The University of Reading’s Procurement and Estates teams have both been shortlisted for prestigious awards which recognise the quality of their work and their contribution to the success of the University. The teams have been shortlisted for the awards for Outstanding Procurement Team and Outstanding Estates Team respectively in the Times Higher Education Leadership and Management Awards 2013.
Outstanding Procurement Team
The outstanding procurement team at the University of Reading has been shortlisted for their leadership of the strategic, institution-wide project to transfer the University’s accommodation stock and future accommodation development requirements to a private sector partner. In this unique project, the University of Reading became the first HE institution to transfer its entire student accommodation portfolio to a private sector partner, allowing the University to free up its capacity to invest in research and teaching facilities. The resulting contract, awarded ultimately to UPP, has delivered the largest single University private sector residential investment in the UK, worth around £250 million to the University.
Lisa Jeffries, Head of Procurement, said: “In such a high profile and complex procurement process, communication with a multitude of internal and external stakeholders was vital. The Procurement Team worked closely with colleagues across the University on a daily basis to ensure that we achieved the best result for the University. “Key to the successful delivery of this project was the selection of the innovative EU Competitive Dialogue tender process,making the University one of the first public sector organisations in Europe to adopt this approach to procurement.”
The professionalism and responsiveness of the procurement team throughout the process has created an elevated strategic role for Procurement within the University and strengthened relationships across many University teams. It has also engendered a positive relationship with the eventual bid winners, UPP, which has translated into a very effective partnership a year from the outset of the contract.
Outstanding Estates Team
The Estates and Facilities team at the University of Reading has been shortlisted for their leadership and strategic vision for the University’s Carbon Management Plan. The Plan set an ambitious target of reducing carbon emissions by 35% by 2015/16 and the University is already halfway to delivering on this target with a reduction in electricity usage of 12.6% and natural gas by 26%. The carbon reduction of 11,137 tCO2 in the first 18 months of the project created financial savings of almost £4 million. Over 50 projects have been identified to contribute to the target, including improving the performance of existing buildings through better insulation, more efficient building management systems and lighting, as well as technology-focused projects to help understand where energy is beingwasted and providing motivation to change behaviour.
A focus on waste reduction (over 50% is now recycled) and staff and student engagement has been intrinsic to success to date. This work has been recognised with the EcoCampus Gold Award, the Green Flag Award for the whole Whiteknights Campus, the Carbon Trust Standard and a top 20
ranking in the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme University rankings. Colin Robbins, Director of Estates and Facilities at the University of Reading, said;
“The Estates Team has set the agenda for the University’s carbon reduction focus through the work they undertake in their own areas, but colleagues in Estates have also shown real leadership in ensuring the whole University community contributes to delivering a sustainable future for the University.”
Sir David Bell, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Reading, said: “The successful delivery of these major University projects is down to the work of many staff, working together across our university for a common goal. I would like to pay tribute to everyone who has played a part in our carbon reduction scheme and halls transfer project and to offer particular congratulations to those colleagues who, through their project leadership, have been specificallyrecognised through these awards.”
The shortlist was formally announced in the 18 April edition of the Times Higher Education magazine. The winner will be revealed at an awards ceremony in London on 20 June 2013.