People are at the core of Elkins Construction and we are committed to providing opportunities for local talent and supporting our people to progress in their careers. We’re delighted to celebrate the achievements of our Assistant Site Manager, Kalvin Morath-Gibbs, who recently completed his NVQ in Construction Site Management. Kalvin has been with us for six years, making his way through our ranks from an Apprentice to Assistant Site Manager position. We sat down with him to find out more about his journey so far.
Tell us about how you came to work at Elkins.
In January 2015 I was working part-time in my uncle’s jewellery shop while studying at university. As my Business Management degree was coming to an end, I was looking for a full-time position. My uncle recommended a few companies to look at, one of which was Elkins. The company ethos appealed to me and so I applied for an apprenticeship and was successful.
Why did you want to work in construction?
I hadn’t planned to end up in construction, but I found I really enjoyed the challenge of working in a completely different industry and the variety of the job. After working as an Apprentice Resident Liaison Officer for around 18 months, I was offered a permanent role at Elkins. I spent a number of years working as an RLO, communicating with residents and other members of the site team, and building up my experience. Three and a half years ago I was promoted to Assistant Site Manager.
What does your current role involve?
As Assistant Site Manager I’m on site every day overseeing the day-to-day work. An important part of my role is ensuring the health and safety procedures are adhered to so our employees, residents and the general public are kept safe while we’re carrying out our work. This includes making sure the hoarding is secure, ladders are taken down and materials are stored safely at the end of every day.
I’m usually based on one site, seeing the project through from start to finish, unless I’m required to cover for other Site Managers, in which case I may work across multiple sites at the same time. Currently I’m working on our Alderwood Road project for Royal Borough of Greenwich where we’re building six new two-bedroom sustainable homes with high efficiency air-source heat pumps and triple glazing.
What’s your favourite part of your job?
The best part is definitely the satisfaction of seeing the transformation on site from start to finish and the benefits to existing residents and the surrounding area. Receiving positive comments from thankful residents really makes all of the hard work worthwhile, as does recognition and praise from my supervisor and our client.
What has been your favourite project to work on?
One of the most rewarding projects I’ve worked on was one of my first jobs as an Assistant Site Manager on a project in Canary Wharf. I was called in to take over from an existing site manager and so I had to hit the ground running. I learnt a lot very quickly, and it was a really good experience which helped me develop my confidence in the role.
What are your plans for the future?
I’m proud to have worked my way up from Apprentice RLO to Assistant Site Manager in just six years but there’s still plenty of places for me to go! Elkins offers many training opportunities and a great career progression structure, so I’m looking forward to what I can achieve in the future. Getting my NVQ level 6 in Construction Site Management was the next step towards becoming Site Manager, which is what I am working towards in 2022.
What do you get up to outside of work?
When I’m not on site you’ll likely find me on the football pitch! I enjoy staying active and play football during the week and at weekends in Chislehurst for Glebe F.C.
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