Farrans’ engineers lead the field at Pipeline Industries Guild PDN Competition
Our colleagues Walid Hammoud, Civil Engineer, and Saed Mohamed, Student Engineer, recently represented the business at the Pipeline Industries Guild Professional Development Network (PDN) Paper Competition, showcasing their expertise and contributing to industry knowledge.
We’re delighted to share that Walid was named winner of the Eastern regional heat. His paper, “Above-Water-Table Dewatering: Safer, Lower-Carbon Pipeline Construction on the Strategic Pipeline Alliance,” explored innovative approaches to improving safety while reducing carbon impacts in pipeline construction. Walid will now go on to represent the Eastern branch at the National Final, taking place at the Guild Conference on 4th June in Coventry.
Walid said: “My paper and presentation were based on work from the Strategic Pipeline Alliance (Anglian Water Services), focusing on how dewatering, targeted trial holes and ground assessment carried out specifically to inform construction planning can be used to better understand real site conditions, challenge initial assumptions, and support safer and more efficient delivery. The work also demonstrated how these decisions can reduce unnecessary imported material, avoid heavier temporary works where not needed, and contribute to a lower-carbon approach to pipeline construction. I am also proud that Saed Mohamed, our Student Engineer at Farrans Construction, has made it to the regional final too. It is great to see the strength of talent coming through in the business. I am now looking forward to the National Final in June. A special thank you to Jonny Kerr for supporting me throughout the competition.”
Saed was also recognised as a regional finalist for his paper on the Anglian Water Strategic Pipeline Alliance (SPA) project. His work highlighted the importance of robust field verification, introducing a structured approach — Confirm, Cross-check, Conclude — to enhance safety, minimise rework, and support efficient project delivery.
The PDN competition is designed to promote professional development and knowledge sharing across the pipeline industry. Entrants submitted a synopsis and delivered a 15-minute presentation to industry peers, providing valuable insights into key challenges and innovations.
This is a fantastic achievement for both colleagues and a great reflection of the talent and expertise within Farrans. Congratulations to Walid and Saed, and best of luck to Walid in the National Final.