Our Exemplar Programme continues to go from strength to strength. In it's first year we had 15 projects signed up for the programme and as we move through the second year that figure has risen to 20. We’ve already produced 10 case studies and held 8 events to describe the best practices that are being identified across the programme.

So what’s it all about? The programme was launched in 2011 by Jane Davidson, the Minister for Sustainability and Housing at that time. The aim of the programme was to capture the key actions which project teams take at key stages of a project which lead to successful and sustainable outcomes. These are not iconic projects. Quite the opposite in fact! These are mainstream projects exhibiting good practices which others can learn from. What is important is that they are rounded and balanced projects which deliver sustainable outcomes – social wellbeing, good economic performance and environmental benefits. We monitor these projects and develop case studies at 3 key stages – design stage to describe what actions the team take, construction stage to highlight what was achieved and post-occupation stage to demonstrate whether or not the project actually delivered it's intended outcomes. These studies when combined with specific events and presentations offer valuable lessons for others to learn from and improve their own practices.

In March, the Gateway to the Valleys (G2V) team hosted a breakfast event at Bryngarw House, Tondu, to describe the actions they took to deliver successful social, economic and environmental outcomes at Ysgol Gymunedol y Dderwen near Bridgend. If you want to know what they set out to do then view our design stage Exemplar case study. We will follow this up in late summer with a construction stage case study once the project has been completed.

In mid-April the team at Newport High School hosted a post-occupation event at the school to show, 24 months after occupation, how the building is performing and how the end users, the pupils, teachers and local community, are responding to the new facility. This is an important part of the Exemplar process as it “closes the loop” and proves whether or not the actions taken at the start of the project actually delivered positive and sustainable outcomes. Check out the Newport High post-occupation case study.

We also have two more events programmed for June to explain why the refurbishment and re-modelling of Merthyr Tydfil Town Hall and the construction of a new highway section of the A477 between St Clears and Red Roses in West Wales are part of the Exemplar Programme. The project at Merthyr is an exceptional example of how a historic listed building, of which there are many in Wales, can be sensitively regenerated with a reduced carbon footprint and social benefits for the local community as well as delivering collaboratively to time and budget. The event will be held on June 17th and the design stage Exemplar case study will give you an early taster. The Welsh Government’s project at Red Roses will be showcased on June 12th. Construction of this major civil engineering project is still underway but attending the event will give you an insight into how early contractor involvement has enabled a proactive approach to risk management, significant community engagement and a commitment to high environmental standards.

The benefits of continuous improvement through lessons learnt from live projects are proven time and time again and that’s why our Exemplar Programme is such an important part of the work we do at CEWales. If you feel you have a project worthy of sharing through our Exemplar Programme contact Ed Evans.