Want to be an Exemplar?

Are you an Exemplar business? Have you got an Exemplar project to promote so that others can learn from your experiences?

A core part of what CEWales does is about sharing knowledge, sharing best practice and collaborating so that the learning from projects – both good and bad things – are understood and we all improve the business of construction. That principle is at the heart of the Exemplar process. What’s more it combines the core principles of Rethinking Construction and the Well-being of Future Generations Act, which makes our Exemplar programme a central element of what makes CEWales and the movement so important.

An ‘Exemplar’ is defined as ‘something worthy of being imitated or copied’ and this is exactly what we continue to seek to achieve with this programme. Exemplars are intended to offer good practical examples of how to achieve Best Value Sustainable Construction solutions.

Three more Exemplar’s are now live on the CEWales web site and all are Transport for Wales projects: Taff Wells, Bow Street and Deeside. All are worth reading – not just to understand the learning but see for yourself the process behind an Exemplar.

Our approach to Exemplar has been updated to reflect the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and to provide greater value as well as inviting a programme approach to the process. It is anticipated that embarking on the Exemplar process will, in itself, lead to higher value being obtained from a project.

The Exemplar process identifies what actions have taken place at key project stages that have led to successful outcomes, so that this learning can be adopted on other projects. Each project must take a holistic approach to sustainable development and achieve a balance between economic, social and environmental factors. Success is evidenced through key performance indicators – which reflect the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act principles.

At each stage we use industry standard metrics to back up and support the description of what was done. All aspects of sustainability and construction best practice are taken into consideration, including economic, social and environmental factors, to ensure that a good all-round project is delivered that does not sacrifice one aspect for the sake of another.

Participants will commit to sharing their learning experiences with the wider industry through dissemination events held at key stages in the project development.

This means a CEWales Exemplar goes much, much further than an award entry. The Exemplar concept embraces the key drivers for the construction industry –

• The need to understand where improvements can be made from the earliest phases of a project right through to post occupancy
• Encourages design/ project teams to work collaboratively to deliver whole life sustainability aspirations
• Helps monitor ongoing best practice
• Provides feedback to the wider industry to take forward key learning points from successful projects and advice that can yield future successes
• Is not just an award for ‘glitzy’ buildings/ projects – it seeks to reward ‘normal,’ repeatable schemes that have been done well
• Rewards projects that are shown to truly represent all aspects of sustainability, in a cost-effective manner

Qualification for Exemplar status will require independent assessment by CEWales against a series of metrics under the headline sustainability issues - economic, social and environmental. You can find a full explanation of the process and more details on the CE Wales site.

If you are interested in the Exemplar Programme please email info@cewales.org.uk