Normally in the final Preliminary Round there are a number of surprises with teams moving into the top 12 to the despair of others, but not this year as there were no changes in the leading 12, although there were positional changes throughout going into the final. And for the first time there are 8 different sponsors represented in the final; Arcadis, AtkinsRealis, Infraco Consulting, Hatch, Jacobs, Parsons, Stantec and WSP, with teams from around the world, with a sprinkling of first time finalists and those with past experience.

For the first time since period 8 the "Fanatics" (AtkinsRealis, India) are not in pole position as they dropped back one place to second, but only 3 points behind the new leaders, "Constructive Chaos" (Arcadis Australia Pacific, Australia), who climbed two places into top spot for the first time with 2,360 pts. In 3rd and 4th are two of the Stantec finalists, "Stan Movers" (Stantec, United States) and the runners up from the last two years, "Whatever it takes" (Stantec, Italy), and the other Stantec finalist "Stantogether" (Stantec, Australia) just held onto a final spot despite dropping 4 places in period 12. The ENGINUITY CRYSTAL BALL will still be smiling knowingly as the old sage's dark horses for the Competition are still in 7th place!

Amongst the joy there was bound to be anguish, and spare a thought for the teams that just missed out on a final place. In particular "The Infra Tribe" (Stantec, India), who finished in 13th after outperforming the top 12 with 10% growth. And what a finish to the Preliminary Rounds from the students, "SiX GoLdZZ" (The University of Manchester, UK), who were one of the star performers in period 12 with a 22% improvement that enabled them to surge 37 places up the table to 15th, the highest ever finish from a University team.

There is just 170 points separating the 12 finalists, almost the same as last year, with a 6 tense and competitive rounds ahead spread over 3 weeks, in which KPI points can quickly be eroded away as the increased pressure of the final puts endurance, team dynamics and company strategies to the ultimate test before the Enginuity 2024 Champions are crowned.

The 12 teams that have qualified for the final, and the order in which they will start the final are :-

And what of the teams that did not make the final ? For the first time EVERY TEAM that began the journey back in period 5 completed the early years with stronger, more sustainable companies than they started, a testimony to the skill and application shown throughout by the management teams.