covid has challenged us all over the past year and a half and I have been tremendously grateful for the role that Bill has played at FIDIC during that time. He has attended every FIDIC webinar getting up at the crack of dawn in the US to log on and introduce each event and he really has gone above and beyond the call of duty in leading the board and providing great support to me and the FIDIC staff, who he never fails to praise for all their work. Truly, everyone at FIDIC owes him a great debt of gratitude and we were delighted to be able to express our thanks to Bill during the recent annual conference. We all look forward to being able to do this in person just as soon as circumstances allow. Thank you Bill for all you have done.
Awards winners
Our annual Global Infrastructure Conference also saw the announcement of the winners of a series of FIDIC awards, including the MA Excellence Awards, Project Awards, Future Leaders Awards and the Prangey and President’s Award. During challenging times, it is even more important than ever that we recognise excellence in our industry and reward best practice. Notwithstanding the challenges of working in an online environment, we were able to hold virtual ceremonies for all the above awards and the details of all the winners are available at the links below.
MA Excellence Awards
Future Leaders Awards
Prangey and President’s Award
FIDIC Project Awards
The winners of the 2021 FIDIC Project Awards included 22 high-quality construction and infrastructure projects from across the globe. The awards celebrate outstanding projects where FIDIC member firms have had a major involvement and they also help to publicise the work of consulting engineering firms and the contribution they make to people’s quality of life. The FIDIC judging panel, chaired by past president Alain Bentejac, decided to recognise projects with the following awards - 14 Awards of Merit, seven Awards of Excellence and one Outstanding Project of the Year. The winner of the Outstanding Project of the Year went to China for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, project which includes an amazing series of bridges and tunnels of 55 kilometres connecting Hong Kong with Macao and Zhuhai. The project was entered by CCCC Highway Consultants Co and many congratulations to them on their success.
Click here to view details of all the winners of this year’s FIDIC Project Awards
President’s Award
This year’s FIDIC Global Infrastructure Conference also saw the announcement of the 2021 winner of the FIDIC President’s Award, which is given to a FIDIC member or volunteer other than a past president for their contribution to FIDIC over many years. This year’s winner was Andrew Read, managing director of Pederson Read, a chartered professional electrical engineer with 30-plus years of experience and the current chair of the FIDIC business practice committee, one of FIDIC’s most important and active units. Its recent work includes producing valuable guidance for the successful operation of a consulting engineering firm during the Covid-19 Pandemic. Andrew has a special interest and expertise in strategic infrastructure planning and security risk analysis and has dedicated his career to furthering best practices in engineering consulting. Congratulations to Andrew on his richly deserved award.
Prangey Award
I was delighted that former chairman of Cardno Group and past president (2003-05) of FIDIC, Dick Kell received FIDIC’s prestigious Louis Prangey Award, the highest recognition for outstanding service to FIDIC and the global industry. Named after FIDIC’s founding president, Louis Prangey, the award is only given to those who have given significant service to FIDIC and the profession of consulting engineering. Recipients of the award are also considered to be a role model for the consulting engineering industry and Dick is certainly one of those. Throughout his illustrious career, his enthusiasm and passion for FIDIC and our profession has been limitless and his support to me personally and to many others has been a source of inspiration. Put simply, Dick Kell is a giant of our industry and someone who has continued to wave the flag of FIDIC with passion. Congratulations to Dick, a very worthy winner of FIDIC’s highest award.
Click here to read more about Dick Kell and this year’s Prangey Award
ICC/FIDIC conference
This year’s annual ICC-FIDIC conference will be held in a virtual format for the first time. The event, which brings together the world’s leading construction practitioners, aims to provide participants with an update of the latest industry trends and developments, deliver real-world insight and specialist knowledge, as well as offer an exclusive networking platform for the international construction community. During the event, internationally renowned engineers, construction arbitration specialists and in-house lawyers of leading companies in the field will share their practical experience and knowledge on the FIDIC contracts and the related procedures for claims and disputes, dispute boards and ICC arbitration in construction cases. Please consider booking a place at the link below.
Click here for full details on the ICC/FIDIC annual conference
FIDIC Future Leaders Management Programme
FIDIC has announced the names of the successful candidates who have successfully graduated this year from our industry-leading Future Leaders Management Programme and who have received their certificates on successfully completing the programme. This engaging online management learning programme for young rising engineers and other consulting professionals. Its focus is to strengthen the business expertise of young engineers and other professionals working in the field of consulting engineering. I am also delighted to announce that we have opened expressions of interest for those wishing to take part in the 2022 programme and the link below will take you to the sign-up page on our website.
Click here to express your interest in the 2022 FIDIC Future Leaders Management Programme
FIDIC Contract Users’ Awards
A reminder that entries remain open for our annual FIDIC Contract Users’ Awards which recognise excellence in the use of FIDIC contract forms for project delivery and to showcase examples of good practice through collaboration from across the world. The awards also help to bring the community of FIDIC contract users together, celebrate and highlight excellence and best practice and raise the profile of FIDIC contracts on a global scale. The winners of this year’s awards will be unveiled at the Official FIDIC International Contract Users’ Conference which will take place digitally from 7-9 December 2021. The awards will be presented online on the evening of Tuesday 7 December 2021. The closing date for entries for the awards is Friday 15 October 2021, but you have to be in it to win it! So, make sure you view the award categories below and make your entry today.
Click here to view full details of the FIDIC Contract Users’ Awards and to make your entry
Annual Report
Last but not least, I just wanted to make you aware that the latest FIDIC Annual Report 2020/2021 has now been published online and is available for download. The report gives an update on our activities over the past 12 months, a year which has been another very busy and active one for FIDIC. As well as updates from outgoing FIDIC president Bill Howard, myself, president elect Tony Barry and an overview of the organisation’s finances and board activities, the report also includes a progress update on the FIDIC Strategic Plan, the work of our committees, a publications and training update, reports on FIDIC Credentialing and FCS Beijing and much more.
Click here to download the FIDIC Annual Report 2020/2021