Constructing Excellence in the North East (CENE) has appointed Carol Cairns as its new chair, as she succeeds Tim Bailey.
Tim, who is head of practice of xsite architecture, has worked closely with Carol, who was previously vice-chair and is head of programme management office (PMO) at Northumbrian Water. The water services company is one of the founding members of CENE.
Catriona Lingwood, chief executive of CENE, said: “On behalf of everyone at CENE, I would like to say a tremendous thanks to Tim, whose commitment and guidance has been invaluable, particularly during the challenges of Covid-19. Through his leadership, CENE is in a much stronger position moving forward and I am very pleased that he will remain an active board member.
“A huge welcome to Carol as our new chair. In her former position as vice chair, she was instrumental in leading a strategic review of CENE, helping to re-establish its mission, vision and strategic goals and aligning them to the national goals of Constructing Excellence.
“With vast expertise, Carol was a natural successor to Tim and I am sure her leadership and vision will be of utmost value as we continue to support our loyal members in what is our 20th anniversary year.”
Carol is a chartered civil engineer with 25 years’ experience leading asset management investment planning, business transformation and substantial capital investment programmes in the water sector.
Carol, said: “Having worked closely with Tim over the last three years, I want to continue to build on his very strong foundations.
“The CENE mission is to deliver improved industry performance resulting in a demonstrably better built environment. By working collaboratively, our vision is for the construction industry to realise maximum value for all clients and that we are respected as being an organisation which is inclusive, influential and essential.
“Moving forward, we have a number of strategic objectives and they are to be an influencer in the region, to grow our membership, support life-long learning and continue to be ambitious in what the North East built environment can collectively achieve, as we continue to be a voice of influence.
“We will continue to deliver against the objectives by accelerating activity across our key theme groups – people, climate, innovation and value. CENE has a pivotal role to play in the region and we will support our network when it comes to achieving their net zero targets, managing rising costs and connecting members.
“In the coming months, we will be appointing new members to our board, as we continue to diversify and it is also my goal that, by 2025, CENE becomes carbon neutral, sending a strong signal to our members that we can learn and progress together on our net zero journey.”