BUILDERS of two developments in West Devon were on the rostrum last week at an annual awards ceremony. The Devon Building Control Partnership (DBCp) paid tribute to local builders who have impressed council surveyors and award judges, with the quality and integrity of their work over the past year. The sustainability award was won by ROK Exeter for 'Opportunity Okehampton', for its commitment to eco-conscious development, while Gadd Group were the winners of the best commercial project for The Crown Centre, Tavistock, for the conversion of the town's former night club to flats and a retail unit. The awards cover a wide range of developments; from conversions and single dwellings to multiple housing and commercial projects. The DBCp, which incorporates building control offices from Teignbridge, West Devon and South Hams councils, and covers more than 1,000 square miles of Devon, had some difficult choices to make when looking at the various projects up for nomination. Criteria included sound construction techniques, adherence to building regulations, clean and safe site working policies, environmental consideration, good liaison with building control, and excellent customer care. A new green-themed 'sustainability award' was introduced this year, underlining the DBCp's commitment to eco-conscious development and celebrating the best example of this ideal in action. With greater emphasis being placed on the reduction of carbon emissions, the award is aimed at encouraging designers, developers and builders to use as many sustainable features in their developments as possible. Cllr Diana Moyse, West Devon Borough Council member and chairman of DBCp, said: 'These awards recognise and reward quality and innovation at a local level, encouraging sound working practices and good communications between architects, developers and our building surveyors. 'Building regulations are regarded as some of the most rigorous set of building codes in the world, especially the newly introduced environmental codes. With so many new and stringent requirements, it is vital to have good liaison between all parties involved. 'The standard of nominations was once again very high. Our surveyors put forward some excellent developments, and gave outstanding recommendations. 'These nominated developments are a credit to everyone who, as a result of working together, has achieved real benefits for their customers and the community. 'We would like to build upon this success and next year we will be putting even greater emphasis on the sustainable aspect of every development. By doing this and supporting architects early in the design, we hope to see more innovation and more sustainable projects.'
