Headland Archaeology wins Energy Supply Chain Partner of the Year!

Headland Archaeology wins Energy Supply Chain Partner of the Year!

Last November, Headland Archaeology took centre stage at the J Murphy & Sons Supply Chain Awards, clinching the esteemed title of Energy Supply Chain Partner of the Year. Its win was a nod to its outstanding archaeological mitigation work on the Norfolk Vanguard Onshore Project in 2023.

Suzanne Cunningham and Jon Downs presenting the Energy Award to “Candy Hatherley, Michael Castle and Mike Kimber” of Headland Archaeology (UK) Limited at J. Murphy & Sons’ Supplier Awards. The event was held at Underglobe, New Globe Walk, London, Bankside, UK. 14 Nov 2023

Accompanied by approximately 100 suppliers, Candy Hatherley, Mike Kimber and Michael Castle attended the awards ceremony at the Underglobe of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London.

Each J Murphy & Sons project team diligently submitted supplier names for the award, and we are pleased to share that our triumph in this fiercely competitive arena was unmistakable. Despite the challenges, we emerged as the clear winners!

Who was involved?

Candy Hatherley served as the project manager, while Michael Castle took on the role of on-site manager. The Headland field team comprised 25 members, including three surveyors, a safety, health, environment and quality (SHEQ) manager and personnel providing training support.

 About the project

In the autumn of 2022, J Murphy & Sons secured the construction contract for the onshore cabling phase of the Norfolk Vanguard offshore windfarm, a project spearheaded by Vattenfall. We had been collaborating with Vattenfall since 2017, engaging in archaeological activities along the onshore project’s route before construction initiation. These activities encompassed geophysical surveys, metal detection, historic building recording, trial trench evaluations and area excavations. J Murphy & Sons enlisted our expertise for the final pre-construction year of work.

Throughout 2023, our efforts involved excavating 23 archaeological sites along the onshore cable route. The project’s goal was to obtain approval from Norfolk County Council’s archaeological lead for these areas, paving the way for the commencement of construction – a milestone that was successfully achieved.

Drone photo of the excavation team outlining the footprint of a medieval building (14th-16th Century). The building would have been timber framed, but all that survive are the foundations of the low sill wall in the foreground.

What did we achieve on the dig?

  • Completion of 23 archaeological excavations from April to September 2023
  • Dedication of 15,298 man-hours to the project
  • Conducted stripping and sample excavation on 8.75 hectares of land
  • Retrieval of 0.11 tonnes of artifacts
  • Removal of approximately 8840 litres of soil for analysis
  • Production of over 10,000 digital records and drawings
  • Execution of 37 drone flights
  • Provision of 80 hours of archaeological training

 

A quote from Russel Coleman, Managing Director

“We have been involved with Norfolk Vanguard since 2017, and being named Energy Supply Chain Partner of the Year is a fitting reward for all the hard work put in by the team at Headland. I am delighted that Headland’s work has been recognised, and especially pleased for the team led by Candy and Michael for all its efforts over the last few years. This award is set to boost our presence in the industry and hopefully open doors to additional successful projects and happy clients in the future!”