How is PIJ judged?
Judging begins in July and continues for the next 12 months. This enables NHBC's inspectors to fully assess site managers' work over an extended period of time. They are looking for evidence that site managers are able to work consistently to high standards and demonstrate a sufficient range of management skills.
Each month, following routine inspections on site, NHBC inspectors submit the ten best sites to their inspection managers. The sites on the lists may vary from month to month as standards may fluctuate throughout the year. During the year, the inspection managers as part of the judging process described below, will visit selected sites.
Quality Awards
As the competition progresses, building inspectors fill out a PIJ marking sheet for those site managers who they think are candidates for Quality Awards. These are then submitted to the inspection manager. Each inspection manager will receive approximately 100 site manager nominations from their inspectors and, through discussion at meetings, desk studies, and knowledge gained from earlier sites visits, will select sites to visit as part of the formal judging process.
Following this, a number of site managers are nominated for a Quality Award. In order to ensure consistency, another inspection manager (the regional co-ordinator) and regional director(s) also visit selected sites.
In June, the Quality Award winners are finally selected and announced to the industry.
Seal of Excellence Awards
Further judging is then undertaken by the regional co-ordinator and regional director(s) to select, from the Quality Award winners, those site managers who will receive a Seal of Excellence Award.
Regional Awards
The regional director(s), together with independent external judge(s), then visit selected sites to decide on the regional winners in each category.
The Seal of Excellence and Regional winners are announced at a series of PIJ lunches across the UK in the autumn.
The eight PIJ regions are: Scotland, Northern Ireland & the Isle of Man, Wales, North, West, East, South West, and South East.
UK Supreme Awards
NHBC regional director(s) and independent external judge(s) visit the Regional winners' sites in each category (maximum 24) to select the three UK Supreme winners. The UK Supreme Award winners are announced at a prestigious national ceremony held in London in January.
But remember the search for the best never stops. Those site managers whose sites are not at a sufficient stage of development to demonstrate the necessary skills are still eligible for the next year's competition. We also have a system in place for tracking site managers who move sites during the year to ensure they don't miss out on a well-deserved Award.
