Engineering Award For The Kelpies

The Kelpies, a new cultural landmark in Falkirk, has won a national engineering award.

The development scooped the Saltire Society 2014 Civil Engineering Award at a ceremony on Wednesday evening.

Among the other nominations for the accolade were the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, the Kessock Bridge refurbishment in Inverness and Edinburgh's Waverley Station.

The Kelpies are 300-tonne, 98ft tall horse head sculptures created in Helix Park, Falkirk. It is part of a wider project that transformed a 300-hectare site in the area from disused scrubland into a modern urban green space.


Convener of the awards panel, Gordon Pomphrey, commented: "The adjudication panel had no hesitation in recommending the Helix Development for the overall Saltire Civil Engineering Award 2014.

"In particular I feel it merits award in the project, design and construction categories. The project involved a wide range of stakeholders from its conception and throughout the design process and provided regeneration to the area resulting in tangible benefits to the environment, local community and economy.

"There is no doubt that the Kelpies have quickly become another iconic must-see visitor attraction and will be an internationally recognised landmark for many years to come."

Established in 1981, the awards recognise excellence and showcase the best in Scottish engineering.

(JP/CD)