Ebbw Vale man Justin Price has been shortlisted for a national award for his work managing a £20m construction project in Cardiff.

Mr Price’s work for BAM Construction on the Hadyn Ellis Building at Cardiff University won him recognition from the Chartered Institute of Building’s Construction Manager of the Year Awards.

He will travel to London on October 30 to see whether he’s secured a medal in the New Build and Refurbishment between £17m and £20m category.

The project, to create a post-graduate medical research facility, came in almost £500,000 under budget as well as meeting a tight schedule.

Mr Price said a mixture of motivating and empowering staff allowed him to drive the project through to meet its targets.

At its peak, Mr Price worked six months without a day off, such was his passion for the project.

He said: “It was a case of never accepting no as an answer; always looking for a way around problems. I had a great team, and no-one ever turned around and refused to work late or do something we asked. I hope they enjoyed it. We certainly all got a great deal of satisfaction when it was finished.”

Mr Price, 43, has lived in Ebbw Vale all his life, and commuted 30 miles each way to Cardiff during the project, even cycling it on occasion.

He started in the construction industry 25 years ago, joining BAM eight years ago, and recently being promoted to construction manager.

BAM’s other recent projects in Cardiff include 3 Assembly Square in Cardiff Bay, and the David Morgan Apartments and Arcade in the Hayes.