Nominations open for 2026 Tom Barton Award

Do you have a colleague who deserves to be recognised for their work to improve project outcomes by eradicating mistakes?

Nominations have now opened for the 2026 Tom Barton Award, which celebrates construction and engineering professionals who have demonstrated excellence in implementing initiatives to improve quality, productivity, safety and sustainability by eliminating error.

Part of the ICE Awards, and launched in collaboration with GIRI, the Tom Barton Award honours GIRI’s founding director Tom Barton, who died in 2020. A fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, Tom was instrumental in the formation of GIRI and had a passion for getting it right.

Now in its fifth year, the award is open for nominations for individuals or project teams who have demonstrated innovation, commitment, and excellence in implementing new ideas or initiatives to reduce error. Last year's winner, Kathy Ziwei Wen, a geotechnical project engineer from Geotechnologies Intelligence, won for her work to address significant errors in concrete use on an offshore wind turbine installation project.

The award is open to members and non-members of the ICE and GIRI, but all nominations must be endorsed by an ICE member. Nominations are particularly welcomed for young professionals who have demonstrably enhanced project efficiency.

The winner will be invited to attend the ICE awards ceremony to receive their award, and their achievement will be publicised by GIRI through our website, newsletter and social media platforms.

Nominations are open now and the deadline for submissions is 12 December 2025. Details of the award and the nomination process can be found on the ICE website.