Challenges:

• Halcrow was relocating its corporate headquarters in Hammersmith, bringing together two offices to accommodate a workforce of up to 600 employees.
• The new office required complete redevelopment and refurbishment which Halcrow oversaw. One advantage of the new building was that it had an existing albeit out-dated catering facility.
• The previous office had a small franchised sandwich and café bar. Halcrow wanted to design a full catering service that would provide for employees, visitors, hospitality and a previously out-sourced training function.
• Having limited internal catering experience, Halcrow decided to engage an independent catering consultant to help develop the facility and contract a professional catering partner to run the operation.



Solutions:

• Halcrow appointed Review Consultancy to support and advise it through the whole process, from initial design to a fully operational service.
• Initially, a staff questionnaire was completed to determine potential customers’ catering requirements and value levels as well as establish how the staff satisfied their food and beverage needs.
• From the survey results, Review drafted a catering service vision consisting of recommended services, menus, tariffs and model operational budgets for Halcrow’s project board to consider and agree.
• Based on the service vision, Review designed the catering facility within the space allocated and, to maximise value, used as much of the existing equipment as possible. A model equipment and installation budget was prepared for the project board to consider and agree.
• Based on the agreed design, Review developed a detailed equipment specification and tendered and evaluated the catering equipment purchase, installation and commissioning.
• Based on the agreed service vision, Review developed a detailed service specification and tendered and evaluated the operational catering service.
• Review worked with the project board to finalise the choice of catering contractor from a shortlist of three.
  
  

Outcomes:

• A catering equipment and installation company was commissioned at a fixed cost, within the original model budget.
• The new catering facility was installed and completed on time and on budget.
• Following 26 expressions of interest and an extensive evaluation process, including site visits, a catering company has been appointed and has successfully commenced service; its agreed subsidy being within the model budget.
• Review Consultancy is now negotiating the on-going monitoring of the catering service to ensure compliance with the specification and continued best value to Halcrow.



Review’s approach to our project was to get under the skin of what we wished to achieve and then steer us to achieving this. They both challenge traditional views and are brutally honest in managing expectation, leading to a first-class service that remains within the available budget. It is difficult to recommend improvements to their service when they have fulfilled their brief so ably.

Bringing catering experience to the client project board allowed qualified reviews of the architect’s proposals and accurate budget preparation. It gave us confidence in what we were doing and how to fulfill our objectives.

The business has achieved its goal of a good-quality, affordable service. The popularity of the installation combined with satisfaction at management level is the equation the project team set out to achieve."

Chris Townsend, Halcrow Group





An essential element of this project’s success was the open and close relationship quickly built between the client and the consultant, which allowed the consultant to engage totally with Halcrow and understand implicitly and deliver its objectives."

John Crowther, Review Consultancy