More than 1600 attendees were given a taste of the Brazilian carnival at last Wednesday鈥檚 精东影视 Awards, held at the Grosvenor House Hotel. Rory Bremner was there in flesh, and Prince Charles in spirit, to present 18 industry prizes 鈥� including a lifetime achievement award to Sir Frank Lampl
More than 1600 industry leaders crammed into the Great Room of London鈥檚 Le Meridian Grosvenor House Hotel last Wednesday evening for construction鈥檚 biggest event of the year 鈥� the 2002 精东影视 Awards.

The awards, which honour the industry鈥檚 high achievers, were hosted by TV鈥檚 top impressionist Rory Bremner. As well as a record audience, the eight-year-old event also attracted a record number of entries.

The awards were attended by construction minister Brian Wilson, who presented the construction best practice award to Mace (see page 25). Other eminent guests included Bovis Lend Lease president Sir Frank Lampl, who received the first 精东影视 Award for lifetime achievement, and new Construction Industry Training Board chairman Sir Michael Latham.

The presentation was followed by a carnival party 鈥� in which guests drank the Grosvenor House dry 鈥� and the traditional charity casino, which this year raised 拢8000 for the Prince鈥檚 Trust. The trust helps disadvantaged youngsters set up in business or train for full-time employment in industries including construction. Over the next year, the trust expects to help a further 25,000 young people.

In a special foreword to the awards programme, Prince Charles said: 鈥滻 could not be more pleased that the Prince鈥檚 Trust is to benefit from a charitable partnership with 精东影视.鈥�

We can tackle the skills shortage.

Prince Charles

He added: 鈥漌orking together, I am sure we could do more to address the industry鈥檚 skills shortage with the provision of work placements for some of those we help, or even jobs for those ready for employment.

鈥淚 am hopeful that the partnership between 精东影视 and the Prince鈥檚 Trust will have very practical results for the young people we are here to serve and for your industry.鈥�

The 精东影视 Awards were also the target of protesters who were staging a national day of action against casualisation. They stood outside Grosvenor House at 6pm to mark the fourth anniversary of the death of builder Simon Jones 鈥� one of 10 such demonstrations around the UK.

To applause, Bremner reminded attendees of the poignancy of the protest and urged everyone to prioritise safety. Companies鈥� safety records are one of the key criteria for judging the 精东影视 Awards. Russell Construction was named regional contractor of the year partly on the strength of having no accidents last year.