Underground infrastructure, by its very nature, is generally hidden and harder to appreciate. Entering the ACE Awards gave Mott MacDonald the opportunity to have its less publicly visible work recognised.
It was tasked with providing Watercare with infrastructure planning tools to enable better investment decisions for its Network Performance Modelling and Monitoring (NP2M) programme. NP2M was created to support Watercare’s journey to transform infrastructure delivery, create a step change in capital delivery, and meet its climate change goals.
Mott MacDonald developed a game-changing framework taking traditionally fragmented work phases and integrating them to form a coherent end-to-end model development process that saved time and money.
With expressions of interest now open for the 2026 ACE Awards, we asked Mott MacDonald Technical Director Thomas Haarhoff why the ACE Awards are worth entering.
Why did you enter the ACE Awards?
“NP2M represented something genuinely different. Not just in technical delivery, but in how we worked with Watercare. Entering the awards felt like an opportunity to pause and reflect on the scale and significance of what the team had achieved, and to benchmark our work against the very best in the industry. It was also a way of recognising the effort of a multidisciplinary team who have committed to doing things differently and better over a sustained period of time.”
What did winning an award mean for you and your team? How did it feel?
“Winning the ACE Award was incredibly rewarding. As a project focused on underground infrastructure, the work we’ve done and continue to do isn’t always visible or immediately eye‑catching. To see that recognised publicly reinforced the value of the team’s commitment and the strength of our partnership with Watercare. It was genuinely energising and gave the team renewed confidence in both how we work and what we can achieve together.”
Have you used the award internally and / or externally?
“Yes, we’ve promoted this both internally and externally. As a global organisation, this has included our promotion to our relevant teams across the globe. It’s helped reinforce a culture of excellence and innovation internally within Mott MacDonald. It’s also been a powerful morale boost and a point of pride across the wider business. Watercare has also celebrated the award externally and promoted the programme at board level.”
Would you encourage others to enter the ACE Awards? Why?
“Absolutely. The process itself is valuable as it encourages teams to step back, reflect on what they’ve achieved and articulate the real impact of their work. That reflection is often overlooked in the pace of day-to-day delivery.
“Winning is amazing, but even being shortlisted provides recognition and visibility for teams and projects that deserve it. The ACE Awards celebrate the best of our profession, and entering is a meaningful way to contribute to that, share learning across the industry, and recognise the people who are doing outstanding work.”
2026 ACE Awards are open
Expressions of interest for the 2026 ACE Awards are now open and close on Tuesday 31 March. For information about the award categories, assessment criteria and submission guidelines, visit our awards platform.
Read about the 2025 ACE Awards winners.