The 2018 Milton Keynes branch World Quality Day event was hosted by Network Rail at their offices in Milton Keynes, the latest stage of the branch’s participation with them. The event topic for the evening was Improving Quality through Collaboration.
Karen McDonald who is a member of the Construction Special Interest Group (ConSIG) invited the two speakers, Paul Greenwood and Greg Faria who are also key members of CQI’s ConSIG. Paul and Greg provided members and visitors with great insight into the benefits and challenges of collaboration, including in large construction projects.
The topic was introduced by Paul Greenwood, a Constructing Excellence Collaborative Working Champion and Associate Director of the Institute for Collaborative Working. Paul provided a brief overview of collaboration, key concepts, models in common use and sources of information.
Paul’s presentation was followed by Greg Faria, Quality Manager for the Airside / Landside Directorate at Heathrow Airport, who shared experiences of collaboration initiatives with Programme Designers and Delivery Integrators as well as 2nd Tier Suppliers from the client’s perspective. This provided a broad overview across different levels of the aspects, benefits and challenges faced in instigating a collaborative approach in the construction sector.
Attendees also participated in break out groups to discuss the theme for this year on Quality: a question of trust. Paul and Greg joined in the group discussions on the theme and the group fed back their thoughts to the Branch Chair.
High feedback scores and comments on the night included ‘very interesting and relevant presentations by expert speakers’, ‘a very interesting yet often misunderstood topic with good and professional speakers’ and ‘good interactions and relevant discussions’.
Karen said “The two presentations and questions directed to the speakers gave different perspectives which was well received by the attendees. I was delighted they were able to share their knowledge on World Quality Day with my local CQI branch.”
Paul Simpson, who is the Chair of the Milton Keynes Branch, thanked Paul Greenwood and Greg for attending the Milton Keynes event. At the end of the evening Paul Simpson presented them both with a glass goblet.
