More than 100 firms entered the awards with a quarter of winners in the seven categories coming from smaller companies.

Graham Dalton, Chief Executive of the Highways Agency said: “This year our recognition scheme received more than double the number of entries compared to last year – that is simply fantastic.

“It’s also a strong indication of the steps our suppliers have made in bringing innovation into the workplace.

“I find it truly heartening that at a time when the safety of our road workers is of paramount importance, there were three companies besides the winner worthy of a high commendation in that category.”

Winners and highly commended:

• Building and sustaining capability – awarded to suppliers that have developed their employees’ skills and capabilities through delivery of Highways Agency contracts.
  • awarded to: Costain Ltd for their engagement with skills and employment organisations that led to apprentices and young staff being recruited for the M1 junctions 28-31 Smart Motorway scheme
  • highly commended: Carillion Civil Engineering
• Customer Experience – awarded to suppliers that have demonstrated industry leading commitment to customer service.
  • awarded to: Carillion Civil Engineering for their work to involve the local community during the A23 Handcross to Warninglid scheme including visits to schools and providing public liaison 24 hours a day
  • Costain Ltd for their proactive engagement with customers, stakeholders and communities during the M1 junctions 28 -31 Smart Motorway scheme
  • highly commended: Mouchel (designer) and Carillion (delivery partner)
• Delivering sustainable value and solutions – awarded to suppliers that have integrated environmental, social, economic and management aspects of sustainable development into the delivery of Highways Agency contracts.
  • awarded to: Interserve Construction Limited for their work on an ambitious sustainability framework and action plan which goes beyond 2020
  • highly commended: Costain Group plc; Sir Robert McAlpine and AW Jenkinson
• Safety, health and wellbeing – awarded to suppliers that show industry leading commitment to improving organisational, workforce and road user health and safety.
  • awarded to: A-One+ Integrated Highway Services (Occupational health and wellbeing aspect) for embedding occupational health and wellbeing as a core value and proactively promoting benefits with its road workers
  • Costain Ltd (Road Users aspect) for a series of site measures and safety initiatives including targeting driver behaviour through the use of personal messages from the children of road workers
  • Skanska Construction UK Ltd (Road Workers aspect) for its efforts to improve road worker safety collaboratively including the construction of a simulated motorway for emergency services and workers as part of incident management exercises
  • highly commended: Road Workers aspect – Carnell Group; Hanson Asphalt & Contracting; Colas Ltd; Road user aspect – Atkins; EM Highway Services Ltd
• Managing down cost/improving value – awarded to suppliers that have demonstrated significant achievement by delivering Highways Agency contracts in smarter, more efficient ways.
  • Awarded to: Carnell Group for their work in providing innovative solutions to make savings, including an environmentally friendly way of recycling filter drain material
  • WSP for their work on the A19 Coast Road which generated construction cost savings and reduced the need to work at height by proposing top down construction of a new bridge
  • Simulation Systems Ltd for developing and deploying a highly effective infra-red CCTV system for a Smart Motorway in just five months which reduces the need for street lighting
  • highly commended: Carillion Civil Engineering; Skanska, Balfour Beatty, Atkins with Simulation Systems Ltd and Wavetronix
• Promoting diversity and inclusion – awarded to suppliers that have created opportunities to bring people into the workplace, developed skills and created an environment where differences are valued and utilised.
  • awarded to: EM Highway Services Ltd and Recycling Lives for being involved in a host of projects to attract people into the sector and develop them as well as a series of measures supporting a culture of inclusion
  • highly commended: BAM/Morgan Sindall JV
• Supply chain management – awarded to suppliers that demonstrate the Highways Agency’s strategic agenda, values and principles through supply chains.
  • awarded to: The Collaborative Procurement Working Group (CPWG) – Carillion, BAM/Morgan Sindall, Costain, Balfour Beatty, Asset International, Polypipe and Saint Gobain for their joint work to overcome a shortage of temporary barrier and avoid delays by implementing effective strategies through the supply chain
  • highly commended: Connect Plus M25 Ltd; Norbert Dentressangle Logistics UK; Skanska UK Plc