The Major Projects Association was formed in the United Kingdom in 1980 by a group of organisations concerned to share information and experience about how to realise large, complex projects effectively. It brings together senior executives from project promoters, banking, contracting, consultancy, insurance, law, and government.
The Association is multi-disciplinary, international and multi-industry and covers all industrial, government and commercial sectors. It includes aerospace, defence, energy, transportation, IT systems, construction, telecommunications, utilities, manufacturing, the chemical and the petro-chemical industry.
Purpose
The Major
Projects Association exists to improve the initiation and successful implementation of major projects.
Means
1. Bringing together the major players in every aspect of major projects of all types: funders,
promoters, designers, contractors, suppliers, operators, regulators, professional contributors
and government.
2. Providing forums and platforms for participants openly to share experience, knowledge and
lessons learnt.
3. Disseminating good practice guidance and advice based on real experience.
4. Working to remove obstacles, both internal and external, to adoption of improved practice in
major projects.
Each participant in a major project will benefit most through assuring the success of the overall project.
Vision
Our vision is that development and adoption of improved practice in initiating and implementing major projects will have two benefits. It will benefit the promoters of major projects by delivering better value for their investments and it will benefit the businesses which contribute to the delivery of major projects by increasing the value of what they do.
Board
The Association is governed by a Board - of elected members - and by committees whose members are drawn mainly from member organisations.
The Board Members are:
| Sir Robert Walmsley KCB FREng | Chairman, Major Projects Association |
| Mr Malcolm Noyce | Executive Director, Major Projects Association |
| Dr Martin Barnes | |
| Prof Michael Earl | Dean, Templeton College |
| Mr Lindsey Holbrook | |
| Mr Andrew McNaughton, | Group Managing Director, Balfour Beatty plc |
| Mr Mike Nichols | Chairman, The Nichols Group |
| Mr Mark Richardson | Partner (Head of Asset Management), IBM Global Business Services |
| Prof Tony Ridley CBE | Emeritus Professor, Imperial College London |
| Ms Sally Roe | Partner, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer |
| Mr David Suratgar | Chairman of the Advisory Board, Taylor-De-Jong |
| Mr Barry Taylor | Director, Lend Lease Projects |
The Association's events activities include
- seminars
- discussion meetings
- visits
- courses
- annual conference
Seminars are used to tackle particular subjects and to examine and learn from particular current or completed projects. They are held either in London or at Oxford. Seminars are usually full day events with much of the time applied to discussion and 'networking' between those attending. Expert speakers, drawn from all over the world, take part in the seminars. The Association publishes a full record of the discussions and of the action points derived at each seminar for the confidential use of members.
Discussion meetings take place at lunch time at a central London venue. They feature an expert speaker, often a well known person from outside the major projects area, and a discussion relating the topic to current issues for the business of major projects.
Visits are arranged to current or recently completed major projects, not just in the construction sector but also in manufacturing and other sectors. The visits include the opportunity to see the physical work and also to expose the managerial, financial and other less visible features of the projects.
The Annual Conference usually takes place over two days in the Autumn. Each addresses an issue of major concern. In 2001 we will be exploring Setting objectives and understanding clients' business.
A week long course The Challenge of Major Projects is run twice a year. It always attracts a varied and high powered group who benefit from the course material presented by a team of experts and also from their own intense interaction during the week. The charge for the course is not included in the annual member's subscription.
MPA in Action is the Association's newsletter which is distributed to members at frequent intervals and is also available on the member's part of this website.
The Association is an affiliate of Saïd Business School, University of Oxford where it has its office at Egrove Park, which is south of Oxford city centre.
Member organisations pay an annual subscription which is the principal source of income for the Association. There are no charges for attendance at any of the Association's core programme of events. In this way, members are spared the need to authorise expenditure for each event and to make payments. Having paid their subscription, the only deterrent for members from taking the fullest possible part in the events is the normal pressure on staff time.
Normally each member organisation nominates two executives to act as its representatives.
If you would like to become a member of the Major Projects Association please send us an e-mail and we will contact you.
Otherwise contact us at:
Major Projects Association, Egrove Park, Kennington,
Oxford, OX1 5NY
Telephone: (44) 01865 422581 Fax: (44) 01865 326068
E-mail:
mpa@templeton.oxford.ac.uk
Mr Malcolm Noyce BSc, Executive Director,
Ms Manon Bradley MA, Association Manager,
Ms Maggie Latham, Events Manager and Administrator,
Ms Ruth Feeney, Accounts Administrator and Administration Assistant,
About the MPA
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