Premier Construction 15-1

Roma Publications

Volume 15 - Issue 1

Architectural Excellence

The 2010 RIBA Awards

Rathcoole Estate Belfast estate residents delight in massive upgrade programme

Carnegie Pavilion

New Leeds hub mixes sport and education

Gatwick Airport Investment programme gathers speed

Construction Plant Competence Scheme What you thought you knew

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Contents PREMIER CONSTRUCTION

Volume 15 • Issue 1

Dear readers, A hearty welcome to the latest issue of Premier Construction, in which we take our usual look at what’s new across the British Isles and beyond This time around, we begin with a look at some of the highlights of the 2010 RIBA Awards, which recognise the latest architectural landmarks crafted by the best of the UK’s designers.

In the North West, we bring you news of a rest home so luxurious it could be a holiday resort, and a fine example of how refurbishment can brighten a SME. Moving over to the North East, there’s a boost to Yorkshire’s sporting and educational resources in Leeds, as the city also benefits from a new supermarket that will create jobs and fuel regeneration.

The Midlands area receives a boost with news that an iconic landmark is to be saved, thanks to some tireless campaigning and generous donations, and mothers-to-be in the region will be vying to take advantage of a new facility designed with them in mind.

In the South West, a plush new hotel continues a wave of regeneration around Bristol, while start-up businesses in Cornwall are to find a perfect home in a new complex funded by the South West Regional Development Agency London and the South East are busy, as the latest phases of the Gatwick Airport investment plan and the Stratford City project take shape.

In Wales, the new Welsh Assembly Government buildings receive our attention, while in Scotland we marvel at top-ofthe-range sporting and maritime facilities in the rapidly regenerating city of Glasgow.

An impressive energy from waste scheme takes shape in Ireland, where there is also news of an award handed to developers brightening the streets of Belfast.

Overseas, transport in Scandinavia is soon to be streamlined with an impressive new rail link in Sweden, and the Baltic is the latest area to enjoy investment in clean, green energy.

Finally, we bring you advice from trade associations on how to choose your roofing contractor and why you shouldn’t skimp on investment in certification.

There’s plenty more ado in the world of construction, and we invite you to read on and find out just what.

Graham Schulz, Editor

Focus On RIBA Awards 2010…………………………………….......................................…..6 Dignity and mobility in care………………………….…..................................….17

North West Birch Abbey Rest Home, Southport…………………...............................……..25 Bootle Containers………………………………………...................................…..30

North East & Yorkshire Capitol Parade, Leeds………………………………….................................……34 Headingley Carnegie Pavilion, Leeds……………..............................…………37

Midlands Launde Abbey, Leicestershire………………………................................………39 Birmingham Women’s Hospital…………………................................….………45

South West Pool Innovation Centre, Cornwall…………………...............................………..52 Cadbury House, Bristol…………………………….................................………..52

London & South East Gatwick Airport……………………………………...................................………..54 Stratford City……………………………………....................................…………..60

Wales A40 upgrades, Pembrokeshire……………………...............................…………85 Welsh Assembly Government, Llandudno……………….................................86

Scotland National Sports Arena, Glasgow…………………………...............................…88 Marine Skills Centre, Glasgow……………………………..................................93

Ireland Indaver Facility, Meath………………………………….................................…..103 Streets Ahead, Belfast…………………………...............................……………105

Overseas Baltic Offshore Wind Farm……………………................................……………112 Malmö Citytunnel, Sweden………………………...............................…………115

Associations Confederation of Roofing Contractors……………………...............................116 CPCS – What you thought you knew…………………….............................….124

Managing Director: Marcus Howarth Editor:

Graham Schulz

Contributors:

Lesley Coward

Production Manager: Danielle Burgoyne Advert Co-ordinator: Kelsie Howarth

Published by:

Roma Publications Ltd.

t: 01706 719 972 f: 0845 458 4446

e: admin@romauk.net

w: www.romauk.net

Graphic Design by:

www.marcusmacaulay.co.uk

© Roma Publications Ltd. All contents are copyright. All rights are reserved. No part may be stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form without prior written permission from the publishers. Whilst every effort is made to ensure accuracy, no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies however caused. Contributed material does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the publisher. the editorial policy and general layout of this publication are at the discretion of the publisher and no debate will be entered into. No responsibility can be accepted for illustrations, artwork or photographs whilst in transmission with the publishers or their agents unless a commitment is made in writing prior to the receipt of such terms.

R I BA Awa rd s 2010

Focus on 2010 RIBA Awards In this issue of Premier Construction, we take a look at the 2010 RIBA awards, given out to outstanding building projects across the UK and even beyond.

RIBA Awards are given for buildings that have high architectural standards and make a substantial contribution to the local environment. The awards are annual, and have been running continuously since 1966.

Nominations All RIBA chartered members and International Fellows are eligible to enter as many of their projects as they wish the awards. They need submit only one entry to the RIBA region or nation in which the building is situated. Winning schemes are then considered for all RIBA awards for which they are eligible.

Awards judges take into account the following factors when considering entries:

• • • • • • • • • •

Budget Size Complexity of brief Detail Invention/originality Contract type Client satisfaction Sustainability Social factors Delight

Since the application process is so open, judges have to sift through hundreds or even thousands of contenders, indicating that the final few left in contention represent real architectural quality.

Judging process The buildings are judged in the first instance by shortlisting

Britain’s first state-funded Hindu school featured in RIBA awards Krishna-Avanti Primary School is the first voluntary aided Hindu school in the UK. Built in around a small temple in traditional Vedic style, which was imported piece by piece from India, the school architecture also reflects the local Hindu community, the largest in the UK and on which has already inundated the school with applications.

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panels in each region, who visit schemes individually and meet to produce a list of buildings to be visited by the region’s jury.

Each regional jury is made up of a regional representative, a lay assessor from various disciplines and the jury chair, who is a nationally renowned architect and chairs the shortlisting panel.

They visit the shortlisted projects, talking to clients and users and assessing design excellence irrespective of style, size or complexity of the project. The jury changes every year.

Each RIBA Award-winning project is sponsored and produced by the Lead Sheet Association. The association has been supporting the RIBA Awards since 1989 by producing the plaques, which are individually numbered and recorded, and can be seen on buildings all over the UK.

2010 Awards The award-winning buildings range from a small circular loo for bus drivers in London to the Neues Museum in Berlin, from a zero-carbon house to the energy substation for the 2012 Olympics. The high arts have done well with galleries, museums, theatres and auditoriums winning many awards (including the Ashmolean Musuem, Nottingham Contemporary and Aldeburgh Music Campus). Education buildings have also flourished with 17 of the 93 UK awards going to schools and universities.

Another feature of the RIBA Awards this year are public spaces pavilions, monuments, Liverpool Pierhead and the Infinity Bridge in Teesdale have all picked up an award.

RIBA President Ruth Reed said about the 2010 RIBA Award winners: ‘The RIBA Awards reflect not only the state of British architecture but also that of its economy. In the midst of the deepest recession in the 45 year history of the RIBA Awards, this year’s awards demonstrate that although times might be hard for architects, there are still great buildings being built throughout the country and overseas. The RIBA Awards always give an opportunity for gem-like small projects and less established practices to shine through and this year is no exception. Far from being a size prize, the RIBA Awards are for buildings that offer value to people’s lives.”

The buildings provide a modern and sustainable educational environment by means of an integrated engineering approach which gives a low impact, energy efficient solution. Some 68% of space heating is derived from ground source heat pumps and the school has an excellent BREEAM rating score of 75.64% Among the school’s impressive range of green features

are a sedum roof, rainwater harvesting, low-energy lighting with motion sensors, completely natural ventilation except in some toilets, and there is even a vegetable garden for children to learn about their diet and environment. The care for the environment displayed at Krishna Avanti is an important part of its residents’ religious beliefs.

It is intended that the school will become a beacon of sustainability by integrating educational aspects of sustainability into the curriculum, adopting waste reduction and recycling policies, and encouraging ‘green’ travel plans for pupils and staff.

The project, which was the winner of Harrow Heritage Trust Award 2010 and runner-up in the sustainability section of the RICS awards, is the work of architects Cottrell & Vermeulen and main contractor Mansell Construction.

An education in design!

Providing accommodation for two new classrooms and a fitness centre at ground level with a new library/learning centre on the first floor, is a recently completed project at Longford Community School in Feltham near Heathrow.

The scheme involved the construction of a 200 sq.m structurally expressed timber supported two-storey extension and the conversion of a total area of 550 sq m of an existing two-storey 1960s-constructed building.

The 375 sq m new library area houses a small auditorium, various seating and standing areas, book shelving and the librarian’s desk.

Two new classrooms have also been created – one of some 100 sq m. They are interconnected by a sliding folding acoustic wall that can completely pull back to create one large classroom of 150 sq m for maximum flexibility.

Further facilities include a new 140 sq m area with adjoining shower rooms and a small running track.

Main Contractors were Horgan Brothers, with Anderson Acoustics of Brighton providing soundproofing and sound control, working together with the building designers.

In order to extend what was a very dull and lifeless brick-built teaching block on a relatively low budget, Project Architects Jonathan Clark Architects designed a vibrantly colourful timber structure that straddles the end of the block almost as a kind of articulated three-dimensionally layered ‘book-end’. Their aim (and the client brief) was to achieve a visually and aesthetically interesting design that the pupils and school staff alike can

enjoy and feel inspired by.

The two-storey extension element uses bespoke designed colour-stained Finnish softwood laminated ‘fins’ that support both the first floor structure and the roof, as well as providing some solar control.

In between each fin are aluminium grating panels that provide additional solar control, as well as some structural stiffening to the external structure.

Behind the structure is a two-storey panel of glazed curtain walling. The roof is a silver ‘Trespa’ panel clad timber structure and is designed to give the impression of floating or sliding across the exposed timber roof beams.

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R I BA Awa rd s 2010

Innovative conversion adds Malcom Fraser to list of RIBA high-achievers Macolm Fraser Architects join the list of RIBA successes with their impressive £8 million conversion of the Infirmary Street Baths in Edinburgh. The disused Victorian building has been turned into a new workshop and public gallery for Dovecot Studios, Scotland’s leading tapestry company. Main contractor Reywood was responsible for bringing the design to reality.

Constructed in the years between 1885-87, in response to a cholera outbreak, the Infirmary Street Baths was the first of several handsome public pools designed by architect Robert Morham, many of which still exist. The pools were filled by turning a tap with a huge spanner, and it is said that famous actor Sean Connery used to frequent the pool.

The women’s pool suffered a fire in the 1950s. While the surviving pool continued in use, the roofless women’s pool sprouting foliage and with its windows bricked up - became quite an eyesore. Infirmary Street Baths finally closed in 1995, as the local council baulked at the prospect of £20 million to bring the baths up to date, and the Grade B listed building languished on the Buildings at Risk Register, facing possible demolition.

Now, after being rescued for the conversion, the main workshop re-uses the main swimming pool space and the public viewing gallery will become a new display area for the work of the studios. Dovecot’s design rooms, offices and supplementary accommodation have been located beneath the gallery space and the yarn library and tufting process form a vibrant and colourful visual backdrop to the work space.

The once subdivided entrance foyer, which was separated for men and women, has been made into a single, welcoming space in the new building, and provides direct access to the gallery and exhibition spaces located within the former main pool. Above and within the former ladies’ pool are located Dovecot’s new offices. The former and laundry and boiler house spaces have allowed for a small number of residential apartments, accessed independently from the rest of the building.

Externally, the existing stone walls of the original swimming pool are maintained and consolidated to or a robust base course, while new volumes above are conceived as simple zinc clad boxes with large glazed elements maximising the quality of light, space and city views.

The luxury apartments (a pair of two-bedroom flats on the first floor and two three-bedroom duplex flats on the second) each contain double bedrooms, family bathrooms and contemporary

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designer kitchens and living rooms. The highest level contains a two-bedroom penthouse with a view over the cathedral tower of St Giles, the University Old Court and the neoclassical buildings on Infirmary Street.

The building contains a lift and a video entry system, and apartments are fully furnished and equipped to a very high standard. With an ideal location only a few minutes walk from the Royal Mile and many of Edinburgh’s famous attractions, the apartments represent the perfect base form which to explore Edinburgh and the surrounding areas. A new address, Infirmary Street Lane, has been created to accommodate the new residences.

Since reopening in 2009, the building has been a RIAS Dolan Award Finalist and won a Roses Silver Award. It also features on the 2010 Scottish shortlist for a prestigious RIBA award However, the tribute about which Malcolm Fraser and Dovecot can feel proudest comes from the Cockburn Association, Edinburgh’s civic trust and a doughty defender of architectural heritage. The association has nominated the Infirmary Street Baths for a Scottish Civic Trust My Place award. The award seeks “to celebrate a project that has had a positive impact and offered additional benefits in a local community” and “local placemaking”. The conversion of the baths showcases a “considered, respectful and vigorous mixed-use development”, according to Malcolm Fraser.

The new occupants Far removed from the public health problems that prompted construction, the rescue of the once-derelict Infirmary Street Baths has transformed the building into a landmark centre for arts, craftsmanship and contemporary design.

Said David Weir, of Dovecot Studios: “Located in the heart of a developing cultural quarter in Edinburgh’s Old Town, the Dovecot building has created a landmark centre for Dovecot Studios to continue to support the skill of tapestry weaving. The addition of museum quality gallery spaces in the former swimming pools together with two floors of office accommodation and five residential apartments provides an inspiring environment in which making, living, learning, working and exhibiting all thrive.

“The Dovecot building enjoys a low carbon footprint using hemp insulation, sustainable bamboo flooring and a ground source heat pump system to provide heat to the space. Natural light is abundant, while the flexibility of the exhibition spaces

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R I BA Awa rd s 2010 has already proved itself by allowing multicultural events to take place including film, music and theatre.

“During Doors Open Day, Dovecot welcomed over 2,700 visitors during one day – testament to the interest in the rescue and conversion of these once derelict historic swimming baths and to the growing interest in the Dovecot building from both visitors and those who work there as an international centre for arts, craftsmanship and contemporary design.”

The gallery and exhibition centre have benefited from the expertise of Lighting Control, a lighting company who installed a Mode Lighting Tiger system, with a number of independent systems running in parallel throughout the different spaces of the restored building.

Speaking about the adjoining apartments, David commented, “The views are extraordinary, but it is the context that makes the five properties so special. Here are five residential spaces in the centre of the Edinburgh Old Town, but they are part of a building which has an extraordinary cultural dynamic. The architects displayed a nice touch to deal with old buildings but give them a truly modern feel.”

Enthusing at the future of the studios, David said, “We’re looking for excellence. We want this to be recognised worldwide as the top place for tapestry, and we also want it to become the centre for crafts and design in Scotland”.

Alastair Salvesen, art enthusiast, benefactor and chairman of Dovecot, said: “My wife and I were determined to ensure that Dovecot Studios, which was created in 1912, continues to exist with a permanent home. It is our hope that the adjoining exhibition space will assist contemporary art and craft in Scotland.”

Dovecot studios’ ambitious new home has been created without any subsidies, all the money having been donated by Alastair Salvesen – a measure of his determination to see the studio flourish once again. Salvesen agrees that, at £8 million, the conversion has been much more costly than anticipated: “We had to decide whether to just floor over the baths, or excavate and make use of the space beneath. I decided we’d dig out the baths, which we did, thereby creating a whole floor of exhibition space.”

With its centenary celebrations approaching, and through the magnanimity of its benefactor, Dovecot has already prepared the stage for a party to remember.

Holmes takes up residence In what amounts to a strong show of approval and recognition from a fellow firm of architects, Holmes have moved their offices to the building’s stylish new top-level suite.

Previously based in nearby Leith for the last 18 years, Holmes relocated to its new office space at the end of January. Holmes’ Edinburgh partner Neil Maxwell said: “This is a very positive development for the practice. We are now in the very heart of the city and look forward to strengthening our position in the wider Scottish marketplace and adding to our diverse portfolio of projects.”

Malcolm Fraser Architects The award-winning architects have worked on projects such as the Scottish Poetry Library, Dance Base and the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Their current projects include the Homeless World Cup Headquarters, testament to the diverse range of projects that the firm takes on.

The firm is based in Edinburgh, and you can see more of their work and find out more about their approach to design by visiting their website: www.malcolmfraser.co.uk

Reywood Construction Reywood Construction Limited operates from the company’s modern premises in Macmerry Industrial Estate, East Lothian, undertaking a wide variety of construction projects throughout Edinburgh, the Lothians and Borders regions.

Reywood offers a vast programme of services to private, commercial, industrial and public sectors, ranging from plumbing to landscaping and from lift installation to air conditioning.

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In the 20 years the company has spent working in construction, its representatives have gained vast experience with projects ranging from £5000 kitchen and bathroom alterations through to the multi-million redevelopment of the Infirmary Street.

Works are often by negotiated tender and Reywood Construction has a high number of returning customers, and new clients won by personal recommendations of previous satisfied customers.

Visit the Reywood website to find out more about what they can offer: www.reywood.org

Dovecot Studios The roots of Dovecot Studios go back to 1912, when the fourth Marquess of Bute created a tapestry studio in Corstorphine with the help of two craftsmen who had previously worked with William Morris. The venture worked regularly with artists of a high calibre, among them Stanley Spencer, Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland. Around the turn of the millennium, the seventh Marquess of Bute no longer felt able to lend support to the studios, which were threatened with closure. But with assistance from Alastair and Elizabeth Salvesen the studios were reborn in 2001. And in August 2008, Dovecot moved into its new home - the old Infirmary Street Baths, transformed by Malcolm Fraser Architects.

As it moves into Infirmary Street, the studio has just finished a regimental tapestry for the Highland Division, and another for a recently launched private yacht. The painter David Bellany, whose work has been woven into tapestry form more than once

by Dovecot, once described the old studio as one of the most creative places in Scotland.

During exhibition dates, the galleries are open to the public.

Throughout the year, the viewing balcony of the weaving studio is open on the first Tuesday morning of the month. Group visits can be pre-arranged. The building offers a variety of spaces suitable for venue hire from private parties, corporate events, small group meetings and training days.

Find out more by visiting www.dovecotstudios.com

Inspirational new design for animal care centre The Small Animal Hospital for the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, designed by Archial Architects, has added to its already impressive tally of awards by winning a RIBA Regional Award.

Archial’s striking design for the £10.5 million pioneering worldclass centre for veterinary medicine has already won the Supreme Award from the Glasgow Institute of Architects, the prestigious RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award and has been nominated for the Scottish Design Awards.

Situated at the entrance to the grounds of the Garscube Estate, the Small Animal Hospital provides state of the art services for animal owners and referring practitioners throughout Scotland and Northern England, including the most advanced diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical techniques.

Russell Baxter of Archial Architects said, “I’m delighted with this latest recognition for a building, the situation of which required a radical design solution.

“The primary concern when conceiving the design for this facility was how to create a large hospital without ruining the green space for which the Garscube Estate is renowned. The solution involved lifting up the ground, peeling off the grass and placing the new building underneath.”

Internally, the building is simply organized both horizontally and vertically with a clear division of public and private hospital space. The working hospital, set behind the gabion wall, is focused around a central treatment hub which acts as the heart of the building. There are clear and unrestricted views towards day-care, intensive care, operation suites, diagnostics and oncology. Teaching and office spaces occupy the upper level, with views over the estate.

Set into the landscape, a huge grassed roof supported by a steel frame ramps over the plan. It rises from the ground at the west end of the site to create a two-storey, east-facing facade.

Elevations are formed with strips of grey fibre-cement cladding.

One corner is marked by V-shaped steel columns that support the roof above an empty segment of the building’s footprint, creating a canopy for open-air dog runs. The hospital’s entrance, in the north facade, squats under the lower part of the slope and has intersecting planes of glass, rock and render and a cubeshaped portal door.

Archial’s design team also included Calum MacCalman, John Scullion and Peter Michal, and they were joined on the project by main contractor John Graham (Dromore) Ltd. The building was completed in August 2009 after a 24-month contract.

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Awe-inspiring restoration wins awards for St. Malachy’s Church St. Malachy’s Church, in Belfast, was amongst the RIBA honours in Northern Ireland.

The award for the Catholic church, located in Alfred Street, near Belfast city centre, follows 15 months of renovations which were completed at the cost of £2.8 million in April 2009.

RIBA said it was “a delightful early-Victorian church characterised by its robust brick exterior with toy-Gothic turrets, and an elaborately-plastered interior which has been formed around a very unusual, but intimate congregational organisation on two levels.”

“The recent restoration has brought out the richness of the original painted colour scheme as well as restoring mosaics damaged by post-war interventions and brickwork that had suffered through years of weathering.”

“A number of interventions, discreetly executed to meet modern requirements: disabled access, improved heating and appropriate artificial lighting, do not detract from the original character, but rather add important comfort and amenity for the benefit of the congregation.”

“They also draw attention to the beauty and humanity of the original building,” the judges added.

The ornate stencilling around the sanctuary, painted over in the 1950s, was restored as were the altar rails and the intricate mosaic floor. The solemn re-opening and dedication of the altar was celebrated by the Bishop of Down and Connor Dr Noel Treanor in the presence of the Bishop Emeritus Dr Patrick Walsh.

Parish priest Father Anthony Curran explained the importance of St Malachy’s restoration to the city: “The Diocese’s aim was to restore the church to its original grandeur and landmark status for both the immediate parish area and the community beyond – and I am very proud to say that we have achieved this.”

The foundation stone for what was originally intended to be Belfast’s new cathedral was laid on November 3, 1841, the

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feast of Saint Malachy, and the new church was dedicated on December 15, 1844.

“Originally, Saint Malachy’s was intended to be the cathedral church of the Diocese of Down and Connor and was to seat 7,000 worshippers, but, in the time when the Great Famine was ravaging Ireland, it was decided that the funds would be better spent elsewhere to alleviate the suffering of many,” explained Father Curran.

“So, what was intended to be the vast sanctuary of the new Cathedral was remodelled to serve as the local church”.

Lord Mayor Tom Hartley paid tribute to the craftsmen whose labours will soon be on view to parishioners and visitors alike.

“This magnificent restoration scheme truly has breathed new life into a wonderful church. Not only has the building been restored to its original glory, but several new features have more than enhanced it.”

“It truly is a hidden gem, which I am very glad we have now rediscovered,” said the Lord Mayor.

This was the first time that Saint Malachy’s had been closed for an extended period since the church was opened in 1844.

Although the church suffered a great deal of damage during the Second World War, it was still kept open by doing the work in stages, sometimes with half the church closed off.

Consarc architects collaborated with main contractor O’Neill & Brady on the project, and Consarc’s Bronagh Lynch had this to say about their work together: “There was a great team working on the project, with a great many locals involved who shared our affection for the building.

This is a large parish, too, so the work to restore the church’s beauty will be appreciated.”

“One of the most difficult aspects of the restoration was to match the new bricks we brought in with the originals. It’s well known that bricks change over time, and it was a big challenge to find ones that would sit alongside the originals without standing out and looking ugly. We managed to find a brickwork contractor in England, Lamb’s to manufacture something that would fit well.”

St Malachy’s Church has also won the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ ‘Northern Ireland Project of the Year’ award. Downe Hospital in Downpatrick and Kevin Kahan Salon in Bangor were also named as winners in RIBA’s Northern Ireland section.

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C a re I n d u s tr y Fo c u s

Dignity and mobility – hot topics in the care industry Each year around 40,000 people – mostly elderly – are awarded a “disabled facilities grant” for adaptations to the home, such as handrails, ramps and stair lifts.

The equipment allows frail elderly people to maintain their mobility, preventing or limiting deterioration in their condition.

Specialist improvements to homes often require only minimal intrusion and investment, especially when compared with extensive blanket housing projects such as the Decent Homes scheme, and yet many victims of unsuitable homes are left waiting for the improvements they need.

Freedom of Information Act responses garnered from local authorities by one national broadsheet and published in May of this year show widespread delays in providing aids to those who seek help.

Similar concerns over provision of equipment have struck the care home industry, as many elders failed by their local authorities find themselves limited to care homes despite their preference to stay at home. Both they and others who willingly take up residence in care homes place mobility and dignity high on their list of priorities.

Earlier this year, widely-recognised elderly person Sir Michael Parkinson published a report calling for misconceptions about the elderly to be replaced with a new focus on placing dignity at the heart of care.

At the launch of his report, Sir Michael said: “Becoming National Dignity Ambassador has strengthened my belief that dignity in care needs to be everybody’s business.”

He said: “I gained first-hand experience of the NHS and care services during my mother’s illness with dementia.

“It struck me that whilst there are some excellent examples of care, where people are given the dignity and respect they need and deserve, much more needs to be done.”

He said providing dignity does not need to cost anything, and can include “small considerations like taking time to have a chat when you take people to the loo, or using their name rather than a generic term of endearment”.

To coincide with the publication of the presenter’s paper, former health secretary Andy Burnham announced the launch of a new “dignity day of action” in February to promote greater sensitivity towards the elderly.

He also launched a £50,000 Bright Ideas Grant to support innovative projects that encourage dignity in care, although the sum involved was condemned by some as insignificant.

What can be done?

In practical terms, whether in care homes or in private properties, the smallest investment in mobility aids can make the biggest difference, allowing people with restricted movement to live with the same ease as their neighbours.

Packages including raised toilets and rails can be bought and installed for as little as £250, whilst a full house kit out of easyturn tap and door handles can be achieved for less than £150. It is often cheaper to ramp up to a doorstep than to install steps, whilst an extra hand rail parallel to a stair banister, designed for functional value rather than decoration, often costs much less than the original banister itself.

These are just a few points to illustrate the cheap, yet liberating improvements that can be made to a disabled person’s environment at a very low cost. Nevertheless, many older people are finding themselves shipped away against their will for the sake of the price of an access ramp or two.

Others move to care homes through preference, whilst some have no choice but to move to where the level of care matches their needs. Care homes are not exempt from criticism when it comes to maintaining the dignity of their residents, as Sir Michael Parkinson’s recent reports have demonstrated. Innovation in care homes, to provide the latest automated and computerised conveniences, can go far beyond what is possible in a private home. Admittedly, so can the cost. But is dignity not worth paying for?

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N o r th We s t Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

Nelson terraces restored to former majesty The Whitefield Regeneration Project, a scheme designed to renovate housing in Nelson, Lancashire and adapt it to the needs of local families, is moving ahead at pace. The scheme has so far taken in Nelson’s Every Street, and is currently moving on to Stanley Street, Moseley Street and Albert Street. Over 50 houses will have been renewed by the time the project draws to a close in 2011.

Many of the houses date back as far as the 1890s, and most were dilapidated, fire damaged and, unsurprisingly, uninhabited.

Pendle Borough Council has enlisted Barnfield and Thornton as the main contractors across the scheme, Pendle Borough Council’s senior regeneration officer, Iftekhar Bokhari, took time out of his duties on the project to talk to Premier Construction: “There’s a massive demand for a wider variety of accommodation in the area – principally, the problem is that there are more large families than large houses. A major part of this scheme has been to take pairs of houses and knock them into one, which has left us with a range of properties from two to six bedrooms.

“Not only that, but we’re leaving houses perfectly clean, safe and modern, both internally and externally, which is a huge leap when you see photos of how they were before we went in. Internally, we’re taking the best aspects of schemes like Decent Homes and making sure that our homes exceed those

standards in every possible respect. Homes are as energy efficient as possible and have incorporated renewable technologies like light pipes, solar thermal and micro combined heating and power systems – whilst still maintaining the heritage of the area.

“Locals have reacted very positively and we’ve been finalists for four awards: renewable project of the year, the North West Heritage award, best sustainable development and regeneration project of the year. I’m from the area myself, and I take great pride in seeing how well the project is developing”

Salford’s New Lease of Life City West Housing Trust is in the midst of an extensive internal and external refurbishment programme across its stock of homes in the west Salford area. The programme involves in-depth consultation with residents, who were invited to put forward their views in relation to the quality and choices or kitchens, bathrooms, electrical and heating products, as well as roofing materials and doors and windows.

The project’s initial 18-month phase is complete and saw over £40 million invested in the association’s properties. The second phase is now commencing, with a further £44 million planned for investment over the coming year, as part of an extensive 30-year business plan.

One major focus of the refurbishments is to make homes more eco-friendly. Obsolete and inefficient back boilers are being replaced with high-efficiency condensing boilers and radiators with thermostatic radiator valves. City West estimate that these heating systems will save residents up to £200 a year in fuel bills which helps to address fuel poverty. Other works have also focused on improving the energy efficiency of properties, including double glazed windows, loft insulation, external wall cladding and new GRP doors.

City West has 297 Non-traditional built properties and due to their unique problems and low insulation values their improvement has been progressed as a top priority. These properties are of a pre-fab construction and an extensive programme is in place that involves overcladding with reinforced insulation, for thermal efficiency and finished off with a render or brick effect. Many of the properties are also being reroofed and receiving new windows and doors and to minimise disruption to

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customers all related decency works are also being carried out.

Consequently, some of City West’s most problematic stock is being transformed into some of its best and most sustainable.

Nigel Sedman, Head of Investment and Regeneration at City West housing, talks enthusiastically through the investment programme: “We’re proud of what we’re achieving through the investment programme and we’ve actually had over 97% customer satisfaction, which is great particularly when considering that some of the works can be pretty disruptive. I believe that this shows that customers are really pleased with the quality of the finished works and the huge improvement this makes to

their homes. One of the ways we’ve encouraged customer participation and boosted satisfaction is by holding open days which residents attend in advance of the works and find out exactly what is planned for their property and what will happen before, during and after the works. We also carried out a massive consultation exercise across all of our four areas to choose our material suppliers and the products that our customers wanted to see fitted in their homes. Over 2000 customers provided their views and choices and as a result we have some of the best products ever seen in social housing including Manhattan kitchens with resin worktops, which are only ever usually seen in speculative housing development, and Kaldewei steel baths and Grohe taps which are used in the Hilton Hotel. We feel this level of specification will prove invaluable in increasing the sustainability of tenancies and reducing maintenance costs long into the future.

Nigel continues, “Elsewhere we’re installing Vaillant boilers, PVC fascias and soffits, Porcelanosa tiles and Sovereign high security GRP front doors as standard, so that might explain why people are coming back to us with positive feedback.”

Nigel is also pleased with the workforce involved in the scheme: “We have a mix of quality contractors and we go local wherever possible, especially when it offers a saving. For certain sizeable or specialist jobs, we go for more nationwide contractors, but ensure that all contractors are committed to the vision and values of City West including creating sustainable neighbourhoods. Part of this involves the initiative to provide jobs and training for local workers, as for every £2 million spent

by City West, there is a commitment to train and employ three people, a move which will help to guarantee a substantial pool of local operatives for maintenance and improvement works over the coming years. City West’s commitment matches that of many of its contractors, including Bramall Construction, who have been able to provide experience for a host of apprentices in trades which include joinery, tiling and plumbing as part of their work on City West sites.

Funding for the programme comes partly from the government and partly from loans, and Nigel is glad to note that, even with the recession, City West was able to secure the finances needed to drive the programme forward from the date of transfer and

start investing in customers’ homes.

City West is also developing a massive programme of investment into its 12 high-rise blocks. As Nigel explains, this requires a slightly different approach: “We typically renovate and refurbish over three stages – we’ll first get the internal work completed, before switching to doors, roofs and windows followed by environmental works involving fencing and parking. However, since it’s not possible to divide the work into these three stages with a high-rise, we’re doing the work there all at once, with residents temporarily relocated where necessary”. The internal and external refurbishment of Wade House, Engels House, Cawdor House and the Enfield House sheltered housing scheme, on Cawdor Street in Eccles will mark the first phase of the major programme to improve the high rise blocks of City West in West Salford. Bullock Construction has been appointed as the main contractor to deliver the works and Halsall Lloyd Partnership have been appointed as architects to work with residents to design the works.

Built in the late 60s, these blocks will be transformed into modern apartments both in terms of appearance and facilities.

The outside of the blocks will be overclad, making them warmer and more visually appealing, and inside there will be high quality kitchens and bathrooms fitted with a complete rewire. City West is looking to incorporate cutting edge technology such as renewable energy heating and photovoltaic cells into the scheme which when combined with double glazed windows, cladding and doors will improve thermal efficiency in order to improve the quality of life for residents and drastically reduce energy costs.

The communal areas will also be fully refurbished giving the blocks a high quality finish and providing additional communal facilities for residents.

City West is working closely with residents on the scheme proposals and designs which aim to provide a range of additional value added features to their canal-side homes which may include a bowling green and communal gardens.

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Decent Homes spread in Lancashire During the last 12 months, over £8.2m of “planned maintenance” investment has been made in Lancashire’s housing stock to ensure that it remains in a good state of repair, under a scheme led by Twin Valley Homes Housing Association, which oversees the area around Blackburn and Darwen.

impact they have, is measured by reference to their SAP rating (Standard Assessment Procedure) on a scale of 0 to 100. The average for homes in the UK in 2005 was 46. The average for homes in the social rented sector was 55. The average for Twin Valley Homes’ housing stock is currently an impressive 68.

Emphasis has continued in attending to those elements and components which have just reached the end of their serviceable life, are in poor condition, or are not considered sufficiently modern by today’s standards. Much of this work has been necessary to ensure that the properties continue to meet the “Decent Homes” standard. Roofing, re-wiring, and bathrooms have been the focus of attention during 2009/10 and this is likely to continue again in 2010/11 in accordance with the results of the stock condition survey.

Only 3% of homes currently fail to meet this standard, and this will reduce further as the new programme of works for 2010/11 is delivered. No properties will be ‘non-decent’ by December 2010 (the deadline date set by the government), except for those where access has been denied.

A programme for “Planned Maintenance” for 2010/11 has been determined accordingly, and the following “new starts” are included within an estimated budget of £9.4m:

In summary, the last twelve months has brought a massive sweep of improvements:

Investment in gas heating comes as a result of the board’s approval of a fuel switching initiative, whereby electric storage heating will be replaced over a three year period with more environmentally-kinder gas heating.

This programme will ensure that the most pressing needs are attended to based upon the results of the stock condition survey,

•• •• •• ••

•• ••

Bathrooms to 683 homes Rewires to 534 homes Kitchens to 109 homes Re-roofing, fascia/soffit, rainwater system renewals to 380 homes External repairs to 120 homes Internal decorations to common areas of flats

Twin Valley Homes is committed to making its contribution towards reducing the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from its stock, and in helping making heating more affordable. The “measure” of how energy efficient homes are, and what environmental

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•• •• •• •• •• •• ••

Re-wires to 850 homes Bathrooms to 865 homes Kitchens to 179 homes Boilers to 141 homes Re-roofing to 203 homes External repairs to 264 homes Gas central heating to 321 homes (under a fuel switching initiative)

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N o r th We s t prices) will also feature as the year progresses.

So 2010/11 promises to be another successful year for steady investment to be made into the company’s properties.

About Twin Valley Homes Twin Valley Homes is a not-for-profit social homes provider with 8,000 properties in Darwen and Blackburn.

Properties are maintained through the borrowing facilities of over £100million provided by the Royal Bank of Scotland.

The association is part of the Prospect Homes Group. Twin Valley’s sister company is Housing Pendle (based in Colne, Lancashire) with 3500 homes.

and that any ‘non-decent’ homes are made decent by December 2010.

With the need to conform to the “decent homes” standard by the turn of the year, and the TSA making tenant involvement, “the home”, and value for money pivotal parts of its standards there has never been a more demanding time for social landlords in their pursuit of providing homes in good condition for low-cost rent.

The company will continue to procure mainly via procurement consortia, though the bench-marking of prices and the desire to help local, small, and medium enterprises (at value for money

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••

••

••

Twin Valley Homes has a range of reasons to be proud of its work: •• For the third consecutive year, Twin Valley was awarded a clean sweep of “green lights” from the Tenants Services Authority for effective management.

Twin Valley has been awarded the prestigious Positive About Disabled People and Age Positive accreditation marks for its work in making employment policies as inclusive as possible.

The group has maintained its Investors In People (IIP) mark and also met the Quality Housing Services (QHS) and Charter Mark standards for excellence in customer service.

Overall customer satisfaction with Twin Valley Homes is now 83%.

A welcome rest home A £5 million investment is behind one of the most advanced and innovative care and rest homes in the UK. Birch Abbey, located in Southport, Merseyside, is on the way to completion of its second phase in December this year.

The first phase, carried out on the grounds of an existing care home, involved completion of 35 of the planned total of 60 new rooms. Now moving into the second phase, the project will add a further 25 rooms, plus a reception and office area.

Dan Lingard is the home’s owner, and his enthusiasm for the project spilled into an interview with Premier Construction: “We wanted to build a place that hasn’t been seen before. Lots of rest homes advertise or talk about the kind of facilities we’ll have here, but they either don’t go further than the talking stage, or fail to offer such a complete package.

“Birch Abbey is a completely new style of care home – a ‘destination’ home for short or long term stays.

“Once work is complete, we’ll be able to offer a cinema, a gardening area, a beautifully landscaped exterior, a tea room, a hair salon, a library, a family kitchen, a dance studio, a restaurant and even a pub.”

You get the feeling, hearing Dan speak, that there are so many attractions in the home that he finds it difficult to remember them all at once. He went on to say that, “Private areas are just as impressive, and everything is completely digital in the home, meaning we have alarm and alert systems and monitors to gauge sleep quality, plus a lot more. All

rooms have under-floor heating and en-suite showers and wet rooms.

“To date, we’ve never had an empty space at the home. I’m sure that good record will continue once people are able to see what an attractive package we offer with the finished article. Now we have the extra space, we can do all the things we wanted to do with the home but were unable to do before..

Architects FWP, who were kind enough to provide images of their work, are working closely with Melton Health Care to create a stimulating and varied environment for residents. FWP are providing architectural and interior design, as well as costing consultancy and project management.

Careful phasing of the building work will ensure that the existing home remains in operation during work by main contractor CP UK and that the residents are transferred into the new facility with minimal disruption.

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New face for Manchester office block

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Linley House, located on Dickinson Street in central Manchester, has undergone an impressive makeover.

JFW construction have teamed up with architects Buttress Fuller Alsop Williams (BFAW) to carry out the work.

from the main street, and that’s a characteristic that’s underrated. There’s going to be a launch in June to get the news out to as wide an audience as possible, and I’m sure that everyone who comes to see it will be impressed.”

The £3.75 million project reached practical completion at the end of April, and involved an almost complete new look for the building. Of the eight stories at the site, six were refurbished.

Included in the works were improvements to shared areas: toilets, the lobby, the reception and the lifts.

Externally, the building has benefited from re-paving and terracotta rainscreen cladding. There is a stunning glazed front, which stretches to the height of almost two of the building’s storeys, and the overhanging copper canopy is accompanied by a new revolving door.

Lawrence Wilson, BFAW’s architect charged with leading the design side of the project, found time to speak to Premier Construction: “This work has really improved the look of the building reinvigorating the property as an asset to the client. The finished project has a prestigious quality outside, accompanying the high quality office spaces inside.

“We wanted to open the building up, so to speak, and make it feel more spacious. The new glazed elevation is a part of our plan to achieve that.

“It’s eye-catching now, even though it’s located slightly away

About JFW

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Founded in 1970, JFW Contruction Ltd is a family business that has grown to establish itself as a highly professional building and civil engineering contractor.

The company has successfully built up long term relationships and repeat business with a host of leading organisations across the commercial, industrial and local authority sectors throughout the north Of England.

The company is managed by brothers Terry Cottier and Barry Cottier (as directors) supported by Tony Cottier in the role of contracts manager.

About BFAW Buttress Fuller Alsop Williams have a strong and established reputation for delivering high quality architectural and associated services to clients throughout the UK and overseas.

Working cross sector and active with education, public sector, heritage and commercial projects, they deliver innovative new build plus specialist conservation and restoration projects in partnership with their clients.

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N o r th We s t Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

£12 million airport development gets ready for take-off

retail areas.

Most of the retail development is taking place in the expanded departure lounge and the new retail space will include a large walk-through duty free area and a new exciting catering offer.

A sweeping staircase will link what is to become the upper floor of the expanded departure lounge to the existing departures area on the floor below, which will also see new retail areas created to give passengers a wider choice of facilities.

Much of the available space will be created following the relocation of the existing passenger security search area which is in need of expansion to cater for the growing number of airport users. This new area is to be located in what has been until recently an aircraft maintenance hangar adjacent to the terminal building. This is effectively being converted into an extension of the terminal, with new floors being installed. The new security search area will subsequently be located on a new upper floor and will be three times the size of the

A £12 million scheme is underway at Liverpool John Lennon Airport that will see a number of improvements for passengers including an expansion of the airport’s departure lounge, additional retail space and a new much larger passenger security search area.

McLaren Construction is the Main Contractor for the scheme.

Work commenced in December last year and will be completed in phases with the overall development due to be finished in the Autumn, with Manchester architects Leach Rhodes Walker having worked on the designs of the development which will add an extra 32% of retail space.

Firstly there will be a 20,000sq ft expansion of retail space with several new shop units to create a much larger departure lounge by moving the Airport’s landside/airside boundary (ie where passengers pass through airport security). The Airport’s existing main landside retail area will effectively become part of the airside retail offer, by relocating the security search facility. Having checked-in, departing passengers will therefore immediately pass through to airport security before accessing all

Road improvements to streamline transit through Liverpool Birse Civils are teaming up with Liverpool City Council and 2020 Liverpool on a scheme to improve access from the M62 into Liverpool city centre, with funding from the Department of Transport and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

By the end of July 2011, the £18.7 million project, which is known as the Hall Lane Strategic Gateway and got under way in October 2009, will be complete. A new junction will have been created at West Derby Street and Crown Street, with a new stretch of road to Low Hill and related improvements to the junction of Low hill and Hall Lane. This new carriageway crosses part of the former site of the Royal Hospital staff car park.

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existing facility, with new and additional latest generation passenger screening equipment, aimed at reducing queuing times during peak periods.

Additional retail areas are also being developed around the landside arrivals area of the terminal building, whilst car hire operators previously located on the ground floor of the terminal are being relocated to the adjacent multi-storey car park for improved customer service. New food and restaurant facilities will take their place for visitors and nonpassengers.

Geoff Byrne, 2020 Liverpool’s project manager for the vital scheme, spoke to Premier Construction to give an update on the works: “Currently, we’re installing sandstone cladding to a range of new retaining walls and constructing others. We’re also completing initial drainage works to the site of the new carriageway.

“The winter was very cold, but fairly dry. Luckily, it seems that other places saw the worst of the weather and we only suffered a day or two of delays. It could have been worse, so I’m grateful for that.

“In general, we’re progressing as well as we planned to. I’m part of a hugely experienced a team, and I bring 30 years’ experience in civil engineering to the table, so together we have the knowhow to make the project a success. There’s a can-do attitude about the scheme, and our regular project meetings are friendly, open and honest. We’re all signed up to a charter that maps out what we’re asked to bring to the project, and I’d say it’s a good way to start a job if it’s to end well!”

Wave of improvements reaches Barrow school Work is well under way at St Bernard’s Catholic High School in Barrow-in-Furness in the first phase of its expansion project. Main contractor Stobbarts is overseeing the £4.5m initial phase, which is expected to be complete in advance of the 2010-11 academic year.

Secondary schools in Barrow are currently being re-organised

by Cumbria Local Authority.with. A new Academy is being built in the town and St Bernard’s school has been earmarked to increase its net intake capacity by 150 pupils to approx. 1000 over the next few years. This September there will be an additional 34 pupils into Year 7, the first of the increased cohorts.

In order to accommodate this initial increase, an additional science and a food technology room is being built as the initial stage of the larger project. This new build is a two storey steel framed building extension of approx 220m2 total area with a food technology room on the ground floor and a science lab on the first floor. There will also be space for extra music rooms in a different part of the school.

The initial phase also involves an extension to the school’s sports facilities, with a second ‘sports barn’ with a sports teaching space the size of two badminton courts, as well as an additional equipment store and an entrance. The facility is known as a barn, rather than a gym, because it does not feature some of the traditional apparatus to be found in a school gym, such as bars and ropes.

The framed courtyard building housing the food technology and science rooms will have mainly white cladding panels above a red facing brick plinth in order to maximise the reflectance of daylight. The brickwork and cladding to the sports barn are to match the existing for continuity.

The new buildings will be constructed in a manner that will ensure that each element will achieve an overall U value better than that set out in the current part L2a of the Building Regulations. The design and on site supervision of construction methods will ensure that the air tightness of the construction also achieves better than the requirements set out in Part L2a.

Each heated space will have an adjustable temperature sensor with external sensors to provide compensated and optimised control.

Ventilation to all areas is to be natural and, where needed, will comply with regulations; fans will operate on timers and will be controlled by PIR movement detectors to operate only when required.

Lighting will include low energy, high frequency fittings, which will be zone switched to suit use. Lamp units will be installed in

accordance with current Building Regulations at no greater than 40 lumens per circuit watt.

Phase two of the development will include a new detached twostorey block for eight general purpose classrooms, an extension to the coffee bar to ease pressure on lunchtime catering, and five new disabled car parking spaces with nearby landscaping. It is hoped that work on the second phase will be complete by late 2011, but a contract has not been awarded to date.

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Bootle firm escapes Dickensian drudgery “Dark, damp and Dickensian”, is Mike Moran’s verdict on the former premises of his firm, Bootle Containers.

The firm is undergoing an expansion by refurbishing its Bootle facility and adding a welcome extension, the first stage of which has almost reached completion under contractor Pioneer Construction.

“Before we began improving our factory, the place was dull and grim. It wasn’t a particularly dangerous or dirty place to work, but you felt claustrophobic and there wasn’t enough light. One of the biggest problems that posed was that it was difficult to show potential and current clients around so that they could see how we make our products”.

The company employs 38 full-time staff and manufactures containers for clients in four main sectors: military and defence, emergency services, the oil and gas industry and the environmental industry. Once complete, the new facility will streamline the firm’s production process.

Currently, the firm produces units that typically range from 10ft to 63ft in length, many of which are bespoke creations, at the rate of 30 per month. Each client will demand precise specifications and fittings, and so flexibility on the production line is vital. The extra space, Mike notes, goes hand in hand with the need to be adaptable.

Mike added, “The first port of the job is to refurbish the original building, which is around 30 years old. We’re replacing the old asbestos-lined roof with a Kingspan roof with light panels, and we’re re-cladding the exterior to create 10 roller-shutter doors.

Production flow will change to reflect the new space we’ll be using, and having more space will allow us to better separate the different stages of production.

“Eventually, the new build will fit on to the original. The land it’s built on was previously used for container storage and leasing, but we don’t need it for that any more. The building is not what you would picture when you think of a typical extension, but that’s effectively what it is.

“We’ll use the new space for raw steel, blasting and painting,

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amongst other things. One of our aims is to become a ‘one-stopshop’ in our field, and offer in-house the kind of services we currently have to send out to subcontractors, such as electrical and air-conditioning installations within the units. It’s a huge thing to be able to offer to a client, and I’m confident it will be good for business.

“Another thing we can now do is to invite clients to our facility with pride. As I speak to you, we’ve had three visits today alone, even though work isn’t completely finished. That’s far more than we could have hoped for previously, and it’s another positive sign.”

Mike had plenty of praise to bestow on Pioneer Construction, saying, “We wanted to appoint a contractor who could offer the best value – not just in terms of currency, but also in terms of achievement. I’ve been encouraged by Pioneer and I’d have no hesitation in listening to proposals from them for any future work we do”.

Although Bootle Containers have provided the lion’s share of the funds needed to complete the expansion, a welcome cash injection has been added to the pot. £20,000 came from the local project Stepclever, which aims to “transform areas of north Liverpool and south Sefton into a place for new entrepreneurs and successful, outward looking businesses”.

Stepclever is a Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) and is government funded. Managed in partnership by Liverpool City Council and Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, the core activities of Stepclever are delivered through a team of highlyskilled business managers who offer essential support and advice to those thinking of becoming self-employed, and the scheme extends to SMEs wishing to expand.

To find out more about Stepclever, visit www.stepclever.co.uk.

You can also learn more about Bootle Containers at www. bootlecontainers.co.uk

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5 Star Work in York In a £20 million investment by Acropolis Hotels, architects Mackenzie Wheeler and contractor Clay Construction have completed the conversion of the former British Rail headquarters in York into an eyecatching 5-star hotel.

The new hotel has just opened in the building that dates back over a century, and boasts 107 bedrooms - each one totally individual and enhanced by the impressive architectural features of the building. On the higher floors, the rooms are ‘loft style’, with outstanding views overlooking the city walls.

The facilities at The Cedar Court Grand, as the hotel is to be known, include five beautifully appointed meeting rooms for up to 20 people, the directors’ room (once the Chairman’s office) which can accommodate up to 40 and the board room – a hugely impressive, wood-panelled room capable of hosting 120 guests.

A decking area overlooking the York wall is spacious enough to accommodate a marquee for 300, and a cocktail bar, restaurant and private dining rooms provide a choice of sophisticated spaces and places to meet, relax and dine.

An exclusive Spa offers luxurious, bespoke treatments, along with a sauna room, steam room, pool and gym.

Gary Clay, the main contractor’s managing director, spoke to Premier Construction: “Clay Construction have been involved in this project from the earliest stages, beginning in November 2008, which is when design work was coinciding with enabling and strip-out operations. We progressed to structural alterations and begun the bedroom refurbishments in February 2009, before moving on to the last stage earlier this year, during which we completed the public areas and fitted out the spa” The hotel presented developers with a demanding challenge, as Gary explains: “This is a grade II listed building, which meant that we had to work closely with English Heritage throughout the contract.

They’re very exacting and it’s no exaggeration to say that we had to have every last light fitting, leaded window, hinge and doorknob approved before going ahead with installation. There’s a good reason why it’s done that way, though, and the demands of this kind of work only make it more satisfying when you look at the finished job.

“It’s the preferred option to maintain the original state of the building in every possible way, whilst recognising the need for modernity. The doors are a good example. Each one was removed and repaired and they were fitted with a uniform set of knobs and hinges. Additionally, they were fireproofed to follow safety regulations, which meant applying a five coat treatment each door.

“Specialist work like the fire-proofing is something that we typically contract out to specialist subcontractors. We share the view of the client – that it’s always better to have as local a workforce as possible” Asked why he preferred to hire within the area of the job, Gary replied, “I suppose it helps when there isn’t too far to travel to work, and perhaps you could say that locals have more of a stake in what’s developed in their area. Also it provides a boost to the local economy, but you shouldn’t forget that we can be a little parochial in Yorkshire – maybe that’s the main reason!”

Mackenzie Wheeler’s Raymond Shotter had this to say about his work on the hotel: “I understand one of the reasons we were selected to design the refurbishment was our experience in restoring listed buildings, which of course tend to be focal points of the areas in which they’re situated. Just one of the ways in which we’ve tried to improve the building without taking away from its natural charm is by using local York stone to build the access ramps at the main entrance.

“As well as the access ramps, there have been a number of additions to accommodate modern requirements. The fire

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escapes had to be altered and re-modelled to provide full availability to the hotel, for example, and there were a number of small details like that to take care of”. “This building has a cellular arrangement”, as Raymond explains, “which is no longer suitable for the requirements of a modern office, but little did the original architects know that they were designing something that was almost perfect as a basis for a luxury hotel a hundred years later. We’ve managed to have the best of both worlds, too, as we’ve been able to install conveniences like air conditioning that are a standard feature in modern offices”.

Cedar Court Grand adds to Cedar Court’s existing portfolio of four-star hotels across Yorkshire, including Harrogate, Wakefield, Huddersfield/Halifax and Leeds/Bradford.

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Eagerly awaited new store takes shape ahead of schedule Eagerly awaited by the whole community and expected to create 180 jobs in the locality, construction of the first Waitrose food shop in Leeds is progressing ahead of schedule on Capitol Parade in Meanwood.

Main Contractors for the project are RG Group Ltd. Site hoardings were erected and site offices installed in February 2010, after which a former Co-op and retail units previously occupying the site were demolished, with construction of the new store starting in April 2010. The fit out of the interior of the shop, including electrical and mechanical works, is now commencing.

The new store will bring a wide choice of quality food and shopping facilities for the community and will feature a full Waitrose food and drink offer within a bright, contemporary shopping environment. The store will also incorporate customer toilets and will have a 240-space car park.

Waitrose believe that believe that the new store will act as a catalyst for further regeneration of the area. They are keen to deliver a landmark building which is easily identifiable, and which sits comfortably alongside the rest of the built environment.

For this reason, the design of the building reflects traditional local materials, such as sandstone and red brick with bluegrey coloured window frames. This provides a subtle and unobtrusive façade while still providing a contemporary building of architectural note.

The primary entrance to the shop provides a large communal ‘public space’ at first-floor level and is geared to enhancing the shopping experience as well as providing an attractive and appealing aspect to the front of the shop.

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The project also includes a series of junction alterations and traffic-calming measures in order to deliver improvements in traffic flow, particularly at peak times.

These include providing two lane exits from both Monkbridge Road and Green Road and realignment and remarking of the main road to increase manoeuvrability at the right turn.

To improve pedestrian safety and convenience, enhanced controlled crossing facilities will also be provided.

Waitrose Director of Development, Nigel Keen said: “We have been delighted by the level of support that we have received from the community. We believe that our new food shop will not

only give people a wider choice of quality shopping, it will also help to spearhead the regeneration of the area.”

Branch manager Mike Cooper said: I would like to thank everyone for their patience and support during all the building works, we will continue to work on the store with as little disruption to the area as possible.”

The new store is due to open in September 2010.

As part of the John Lewis Partnership, Waitrose employees own the business, ensuring a high level of commitment and service. Waitrose now operates more than 200 stores throughout the UK, including shops in England, Wales and Scotland.

RG Group is an independently owned company that has grown steadily since it was formed in 1989. Through successful project delivery and continued customer focus, the company has enjoyed over 17 years of growth, employs over 200 people and has a financial turnover of over £200 million. Based in Kent and Leeds, RG Group operate nationwide, delivering retail projects with a unique and innovative service that reflects the fast-changing nature of their retail clients.

RG operate a friendly, open and honest approach on every project and are proud of their record of never having been involved in litigation or a claim.

In essence, RG Group aim to become a long term service provider, delivering certainty for their clients.

Refurbished blocks are a towering success A multi-million pound investment involving the highquality refurbishment of three tower blocks of flats is proving a resounding success at Newcastle’s Cruddas Park, with the refurbished blocks being renamed Riverside Dene.

The scheme comprises complete redevelopment of The Hawthorns, The Larches and The Sycamores, with flats being made available for rent through Your Homes Newcastle.

Preliminary work on the complete internal development of the blocks started in 2008, with completion due in late summer 2010.

The ambitious scheme is transforming the famous blocks both inside and out, with a classy new look, stylish double-height entrance halls and stylish apartments with bright interiors.

Elegant projecting windows will maximise space and views, as well as meaning better insulation and more sunlight. And every block will include space for community use, to be chosen by residents.

All three blocks have seen the first floor flats removed, doubleheight entrance spaces created and new link bridges created leading to stylish and welcoming entrance halls.

The refurbished blocks will be served by an eco-friendly biomass heating system The project is backed by Newcastle City Council, Bridging NewcastleGateshead, Your Homes Newcastle and New Deal for Communities, as well as private sector partners Wates Living Space.

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N o r th E a s t & Yo r ks h i re services providers, Wates Living Space has a major impact on communities throughout the UK. Building or refurbishing some 26,000 homes every year, working through more than 50 affordable housing frameworks, the company has exceptional expertise and experience across a wide range of projects including refurbishment, supported living, mixed-use, mixedtenure, maintenance and PFI.

Progress Group Progress Group has installed 30 of their temporary evacuation sounder alarms (Evacs) in various buildings of the Cruddas Park site in Newcastle.

The Evac alarms were designed and manufactured in-house by Progress Group for their clients within the construction industry.

The system has been evolved over the past six years, and is now in the Mark 2 phase of development.

The Evac sounder system is compact, quick and easy to install, low maintenance and can be fitted to suit all building designs.

Mains powered with a battery back up, the system has a neon indicator to detect which sounder has been operated. The system also has a key operated facility for remote activation as well as a facility for remote indication (audible or visual).

Progress Group have worked closely with Wates Construction on various projects over the past few years - from housing developments, to major construction projects such as the one at Cruddas Park.

Progress Group was founded in 1982 as a private family run company and is still privately owned. The company’s main areas of activity include temporary electrics, UPS sales and installation, maintenance and service, generator sales and installation, generator hire, service and part supplies.

Target clients include all major construction companies, blue chip companies and some private clients. Progress Group supply throughout the UK and have a strong export arm. The company is also an FG Wilson dealer for generators and parts.

Huge development improves Goole school Kingsway County Primary School in Goole is on the verge of unveiling a massive extension and improvement to its facilities, as a result of a £2m investment into the area.

A new Foundation Stage Unit is being added, along with new offices, a new main entrance and an extensive refurbishment to the rest of the school.

All the walls have been plastered and toilet and kitchen areas tiled. The staff room has a lovely new french door leading to the school’s field and there is a new door to the new Staff Lesson Preparation Area. All windows and doors have now been replaced, both internal and external. Vast areas of the buildings have been plastered and redecorated. In the February half term holiday, the school’s main corridor was completely revamped, with the brick walls being sanded and plastered.

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Brian Wilson, of main contractors Hobson & Porter, recently found time to speak to Premier Construction about his work on the site as site manager: “We started on site in August 2009, and as I speak at the beginning of June, we’re around three weeks away from completion.

“It’s been a comprehensive job, and there have been a number of smaller jobs as part of our programme, and they’ve added up to be a significant workload. We’ve removed old piping, refurbished all the classrooms, renewed doors –there’s a long list! Right now the finishing touches are being applied to the new play area, whilst on the inside we’re installing carpets and beginning the cleanup operation.

“I’ve enjoyed the job, though, and I couldn’t have asked for a better bunch of people to work with. Our working relationship with the client and other members of the project team has been friendly and successful, and I could tell right from the start that we’d get along well.

The 4,000 m2 Carnegie Pavilion project, led by main contractors Bam Construction, combines a new university teaching facility with new world-class cricket media and hospitality facilities to provide a unique integrated development in Headingley.

important not to disrupt anything.

“The design of the building takes into account its position. It faces south, so the canopy design helps to shield the building from sunlight, which is not ideal for teaching and can be especially annoying for TV camera crews. The shading corresponds to BREEAM targets.

“There is also a strong eco-friendly element to the work, and there is ground source heating and water recycling on the site.

Another plus is that all components in the building have been designed for a long life. That will avoid the need to cause disruption by refurbishing later, and it also avoids waste that can harm the environment.”

“As a company, we’d done similar work before, which is one of the reasons why we were a good match for the client.

“It can be hectic at times, and we’ve had intensive periods of work while children were away over Christmas and Easter, while we’re especially busy now with the completion date approaching, but things are going smoothly and enjoyably. Long may that continue!”

Sleek new sport and learning centre graces Leeds landmark The Carnegie Pavilion will replace and upgrade the existing cricket facilities at Headingley Carnegie Stadium, whilst providing first class teaching space for Leeds Metropolitan University.

Alsop’s design creates a powerful verdant building that blends in well with its surroundings. The pavilion provides accommodation for a mix of uses on five floors for both clients, while also respecting light levels and privacy of the adjacent residential buildings, and connecting the green spaces around the pavilion with the locality.

The new hospitality suites and media centre have been designed as lecture theatres and teaching space for use outside major cricketing events. Plans include: a state-of-the-art media centre; an upgrade of player facilities such as changing rooms and treatment rooms; and replacement spectator seating, new executive boxes and associated facilities Sue Holmes, director of estates at Leeds Metropolitan University, spoke enthusiastically about the project to Premier Construction: “The old building here was unfit for purpose, and given that this is one of the world’s busiest sporting locations, and one that is well known throughout the world of cricket and rugby, it was time to build something modern and impressive enough to suit the university and the sports teams who use it.

“There have been plenty of challenges to overcome during the project, one of which is space management. The location is tight, on a constrained site, and major roads nearby that can put delivery needs up against vital transport routes.

On top of that, there were events here during construction, such as a five-day test cricket match and a one-day international.

With the TV cameras all around and a lot of media speculation about the new pavilion, it was

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N o r th E a s t & Yo r ks h i re

Investment boost for Whitby Marina In a bid to enhance the attractiveness of the seaside Whitby, Scarborough borough council has invested in a makeover to Whitby’s marina. The re-developed facility is set to be unveiled imminently, and represents the fruit of three years of planning and careful re-modelling.

Work began with an extension to the number of pontoon berths available to mooring boats, and encompassed improvements to the local environment. In the latest development at the marina, £1 million has been spent on a much-needed central building.

The building will house a reception and information centre, as well as toilets and changing areas, a laundry room, and safe disposal units for oil and chemical waste.

Salt Architects and Ken Ferrie Builders have been hard at work as part of a team led by project manager Alex Richards, of Scarborough borough council, who spoke to Premier Construction about his work on the marina: “We’re days away from completion as I speak, and I’m happy to say that the job has gone well. We were admittedly delayed by the winter, as was the whole country, but we’ve managed to reach completion as close as possible to the date originally projected and we’ve stayed within budget.

“It was unfortunate that the bad weather came when it did – when we were keen to move ahead with what was mainly concrete work at the time. It was the coldest weather for half a century in Whitby, and as well as temperatures being unsuitable for construction, there were also delays to deliveries.

“However, once we’d got past the delays, things went smoothly.

The project team has been absolutely professional and I’ve witnessed some great workmanship on the site.”

The new building is the product of a lengthy and detailed planning process, as Alex explains: “The building is definitely not a standard ‘box’. One of the most important aspects of the project was the way in which we consulted before moving ahead. Local stakeholders all had a say – from council representatives to local residents to disability groups and more. The building belongs to locals, and that’s reflected in the way it’s been designed”.

Children from 12 local schools have contributed their ideas towards the building’s interior murals and stylish gates, and the whale bone shape and York stone ‘drywall effect’ exterior are

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strong symbols of the area’s heritage.

A central building management system and an under-floor heating system complete what is a modern addition to Whitby’s ongoing link to the seven seas.

Midlands

Saving Launde Abbey Launde Abbey, in Leicestershire, is a retreat centre and a place of prayer and of welcome. Recently, the abbey has needed expensive restoration work, and a successful appeal has raised £1 million towards the abbey’s safekeeping.

The abbey’s warden, Tim Blewett, spoke to Premier Construction about the restoration scheme: “Some of the abbey dates back to the 13th and 14th centuries, so it’s no surprise that the time has come to repair and renovate it, especially as the last significant works were carried out in the 1950s and the last new build was as far back as 1839.

“Part of the work involves bringing the building up to modern standards, and that includes the need for wheelchair access and a focus on the environment. We’re having a biomass boiler to run off wood pellets sourced from a local co-op.”

Elsewhere, the abbey will benefit from a new lift to the first floor of its main building, an extensive overhaul of its heating and plumbing systems to accompany the new boiler, renovation of its guest rooms to provide en-suite options, repairs to its brickwork, stonework and chimneys, and much more.

Tim added, “The contractors have been ideal.

They’re very sensitive to the specific demands

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Midlands of this building and they’ve respected our need to keep certain periods quiet”.

The main contractor is WW Brown & Sons, and director Mark Brown found the time to speak to Premier Construction: “It’s a Grade II listed building, which means that working on it is challenging and intense at times. An added challenge with the abbey is that its different components weren’t all built at once. Things have been built over centuries as the abbey has expanded, which means there are different materials and methods across the site. It’s never straightforward!

“Like every job, though, it’s a learning experience. In our case, this job continues five generations of local experience. We’re a family business from the area and the company has been involved on smaller projects at the abbey before.”

Work at Launde is expected to be complete in November 2010 after a 13 month contract period, and Mark gave us an update on the latest developments: “Currently, the housing for the new boiler is structurally complete, and electrical and mechanical installations are approaching completion too. There are a number of smaller aspects of the work ongoing, such as plastering, doors, windows and walls, much of which will be complete within a month or so. As you can see, we’re right in the thick of things. We’re on schedule, though, and it will be a nice moment to look at our work once it’s done.”

Tim Blewett recently issued a message of thanks on the abbey’s website, www.launde.co.uk, and has committed to walking the Leicestershire Round – a distance of 101 miles - in the space of 24 hours, as a show of thanks to those whose efforts have kept the abbey alive and in an attempt to raise even more funding for worthy causes. Please visit the website for more information about the abbey, and to find out how you can get involved with the fundraising campaign.

City centre car park mixes design and practicality Work has been completed on a 15 level, 457 space multi storey car park for Coventry University, under a project team including main contractor McLaren construction.

The 12-month contract came at a cost of under £7 million.

The car park is proof that buildings of its kind can be attractive complements to their surroundings, and that the days of ugly, grey concrete boxes are drawing to an end.

The striking structure is now complete and ready to use, and Coventry University’s Doug Fewkes spoke to Premier Construction about the facility: “The car park has the potential to take 457 staff cars away from other nearby locations, both on our site and on public roads, and it will go a long way towards easing parking congestion around the area.

“We’re effectively a large city-centre business, too, and as such it’s important for the university to take its ‘social corporate responsibility’ seriously.”

Steve had a few words to say about the building’s design, and continued: “The stainless steel cladding is what gives the building its modern look, and we settled on that over other types of cladding because the architects, RMKM, wanted to make a statement.

“It makes a nice difference when you think of what we had before: a little concrete affair that was dated and inadequate.

Now we have something that isn’t necessarily a work of art, but it does look clean, eye-catching and modern, and I’m proud to

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Midlands be able to say that it’s where I park my car! I’ve already started using it and I’ve got my access card. I can definitely say that the proof has been in the pudding!”

The building’s steel frame structure incorporated composite precast planks spanning 7.2m and structural topping. The lower levels were cast on existing ground and were retaining by reinforced concrete walls. The car park exit was a curved eight-storey reinforced concrete structure. A precast reinforced concrete lift shaft and core was used. The steel frame supports the vertical steel cladding panels.

Another impressive feature of the car park is its surfacing. Tyres will come into contact with a non-slip surfacing product with a textured coating, designed by Sterling Lloyd. The surface has strips of colour to serve as walkways for pedestrians, which was thought to offer a more user-friendly solution than signed directions.

McLaren Construction McLaren is a Design and Construction specialist operating in the Commercial, Industrial, Retail, Leisure and Hotel sectors taking schemes from inception to completion. Education and Public Sector works are also very much part of the McLaren portfolio.

The organisation is geared towards finding engineering solutions to the most difficult problems, thus adding value at every stage of the process.

McLaren Construction was founded in 2001 by Kevin Taylor and Phil Pringle. Having both previously held executive positions in major construction companies, they decided that there was no

time like the present to form a business that would be totally devoid of the politics inherent in a lot of construction organisations.

From humble beginnings the company has grown at a pace into the very efficient and highly respected organisation that prevails today.

The company is proud to report that its first ever customer was none less than Land Securities. Since that first order, McLaren has worked continuously with Land Securities, which serves to prove how much the company values every customer.

Find out more at www.mclarenconstruction.co.uk

Engineering project improves safety in Coventry Work to erect a new pedestrian footbridge over Coventry’s ring road is moving ahead, and is due for imminent completion.

Cllr Gary Ridley, of Coventry City Council, cut the first sod to signal the start of work on site on Thursday 2 April 2009.

Cllr Ridley commented upon inaugurating the project, “It gives me great pleasure to cut the first sod and kick off the work on what will be a very impressive new footbridge. It will provide a new pedestrian and cycle link from Coundon and Lower Coundon to the city centre, and I am delighted that we have been able to respond to what local people wanted.

“What’s more the bridge will be royal blue - the overwhelmingly popular choice when we asked residents to choose as part of an earlier consultation. There will be both stairs and ramps on either side of the footbridge, making it accessible for all.

“Following close consultation with [nearby] St Osburg’s School, we will also be including a screen at the highest point of the ramp on the school side, as well as a new fence along the school boundary.

The combined cycle and footbridge at Hill Street replaces the subway between Hill Street and Upper Hill Street, improving safety and providing a better link for people to get into the city centre.

The bridge is being built in response to local people’s requests to improve access to the city centre and following public consultation that saw more than 70% of people opting for a new footbridge. Local people even chose the colour and design of the new bridge which will make a dramatic visual impact for drivers on the ring road and for the people who use it.

Two impressive steel arches span the ring road and the slip roads and the bridge makes a significant statement with an impressive three metre deck suspended by steel bars from the two blue arches. The 57 metre bridge is being built for the council by Jackson Civil Engineering.

The footbridge is being paid for with money from the Transportation Capital Programme funded by the government,

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and is due for completion in June 2010. Phase 1 ran between April and September 2009 and phase 2 began in April 2010.

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Midlands Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

Over 55s home in on new social housing A new £1.26 million social housing development designed for people over 55 and comprising the construction of a mixture of bungalows and low-rise flats for rent has been completed at Thorneycroft Place and Glyn Avenue in Moxley, Walsall.

The scheme was carried out for Walsall Housing Group Ltd. Main Contractors were Rok Building Ltd; Architects were Russell Hobbis Architects.

The development was constructed on the former site of poor quality low-rise residential blocks which had been demolished prior to the current project.

Site ground conditions were poor and required ground stabilisation works, as well as the capping of a number of mineshafts.

Four bungalows and six flats (over two storeys) were constructed at Thorneycroft Place, and three bungalows were built at Glyn

Avenue. All the properties are of timber frame construction with external elevations in multi red brick, with uPVC framed windows and pitched, concrete tiled roofs. The bungalows have a typical floor area of 68m² and the flats have a typical floor area of 63m².

All of the bungalows have on-plot parking facilities, with the flats sharing a gated parking court accessible via automatic gates to ensure that security is maintained.

All properties were built to the Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3, Secured By Design criteria and Lifetime Homes standard which incorporates a design element that allows future adaptations to be made with minimal disruption to meet the future needs of the occupant, thus allowing them to remain in their home in the even of their circumstances changing.

The project has benefited from an enhanced and comprehensive landscaping scheme to comply with planning requirements and assist in raising the site’s ecological value, which has

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contributed to the Code for Sustainable Homes score.

The sites are located in residential areas and careful site management and consultation/ interaction with the surrounding neighbours assisted in the delivery of the development.

One of the biggest issues encountered was the ground conditions at Thorneycroft Place, which were dealt with via an enabling works contract.

The project commenced in April 2009 and the properties were completed and fully occupied in March 2010 The development received funding from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) via their National Affordable Housing Programme.

expands into Wombourne The supermarket chain Sainsbury’s has opened a new £4.5m store in Wombourne, near Wolverhampton, located at Heath Mill Industrial Estate on the Bridgnorth Road.

Completed in late February, work at the 2.5 acre site saw the four-week demolition of existing industrial buildings. The project saw Mercian Developments collaborate with main contractor GF Tomlinson, whose director Colin Howell spoke to Premier Construction: “I feel the programme went very well. We were able to finish on schedule, in under a year, and accommodate a few of the client’s changes to our plan along the way. The building is not what you’d call unusual – it features the kind of glazed elevation you might find on plenty of other Sainsbury’s stores, for example – but the location is fairly novel as it’s quite uncommon to see stores built on the edge of industrial areas like this one.

“We had a team of four or five on the project at first, and then, one construction was underway, I took over GF Tomlinson’s role largely on my own. Some of the work was done on an in-house basis, such as the drainage, since civil works are a speciality of ours, but we mainly sent the work out to specialist subcontractors, all of whom have worked well for us”.

The new store is Wombourne’s first supermarket and represents a continuing expansion program for the retail giant, which now has over 800 supermarkets and convenience stores across the UK. Last year, it spent £83m to buy 24 stores from the Co-op, which had been ordered to sell the stores under competition

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regulations following its purchase of the Somerfield chain.

Sainsbury’s beat off competition from Tesco for permission from local authorities to open its Wombourne store.

In response to some locals’ concerns, the supermarket has sponsored a website for the scheme known as ‘All the Little Shops’, which is designed to encourage interest in the small businesses around the village. Funding has meant all independent retailers and businesses in the region can create their own webpage, display up to twenty products and, if they wish, trade online totally free. It is hoped that the new supermarket will attract new

visitors to Wombourne and that the website will help them to uncover the products and services available in the lively village.

Greensafe The Grensafe audit team used the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges HD 19/03 as a framework to complete the safety audits across the Wombourne project. HD 19/03 is widely accepted as the standard for safety audits, although this is only technically true for motorways and trunk roads, but most local authorities recognize its value.

GreenSafe used two auditors - it’s not only a requirement of HD19/03, but research shows that two auditors identify 30% more problems than audit teams with only one member.

GreenSafe can normally turn around a safety audit within one month and price the audit on an individual basis to offer best value for the client. A preliminary view of general arrangement drawings often acts as a guide to the amount of time required to undertake a safety audit.

GreenSafe Ltd was founded in 2002 and provides road safety specialists to organisations who struggle to find the necessary skills to fulfill these important roles. The company also undertakes consultancy work and safety audits just like this one. GreenSafe are probably most famous in road safety circles as the company that provided (pro bono) UK-MoRSE, the national safety scheme database.

The government’s recent call for more for less is likely to stimulate initiatives that change road user behaviour, education initiatives and schemes that make the most of assets we already have. These innovative projects will call for cutting edge road safety specialists that can add psychology to the traditional tools – that’s where GreenSafe excels.

Extra care for new Midlands Mothers Birmingham Women’s Hospital is on the way to expansion, with a £6 million investment backing an extension to its facilities.

The original Neonatal Unit was built 30 years ago and the present unit opened in 1987. The number of sick and premature babies received as dramatically increased over recent years. In

addition to the babies born at Birmingham Women’s Hospital, babies come from hospitals across the West Midlands for its specialist care Birmingham Women’s NHS Foundation Trust is building a superb new Neonatal Centre on the site of the existing facility. The new building will have increased capacity for up to 50 neonatal cots ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Midlands (including 20 for intensive care). It will also enable staff to care for preterm newborn babies from across the region who have had surgery.

Once work is complete, the site will feature a new ambulance access road and a rooftop plant with a compressor for air and gases.

Internally, the building will be divided between maternity and gynaecology, with seminar and consultation rooms, an audio room for hearing tests, two reception areas and a kitchen for staff. Contractors stripped back the old part of the building to its concrete frame in the early stages of the work, a move which will result in an entirely brand-new appearance for the whole unit.

Imogen Morgan, Clinical Director for Neonatology, said, “The new NNU will give us a fantastic opportunity to improve our care further.

“First, and most importantly, the opening of extra cots for intensive and high dependency care for babies will help stop the problems of turning babies and mothers away when the unit is very busy. Sometimes we have to send babies to another region because of a local cot shortage.

We will also be able to care for babies with surgical abnormalities, in partnership with Birmingham Children’s Hospital, and allow these babies to be looked after locally.

“Secondly, the new facilities will be much better for parents, families, nurses and doctors. Extra space around cots will allow more advanced care to be given more readily and provide space for parents to be near their babies. This reduces the risk of cross infection, which is vital for tiny babies.

“Thirdly we will be able to advance technologically, particularly in the use of IT to monitor our babies and the work we do, as well as enhancing staff training and education.

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“We can’t wait!”

Project manager Peter Barker told Premier Construction about the scheme: “Around 60% of the unit will be newly built once our work is finished. There’s a range of green features across the site, including sedum roofing and recycled water. We’ve achieved a BREEAM rating of ‘excellent’ for the new part and ‘very good’ for the old part.

“We’ve been working with VINCI on the project under a ProCure21 contract, and I can’t fault their organisation and dedication. The contract guarantees a maximum price, amongst other benefits, and it’s a good way for the NHS to do business.

We’re getting value for money and putting something into the community, so it’s safe to say we’re proud of our work”.

Construction News

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Handled with ‘extra’ care An existing sheltered housing development is being transformed to provide a new state of the art ‘extra care’ scheme comprising 71 homes to replace the existing 34 flats at Welland Court on St Mattias Road, St Ann’s, Nottingham.

The project is being carried out for housing and regeneration group LHA-ASRA by Main Contractors Kier Partnership Homes. The development is being funded by LHA-ASRA, the Department of Health, the Homes and Communities Agency and Nottingham City Council.

It will achieve Level 3 of the government’s Code for Sustainable Homes, with features such as green roofs, and a harvesting system to

collect and recycle rainwater for toilets and gardening.

The scheme of 50 apartments for affordable rent, and 21 for sale through shared ownership, will meet Lifetime Homes Standards. Residents will have individually tailored support, with optional extra care being brought in as residents’ needs change. Staff will be on call 24 hours a day.

Extensive consultation was carried out with existing residents of Welland Court who have been re-housed for the duration of the construction. They will have first choice of rented apartments when the development is complete.

A type of supported housing, ‘extra care’ refers to self-contained homes with design features and support services to enable older people to enjoy active and independent lifestyles.

The new Welland Court has been specially designed for people aged over 55, and will include a café, communal gardens, hairdressers, activity and meeting rooms, and

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an assisted bathing suite.

There will also be a modern day centre, wi-fi throughout, and communal facilities open to older people living in the city.

John Henderson, Head of Programme Delivery at LHA-ASRA said: “Working in partnership with Nottingham City Council, LHA-ASRA will provide the very latest in innovative care for older people to live fulfilling lives in a vibrant community and comfortable surroundings.

“Not only will these affordable homes offer individually tailored housing support, but the development will help regenerate the area.”

The development is expected to be complete in 2011.

New youth centre takes shape thanks to £5m grant A scheme to transform Westfield Folk House in Mansfield has won a £5 million grant from the former government’s Department for Children, Schools and Families’ myplace programme, delivered by the Big Fund, the non-Lottery funding operation of the Big Lottery Fund.

Westfield Folk House is a Grade II listed building that has been used as a youth facility for 60 years, but it has now become too small to meet demand.

The Nottinghamshire County Council project will see the building completely refurbished and extended, to create two large open spaces, multiple smaller rooms, a café, performance space and dance studio. The grounds will offer a multi-use games area and allotments. The Council is investing £1.5m in the project Activities, ranging from performance arts to table tennis, will be targeted towards all young people from the Mansfield area.

The new all-weather outdoor games area will be suitable for wheelchair sports to encourage integration, while homeless young people will be able to use the washing and laundry facilities.

The building’s centrepiece will be a media wall, linked to TV, internet and games consoles and DVDs. The feature highlights the focus on digital technology in the centre.

‘The Hall’ homelessness project and the Mansfield Deaf Society will be based at the centre, leading support services for homeless young people and those with hearing impairments. Advice on a range of issues such as drugs and sexual health counselling, and entry to employment training will also be available.

Moving into June, the existing building has been stripped out and the initial mechanical and electrical work has begun. The extension’s steel frame has been assembled and the roof is virtually finished. Project manager Stuart Risk told Premier Construction, “The main contractor, GF Tomlinson, has been proactive, and things have progressed very well to date. The schedule predicts completion in February 2011, but there’s nothing to suggest that we won’t have the work completed slightly earlier than we originally envisaged if things continue to go smoothly”.

Beverley Hughes, former Minister of State for Children, Young ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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People and Families, said: “We have put young people at the forefront of the decisions on myplace because they are the best people to design and plan the places their generation, and future generations, will want to enjoy and attend after school and at weekends. I am especially pleased that the successful projects will be incorporating a range of new digital technologies, cultural, multi-media, performing arts, social enterprise and sporting activities. Gone are the days of youth clubs with dusty halls where the only activities on offer were pool or table tennis.

“Our research tells us that 42% of young people do not think they are well respected in their communities so I hope that by offering a unique opportunity to showcase the creative talent of young people at the centre of their communities, this will change the public’s perception of young people.”

About myplace myplace aims to deliver world class youth facilities driven by the active participation of young people and their views and needs. myplace has funded 70 projects across England worth £270 million. myplace offers a significant opportunity to those with the vision, ambition, and drive to deliver world class places for young people to go. It rewards those who: are developing plans for ambitious, world class places that will offer young people the widest possible range of high quality

Construction News

activities and co-located support services; are putting young people in the lead to plan and deliver dedicated youth projects driven by their views and needs; are working in partnership across sectors to develop robust, financially sustainable co-funded projects that respond to local needs and priorities; and require between £1m and £5m of capital investment to deliver an outstanding building project. myplace is closed for applications and no further rounds of funding are planned. The first myplace centres have opened and several more are due to open in 2010. For more information on project openings and to keep up to date with what’s happening, visit www.myplacesupport.co.uk

Call our news team on 01706 719972

Windmill Centre gets makeover The community centre known locally as the Windmill Centre, in Warley in the West Midlands, has been revamped by contractors Charnock & Slater to make it more accessible to the community and more adaptable to the needs of the different groups who use it.

Local councillor Roger Horton is chairman of the centre’s management committee, and he spoke enthusiastically about the new developments to Premier Construction: “The centre is full of interesting stories, one being how it started – as a co-operative bread depot. It eventually began to be used as a community centre and to be known as the Windmill Centre.

“Now, the council wants to make it into a ‘super youth centre’, as well as keeping the place open to other groups, like seniors and play groups, for example. So with the changes, there have been a lot of deliberations about

whether to keep the name or to give it a new one – perhaps we won’t end up going with “Windmill Super Young, Old, and Everyone Else Centre”, though!

“Nevertheless, we want to provide a ‘cradle-to-grave’ service, and the work we’ve had done will help to achieve that.

There has been less than £1 million spent on the centre as part of this project, but it’s enough to make changes. One example is one of the centre’s common rooms, which has been adapted to be used as an IT facility for training.

Another is the central hall, which has been made safe to use for up to a hundred people.

“Work is about to be completed, and the final

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job to complete is the final removal of some asbestos that was unexpectedly found in the roof”.

Locals will no doubt share Roger’s enthusiasm for the project once it is unveiled in the near future.

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Environmental excellence in rural Cornwall The village of Praze-An-Beeble, near Camborne in Cornwall, is the charming location of a brand new healthcare facility thanks to a £2.5 million project carried out by Community 1st Cornwall, Blue Sky Design Services and main contractor Mansell.

The centre features space for minor surgical procedures and a range of consultation rooms, and provides a vital service for the local community, which is one of the reasons why it was awarded planning permission, in a notoriously difficult area for planners.

With its timber frame and stone and rendered elevations providing an attractive sight, the building also boasts excellent environmental standards, and the attention paid to the ecology of the site has been one of the most important features of the new build, as Rod Hulme, the local director for Community 1st, explains: “This is rural Cornwall and it’s a stunning region, so anyone who’s been here will know what there is to lose of you don’t respect the surroundings. To illustrate our approach, there’s a brook running alongside the site that we paid a lot of attention too, in order to protect the micro-habitat, and we were very sensitive in bridging the access road over it. There’s an extensive SUDS drainage system too, which further respects the fragility of the surroundings. Then there are the hedges – we had to remove some during construction, but we were able to provide a carefully designed landscaping scheme replacing the habitats lost by the development and thereby limited our impact.

Rod is also happy with the way work has progressed under the design and construction team, commenting, “It’s been an excellent effort all round. I’m particularly pleased with the way we moved through the winter, which was harsher than usual even in the south of the country. It goes to show that the job gets done if you keep your chin up when it gets tough!”

Lavigne Lonsdale Lavigne Lonsdale (Masterplanners, Urban Designers and Landscape Architects) were appointed by Community 1st in 2006 to prepare the site layout and external works detailed planning application necessary to sign off conditions for the surgery.

The firm provided the WDP (Works Development Package) information for costing purposes so that the client had confidence that the scheme was in budget. This required close liaison with the local planning authority to provide an external scheme appropriate for a high class medical facility within a rural location.

The task was brought to completion on time so that the funding could be released and Mansell could be appointed to construct the scheme. Lavigne Lonsdale co-operated with Mansell’s team in order to maintain the original design aspirations and prepare the detailed external works package ready for construction.

Throughout the process, Lavigne Lonsdale have worked closely with Mansell to maintain a good working relationship, which has helped to galvanise an end result that both can be proud of.

In addition to these roles, Lavigne Lonsdale were invited to design and manufacture bespoke street furniture for the scheme.

This is now completed and installed and the group has taken great pride in the results of the scheme.

Find out more about Lavigne Lonsdale at www.lavignelonsdale. co.uk

Mansell Mansell is one of the larger sub-groups of giant construction firm Balfour Beatty. At approximately £900 million in 2009, Mansell’s turnover is significant, achieved through ongoing success in the company’s chosen market sectors of affordable housing, education, health, defence, airports, commercial and interiors, culture and heritage.

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From houses and hospitals to colleges and classrooms, the scope of Mansell’s building work can be summarised in just two words; constructing communities Mansell have developed a reputation for reliability, personal service and innovative solutions and are very proud of the fact that 90% of the company’s business comes from customers for whom Mansell have previously worked.

Mansell carry plenty more information on their website: www. constructingcommunities.com

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S o u th We s t Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

New springboard for business success Providing high quality, flexible managed workspace for start-up businesses, the Pool Innovation Centre in West Cornwall is a newly constructed £10 million two- and three-storey building incorporating 51 offices, together with shared reception, meeting rooms, conference facilities, toilets and kitchens.

The construction project was carried out for the South West Regional Development Agency with a Stakeholder Design Steering Group comprising Combined Universities in Cornwall (CUC), CPR Regeneration (Camborne, Pool & Redruth) and English Partnerships (EP) chaired

by Dr Alan Stanhope of Cornwall College. The

post completion building owner is Cornwall Council with Plymouth University, with management firm Tamar Science Group.

Main Contractors were Sir Robert McAlpine; Project Architects and Landscape Architect were AEDAS, working out of their Bristol office.

The new building, which has a gross internal area of 3389 sq m incorporates offices of various sizes, ranging from from 25 sq m to 67 sq m.

The building is structured around a steel frame with precast concrete floors and roof, SFS external walls, lightweight internal partitions and raised access flooring throughout. The building design features exposed concrete soffits for natural cooling, as well as high levels of insulation.

External elevations are in a combination of materials including Cornish Delabole slate cladding, Cornish Western Red Cedar cladding and pre-patinated copper cladding,

Hotel reaches for the stars The Cadbury House Hotel 2 development, underway at Frost Hill, Congresbury, Bristol, includes the construction of a new 50 bedroom accommodation block, together with the upgrade of the existing hotel to a Double Tree by Hilton brand standard.

The hotel’s existing main restaurant is also being refurbished and converted into a MPW (Marco Pierre White) restaurant.

The project is being carried out for Sanguine Hospitality and is being built by Denizen Contracts, who are due to complete the 11 month contract in October 2010.

FCH have been appointed as Architects for the development and have also been involved with the interior fit out of the works to Double Tree brand standards.

The new four-storey accommodation block is tied back into the existing hotel bedroom block. The palette of materials used complements the existing original facades which are finished with a specialist render system with stone heads, cills and jambs, and divided with horizontal cedar boarding panels .

The new building is of traditional masonry cavity wall and party wall structure, with pre-cast concrete floor slabs and screed and a mansard roof with plain tiled finish. At the link junction with the existing building, a structural steel frame and specialist curtain walling system has been introduced.

Sanguine Hospitality has an office based at the hotel and they, together with the project architects, are currently identifying sites around the country suitable for development. Sanguine

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www.romauk.net

incorporating composite timber/aluminium windows, high specification curtain walling with integrated photovoltaic cells, natural ventilation wind chimneys and a ‘green’ roof.

It is estimated that by 2015 the project will have created 130 full time equivalent jobs in the local economy. This includes jobs created within new and growing businesses in the centre and jobs created in the wider economy as Pool Innovation Centre tenants purchase products and services from local suppliers.

Hospitality currently has several hotel developments on site and others at the planning stage.

Denizen Contracts LLP was established in 2007 by the Monetier/ Sanguine Hospitality Group, who, as an experienced hospitality developer and operations company, had become increasingly dissatisfied with the service of external construction companies.

Denizen was formed to provide an expert construction operation within the business to ensure developments were delivered to the highest standards. Since it’s inception, Denizen’s role has increased to take the lead in all stages of the development process from outline feasibility through to turnkey handover of completed buildings. Denizen has developed an expertise in leading the planning application process and has achieved many successful approvals in very challenging locations (including listed properties/conservation and green belt areas). The success of Denizen in delivering it’s objectives has resulted in the company expanding to facilitate construction schemes for external clients with the aim of providing the same unrivaled construction and development service.

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Gatwick Airport makeover continues at pace Gatwick Airport’s huge programme of improvements continues to make progress, under a scheme designed to make the airport more modern and user-friendly, and able to cope with ever-increasing challenges of traffic, passengers and baggage.

Gatwick is now owned by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), who also manage London’s City Airport, after a report by the Competition Commission led to former operators BAA selling the hub in late 2009. Improvements to the airport go hand-inhand with the new operators’ stated intention to encourage more passengers and airlines to ‘make Gatwick their first choice’ in the face of competition from Heathrow, Stansted and Luton airports, amongst others in the UK. Already the 8th largest airport in Europe in terms of passenger numbers, Gatwick’s modernisation represents an ambitious attempt to grow even further.

Gatwick Airport’s Wayne Lonsdale spoke to Premier Construction about the scheme: “Across the project, there are two main aims. The first is to improve the passenger experience, and there are several ways in which we’re approaching the issue. One way, as an example, is to improve movement around the airport. We’ve carried out a number of computer simulations to determine the best way to encourage people to move around, and some of the conclusions we drew were that it’s much better to have more open spaces with clear lines of sight, and that lifts are better solutions than escalators for moving large numbers of people from floor to floor.

“The other main aim is to increase capacity, which is why we’re investing so much in the baggage handling systems, for example.

The latest technology will ensure a process that’s faster and more precise and a system that can take on a great burden of baggage without struggling”.

Such a large investment into UK aviation was considered too much to hand to a single contractor, and so the project has been divided into sections, each of which has been handed to one of the UK’s major construction firms. According to a Gatwick spokesperson, “To achieve our goals, we are working together, making connections across projects, consulting with suppliers and employing expertise to develop the best solutions”. Among the major contractors awarded work packages at the airport are Costain, Rok, Carillion and VINCI Construction.

Wayne Lonsdale added, “The contractors we’ve chosen are all respected and trusted, and they bring with them a great deal of

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experience, not to mention hatfuls of awards. Our three main criteria in selecting contractors were their focus on safety and security, both during and after construction, their understanding of what it takes to construct a fantastic airport and their ability to offer value for money”.

North Terminal Forecourt The North Terminal forecourt is to see its facilities relocated and improved in an attempt to offer “a reassuring welcome that reflects the Gatwick of today, and the future. It reinforces, geographically, the sense of arrival”. Initial work on the forecourt has been completed at a cost of £7.4 million and is designed to increase the area’s capacity and security and to ‘de-clutter’, which should free up lines of sight and improve signage and circulation.

North Terminal Interchang Leading into the forecourt, the North Terminal interchange is “a new gateway into the terminal” for all modes of transport.

Upgrades are intended to “modernize and speed up the passenger journey into the terminal, whilst leaving a positive impression”, a further hint at the importance placed on making Gatwick attractive, as well as secure and functional. Costing around £25million, work to improve the interchange has reached practical completion and features improved wayfinding and a smoother journey from multi-storey car parks to the terminal building.

North Terminal Extension In a move to increase the terminal’s capacity and reduce the burden placed on existing installations, an £76 million programme of works has been drawn up and is due for completion in September 2011. By then, the terminal will boast 27 new check-in desks, four baggage reclamation belts and, if all goes according to plan, a surge of new passengers ready to enjoy them.

North Terminal Baggage System A hike in the number of passengers in transit at Gatwick necessitates an improved baggage handling system. According to airport representatives, contractors are “developing a new system that is fit for purpose and is robust and efficient enough to grow with Gatwick and improve passenger service levels”.

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Work on the system began in 2009 and should be complete by the second quarter of 2012 after an investment of around £30 million.

New technology is being applied to increase capacity, while airport operators hope to reduce costs by improving efficiency.

One of the most important considerations is to ‘future-proof’ the system against Department for Transport requirements.

modernise Pier 2, with work to the aircraft stands and to the passenger areas, to provide a more efficient operation and a better experience for passengers. Delivered in several phases over two years, the project is working in busy airport areas where safety and minimising disruption to passengers are both top priorities.

North West Zone

This area will be expanded and will benefit from better wheelchair access, in a project which begins with newer, higher ceilings and will end with an area of increased capacity with more access routes. £11 million will have been spent by the time the project is complete.

Alongside improvements for passengers and baggage handlers, airlines will soon benefit from works at Gatwick. Already virtually complete are six new large remote aircraft stands, which have come in at a cost of £40 million. The stands are a significant accomplishment, as work has progressed as planned despite the usual flurry of action around the airfield.

Transit Replacemen The original transit system between terminals dated back to the 1980s and was in need of improvement. According to a Gatwick statement, improvements offer “reliability” and “better passenger service”, and “will ensure our passengers feel secure and relaxed when flying from Gatwick”. The new, safer carriages will offer up-to-date passenger information, CCTV to improve security, and greater accessibility for wheelchair users. £38 million has been spent on the transit system, and improvements are expected to be delivered ahead of schedule in July 2010.

South Terminal Forecourt and Concourse Both these areas are to be made easier to access and navigate, with improved lines of sight, fresher, more open spaces, and a seamless journey from one to the other. New flooring and lighting within the concourse will complement a contemporary, welcoming ‘front door’ to the forecourt.

South Terminal Baggage System Similar to the improvements to be made to the North Terminal’s system, the South Terminal’s baggage process focuses on innovation. New technology is designed to reduce accidents and quicken the check-in process. Strategic planning will be designed to re-route baggage directly to flights and avoid damage and loss. To be complete by 2012, the project is benefiting from an impressive £90 million investment.

South Terminal Departure Lounge) This area has been refurbished in order to leave a more pleasant space for passengers to enjoy, and one in which there is a greater choice of activities, refreshment and retail. Passengers will be encouraged to spend more time in this area, which has been extended and modernised in a £37 million project completed in late 2009.

South Terminal Pier 2 Around £40 million is being spent on a project to improve and

South Terminal Immigration Hall

Local Projects Whilst it may seem strange to class a seven-figure spend as a minor project, that’s exactly what it is when you remember that almost £1billion is being invested in the airport. Across the North and South Terminals, a range of local improvements will include better escalators and WCs, improved air conditioning and ventilation and general refurbishments to small, enclosable areas.

Carillion Carillion’s contracts director, Richard Betteridge, spoke to Premier Construction about his firm’s involvement in the scheme: “We’ve been involved with the project since its early stages and throughout the buyout. A significant portion of our work has been carried out on the North West Zone, where we’ve safeguarded two spaces for the new Airbus A380 in the future.

“That side of the project is nearing completion, and I take pride in the way we’ve gone about our work, especially when it comes to environmental issues. 95% of the materials we used were recycled, and we haven’t had to transport any significant amounts of waste away from the site”.

The aviation sector is one of Carillion’s stronger areas, as Richard explains: “In general, we invest a lot in aviation. We have a strong team and we can offer post-construction maintenance packages, which can save money for clients by allowing them to give out single contracts for both. We’re vastly experienced in the area, and we’re currently involved with the work at Heathrow Airport, whilst I’ve personally been involved at Manchester Airport and I was here at Gatwick in 1988, working on the main runway. Come to think of it, I’ve worked on most of the major runways in the UK!” Richard can trace his personal success, and that of his firm, down to a simple yet effective approach: “I don’t mean to use a cliché, but this kind of work is all about people. Simply put, if you’re going to get along, you need everyone involved to have the right attitude. If there’s a problem, you solve it by talking and understanding how to move forward.

Too many people are still stuck with the approach that you’d see a lot in the 1980s – as soon as there’s a glitch, they start ranting and raving!

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t “During this contract, our approach has meant that our team has fit perfectly with Gatwick’s, and things have moved according to programme. There’s a lot of work to be done around the airport, and I’m looking forward to similarly successful working relationships in the future”.

Costain Costain is engaged in a number of projects designed to make it easier for travellers to enjoy the Gatwick Airport experience when they fly in or out from the summer of 2010.

Costain is currently in the construction phase of two infrastructure projects which form part of Gatwick Airport’s North Terminal Landside Development Programme. The North Terminal Interchange (NTI) will see a new passenger interchange facility and station constructed for the train that shuttles between the North and South Terminals, while the North Terminal Forecourt (NTF) project is a road remodelling project to improve vehicle capacity in front of the terminal and meet new airport security requirements.

In terms of complexity, the proximity of other, operational airport facilities is “a significant engineering challenge”, according to Brendan Conlon, Project Director for the NTI & NTF projects.

“At the east side there is the airport hotel and we are literally digging up their front doorstep and reconstructing their hotel reception area. To the south, the new structural steelwork is just 30cm away from the existing multi-storey car park. Immediately to the west is the existing road and passenger drop-off and pick-up point. To the north are temporary buildings for airport engineering and maintenance staff. The only barrier between us and the public and airport operations is the site perimeter hoarding”.

As if that weren’t enough, airport engineering workshops and engineering maintenance facilities occupied the lower floor of the original station building. This section of the building is fully retained and incorporated within the new structure and it is directly beneath the demolition and subsequent new build

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works. This section of the building remained occupied by airport operations staff until September 2009.

Work on the station began last April and, although some delays have led to re-sequencing of the work, Costain has successfully met contract milestones and handed back the train track to the train operators on schedule, says Conlon. The completion of the NTI is planned for late June 2010 but the client has been given early access into the station platform areas to allow the airport operational staff time to familiarise themselves with the new building prior to opening to the public in July.

Through a combination of open communication with all stakeholders and a pro-active and flexible approach adopted

by Costain and Gatwick Airport, the site team has been able to optimise the win-win situation and deliver this prestigious project with minimal disruption to the ongoing airport operations, public and stakeholders.

VINCI Construction UK VINCI Construction UK have continued a 12-year relationship at Gatwick with their recent work at the airport. Currently, the group is undertaking the pier 2 upgrade at the South Terminal and the refurbishment of the southern ITTS station as well as early works on a number of other projects.

In previous years, much of the improvements to Gatwick have been down to VINCI Construction UK, including construction of the South Terminal’s Pier 3 and Pier 2 segregation projects, the refurbishment and extension of the International Departure Lounge, and the construction of the goods in and waste away facility for the South Terminal IDL. VINCI Construction UK also undertook the replacement of 28 passenger loading bridges and the installation of the gate guidance system. In the last year VINCI Construction UK have also constructed a temporary baggage facility as part of the enabling works for the new South Terminal system, demolished Hangar 5 and the old Customs House and also completed duties as the Programme Integrator

for the South Terminal capital programme.

Andrew Ridley-Barker, operational director of VINCI Construction UK’s air division, spoke enthusiastically to Premier Construction about his team’s work, putting the group’s success down to experience: “Our experience at Gatwick is what allows us to get things done: we know the environment - its constraints and its interdependencies – and we know what to do to overcome challenges to the projects. We have around 60 people at the airport, many of whom have extensive experience of working at Gatwick, Asked what makes for a successful airport project, Andrew got straight to the point: “You have to keep things separate. You can’t turn an airport into a construction site; you have to find a solution that lets both airport staff and construction workers get on with their jobs, almost as if the others weren’t there.

“I’m pleased to say we’ve done that, and our experience with things such as passenger segregation and construction logistics at the airport adds to our know-how in that area. We’ve been able to keep delivering on our promises and without bringing the airport to a halt”.

SCC Ltd

VINCI Construction UK, including: Refurbishment of Motor Transport Unit; Ventilation, plumbing and electrical works in goods in and waste away; Pier 1 surveys; Gate 90-95 lifts, electrical and associated works.

The specialists have collaborated with VINCI Construction UK on a number of projects at both Gatwick and Heathrow airports Normech Services Ltd is a privately owned company which was formed in 1992. Originally based in Birmingham, the group moved to new offices in Pershore in 2000. Dealing with all types of commercial mechanical & electrical engineering, NSL have created a niche in the market by delivering a complete service from conception to completion.

The Normech Board believe the company’s strength lies in its people and its systems and they continue to invest in both of these areas. Achieving accreditations in ISO 9001:2008, Investors in People and SAFE contractor status highlights their commitment to this ethos.

In 2007, NSL opened offices in Heathrow to focus and develop its airport division. This investment gave a localised base to enhance the service provided, with a dedicated workforce with knowledge of airport constraints and logistics.

Pay Normech a visit at www.normech.com You can also visit www.gatwickairport.com for more information about the changes at the airport.

SCC Ltd’s Eamonn O’Donnell spoke to Premier Construction about this company’s involvement in the scheme: “We’re about to install a multi-storey car park for the North Terminal, with 1,200 spaces. We’re the framework contractor and we’ll be going through local sub-contractors for lifts, piling and so on, and we’ll be moving a lot of pre-cast concrete down there from our base in Stockport.

“It’s a particularly involving contract, and it’s exciting to be involved in such a large scheme, especially since we’re introducing a new frame system to the market as part of our work at Gatwick.

“The other side of it being such a large project is that the pieces of the jigsaw have to fit together perfectly to avoid delays. You get a real sense of responsibility as a result, and I’m sure that once our share of the work is done, we’ll be able to take that much more pride in the job”.

Normech Normech carried out a wide range of projects at Gatwick with ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Olympic standard shopping centre makes progress At 1.9 million sq ft, Westfield Stratford City will be the largest urban shopping centre in Europe and the prestigious gateway to London’s Olympic Park. A magnificent three level mall and contemporary external streetscape will form the centre of the development.

An innovative fusion of different brands, experiences and formats will grace the magnificent three-level mall and a beautifully designed ‘lifestyle street’. Art and culture will be integral to the experience; from the striking architecture of individual retail districts, to new retail concepts, cultural collaborations, events and installations that will enhance this next generation of retail space.

Westfield Stratford City is set to transform London’s retail landscape and provides the ultimate opportunity for the world’s most stimulating and interesting brands.

Olympics As the prestigious gateway to London’s Olympic Park, Stratford City is one of the largest urban regeneration projects ever undertaken in the UK. The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will focus the world’s attention on Stratford, with significant infrastructure improvements aligned to the Games’ immovable deadline now transforming Stratford into one of the best-connected areas in the UK. Stratford City and the Olympic Park together form a 700-acre development. Westfield Stratford City will be a core component of East London’s Olympic legacy, permanently situated next to

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the largest urban park created in Europe for over 150 years.

Visit London has forecast that the Olympic Games will contribute an additional £1.3-2.2 billion to London tourism over the period 2007–2017. Located just 20 minutes from central London’s tourism attractions, and at the heart of the Olympic site, Westfield Stratford City is perfectly placed to maximise this incremental tourism opportunity.

Catchment Westfield Stratford City is located in one of the most exciting, diverse and cosmopolitan catchment areas in the UK; from the affluent leafy suburbs of Essex and Kent to the vibrant, densely populated, inner city streets of the City and East End. This unique trade area is projected to encompass over 4 million people with a weighted spend of £3.24 billion.

It will be a key strategic location for retailers as a result of its scale and exceptional public transport links and is forecast to rank in the top 10 shopping destinations in the UK.

Transport £17 billion will be invested in public transport within the Lower Lea Valley as part of preparations for London’s Olympic Games.

This will deliver new and improved transport infrastructure that is set to make Stratford City one of the best connected destinations in the UK and cement its position as a new metropolitan centre for East London.

Westfield Stratford City will connect two major transport hubs;

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The final piece of steel for the core retail build has been erected and the total weight of the steel used across the site is equivalent to 80 million of the gold medals used in the recent Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Link Bridge The Town Centre Link Bridge, which has been successfully pushed over 11 live railway lines at Stratford Station, has touched down on the other side of the tracks.

In an unprecedented feat of engineering, the 1,600 tonne, 128m long and 14m wide bridge touched down in Stratford. John Armitt, Chairman for the ODA, said: “The town centre link bridge is crucial to getting millions of spectators from Stratford Town Centre to the other side, into the Olympic Park. It will play a key role during the Games and will play a key role in legacy, allowing residents and commuters to walk freely from one side to the other.”

Stratford Regional Station adjacent to a 200,000 sq ft Marks & Spencer and Stratford International, adjacent to a 240,000 sq ft John Lewis and Waitrose.

Stratford Regional Station is served by Central and Jubilee lines and forecast to be the 7th busiest station on the London network when it opens in 2011. It also hosts national rail services from East Anglia and Essex, London Overground and the DLR. The development will benefit from two DLR stations, the second being adjacent to Stratford International, along with Kent Fastlink – a new high speed network that will connect Kent and St Pancras. Crossrail will stop at Stratford when it opens in 2017, further enhancing Stratford’s reach across the capital, with twenty four 1,500 seat trains per hour between Heathrow and Woolwich.

Comprehensive road networks provide links with Central London, the A11, A12, A13, M11 and M25. 5,000 parking spaces will be located above and below the retail levels, alongside taxi drop-off points, and a new regional bus interchange.

The retail quarter will be fully pedestrianised, with the grand 24 hour lifestyle street linking the two main stations and an impressive new link bridge that will stretch over Stratford Regional Station’s rail tracks to connect with the existing Stratford town centre.

Work to cover rail links to the site had to be completed as an early priority. The work involved re-routing trackside cabling, allowing a reinforced concrete structure to be constructed over 350 metres of line. The supporting foundations were built using continuous flight auger piling - a method of piling which reduces the noise of the work. A concrete box was then constructed to cover the railway. The work allowed the Stratford City development to built on top of the railway.

Scale Stratford City and London’s Olympic Park together span some 700 acres and account for the largest urban regeneration projects ever undertaken in the UK. The Legacy Masterplan includes provision for a total of 2.9 million sq ft retail and leisure space, 1.3 million sq ft hotel space, a large 6.6 million sq ft commercial district, 16,400 new homes and 180,000 sq ft of community spaces. 180,000 spectators per day are expected to attend the venue during the Olympics.

The site will host up to 4,500 workers per day as work progresses to opening in 2011 and a total of 25,000 construction jobs throughout the duration of the project. On completion, Stratford City town centre will create over 18,000 permanent jobs.

Steel Contractors have reached a major milestone in the construction of the development with the completion of the steelwork for the retail centre. Over 40,000 tonnes of steel has been erected on site to date and developers have installed over 3 million sq ft of steel flooring – equivalent to over 40 Wembley football pitches.

About Westfield In September 1960, Westfield began its life as a public company when it listed on the Sydney Stock Exchange. Since that time, it has grown into one of Australia’s largest corporations and has become a world leader in retail property.

The Westfield Group is now the world’s largest listed retail property group by equity market capitalisation. The Group has interests in and operates a global portfolio of 119 high-quality regional shopping centres in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, valued at more than $59 billion.

Westfield works with over 23,700 retailers across more than 10 million square metres of retail space.

Westfield is a vertically integrated shopping centre group.

It manages all aspects of shopping centre development, from design and construction through to leasing, management and marketing.

The group creates value through intensive management at an operational level and an extensive development program which continually improves the quality of the portfolio to generate income and capital growth for investors.

Stratford City’s neighbour, Westfield London, won Best Shopping Centre at the annual MAPIC Awards last year.

The awards recognise excellence and innovation across the European retail real estate arena.

The award came just over a fortnight after Westfield celebrated the one-year anniversary of Westfield London. Since opening, the centre, which is located in West London, has had over 23 million visitors, 15% above original expectations. With over 280 retail stores and a wealth of restaurants, bars and cafes it is already one of the UK’s top shopping and leisure destinations.

This year saw the arrival of a 14-screen Vue cinema which was the country’s first all-digital cinema when it opened in February.

Parry Bowen Parry Bowen have carried out all of the external glazing work on the project, and have been responsible for the facetted curtain walling, architectural steelwork and feature glazing to the prow, shop fronts, projecting screens, canopies, glass rain screen and brise soleil, automatic doors, pressed metal soffits, copings and columns.

The company was invited in by Westfield at short notice after the previous glazing contractor was forced to pull out of the project, and Parry Bowen’s experience and expertise, gathered over more than three decades, allowed the family business to pick up the baton with ease.

The majority of Parry Bowen’s contracts are in the region of six or seven figures, and the company had previously worked with Westfield on White City, Derby Eagle Centre and Merry Hill.

Parry Bowen specialise in total envelope packages, and turned over more than £30 million in 2009.

To find out more about what Parry Bowen can bring to your project, be sure to visit www.parry-bowen.co.uk ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Heron Tower tops out Heron International, the leading pan-European property group, and Skanska, one of the world’s leading construction firms, recently held a topping out ceremony to mark the structural completion of Heron Tower, the landmark development at 110 Bishopsgate, London. Heron Tower is the tallest building in the City of London, stretching 202 metres into the skyline. The building will be finished with a 28-metre mast giving an overall height of 230 metres.

The 46-storey development, which is being constructed by Skanska and is on schedule to be completed in February 2011, will provide 40,836 sq m of commercial office space with a public restaurant and skybar on floors 38-40. Situated just 200 metres from Liverpool Street station, Heron Tower will be a world-class office building at the heart of London’s financial district. The development will set the standard for offices of the future, incorporating a number of unique features, including a triple-height entrance hall with the biggest aquarium in any commercial building, ten high-speed double-decker lifts and a full-time five star concierge service.

Heron Tower also incorporates a number of environmental features and has achieved an ‘Excellent’ BREEAM rating. The building’s entire south elevation will be veiled with photovoltaic cells to generate renewable energy and help create a solar shield. In addition, triple skin glazed facades will reduce heat gain and loss by 45% over standard glazing.

The building was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates.

Speaking at the ceremony, Gerald Ronson, Chief Executive of Heron International, said: “Today we begin the countdown to completion that is less than 50 weeks away. Whether this is by luck or judgment, I believe that Heron Tower has come to market at the right time.

“As we top out today, Heron Tower is the tallest building in the City of London – I am sure that others will grow up around it that are taller. However I am confident that this will remain the finest office development of its kind in the City of London for many years to come.”

“Heron Tower is positioned at the heart of the capital city and

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will undoubtedly become one of the world’s finest workspaces.

“The time capsule ceremony symbolises our commitment to creating world class office space incorporating visionary design and, as always, a strong focus on detail and consideration for the environment.”

The Rt Hon The Lord Mayor of London Alderman Nick Anstee, said: “This brilliant glass and steel tower, all 46 storeys, is a great addition to the London skyline. To me this kind of building encapsulates the spirit of optimism and of business growth that I hope the next decade will bring the City and the UK.” Johan Karlström, President and CEO of Skanska, said: “I look forward to completion in the New Year, when the Heron Tower will become London’s newest and tallest landmark building in the heart of the City.”

Inside the building Internally, 42,873sqm will be made available, allowing for 4300 staff. This comprises three basement levels, three concourse levels, 36 storeys of offices, a public restaurant, bar and conference area and six levels of plant. There will be a new pedestrian piazza in Houndsditch Street and two high speed double-decker glass lifts will give dedicated access from Bishopsgate to the restaurant on the 39th floor.

Skanska is providing a ‘total construction and building services solution’, including mechanical, electrical, plumbing and I.T services in addition to piling, steel decking, and suspended ceilings and engineering.

Universal Building Supply The supply of high speed and large capacity passenger and goods hoists on the project came courtesy of Universal Building Supply, complete with the unique UBS common tower system.

UBS supplied 4 no. 2.7 tonne 90m/min travel speed passenger hoists serving from level 1 to level 38 at 160m high and a 4 tonne 5mx3m passenger hoist serving ground to level 38 at 168m high. These hoists are all tied to the 5mx5m common tower system to access the building at all floors. In addition,

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a 2 tonne passenger hoist was installed on level 38 to serve to level 46, and a 2 tonne passenger hoist was also supplied to serve from Ground to level 3.

The common tower and 5 hoists were climbed every 2 floors as the floor slabs were constructed.

UBS have completed several previous projects with Skanska: 50 Queen Anne’s Gate, 30 Crown Place, The Walbrook, Coventry Hospital and St Botolphs UBS are the leading UK Specialist in high rise hoists and access using the unique common tower system.

UBS Hoist & Access were originally part of UBS Inc, from America, who developed the UBS Aluminium Common Tower to allow comprehensive hoisting facilities to be installed on new build and renovation projects with minimal interference to the construction programme. Hoists of all types can be grouped in centralised locations accessing towers up to 300m high. UBS Hoist & Access is now a UK owned company and has the largest fleet of high speed hoists in Europe Current projects include St Pauls Place Sheffield, Pioneer Point Ilford, Image Hemel Hempstead, Eagle House London, and 70 hoists on the Athletes Village Stratford.

Tension Control Bolts Tension Control Bolts were used throughout the project utilising the wealth of experience gained from many other prestigious projects like Terminal 5 at Heathrow, The Emirates Stadium for Arsenal FC and the new 2012 Olympic Stadium at Stratford, London.

Tension Control Bolts Ltd’s expertise in providing the most efficient pre-loaded bolting system takes the Shropshire based firm around the world which has helped them establish a reputation for excellence.

Tension Control Bolts, or TCBs as they are commonly known throughout the world, provide the lowest cost method of properly installing High Strength Friction Grip / Pre-loaded bolts. TCB’s are replacing conventional high strength bolts and swaged collar rivets simply because they are quick and easy to install using lightweight electric shear wrenches. Guaranteed tension together with visual inspection removes the likelihood of operator error and ensures engineers that connections are tightened in accordance with specifications.

Find out more at www.tcbolts.com

Scheuten Solar Dutch company Scheuten Solar provided 4,000 m2 of photovoltaic modules on Heron tower, working with cladding contractor Scheldebouw. A two month installation period followed a year of planning and bespoke design. The power generated by Scheuten’s BIPV installations will be enough to meet 2.5% of the building’s electricity demand, reducing its carbon emissions by 850,000kg a year. Scheuten’s installations will both reduce solar gain to the interiors of the building and generate an estimated 92,000kWh of electricity a year.

Scheuten offers worldwide experience in glass and solar technology, and the company’s involvement in Heron Tower continued a history of working on prestigious projects around the world, a few of which are Berlin central station, Sant Celoni Shopping Center in Barcelona, Lycée Agricole du Subdray in France and a range of solar power parks across Europe.

The product portfolio of Scheuten Solar includes the Multisol® modules, which are high performance, lightweight standard PV modules with a sturdy design, and the Optisol® BIPV solar modules, which combine high tech solar power with an aesthetically attractive appearance. Scheuten Solar is active in all stages of the added-value chain for PV module manufacture to guarantee end-to-end manufacturing quality.

The company is based in Venlo in the Netherlands and has outposts across the globe. In a burgeoning solar market, Scheuten is set to go from strength to strength.

Fairview Lifting Gear Fairview Lifting Gear Services Ltd are a London-based company

who had a permanent team on site undertaking the supply, installation, testing and daily management of all monorail systems, load/launch platforms and bespoke lifting rigs. The building’s nature meant that modular runways were required, something Fairview Lifting Gear Services are widely known to specialize in. The whole monorail track layout needed to be redesigned as lifting operations moved up the levels as the building does not feature a uniform structure from floor to floor.

The runway systems were an important tool to assist in the cladding installations, as were the company’s numerous detailed drawings and calculations, which were always provided for the client as part of the conscientious planning and operational process and Fairview Lifting Gear Services were also proud to earn Skanska’s health and safety award twice in recognition of its excellent working practices on the Heron Tower site.

As Fairview’s Keith Livermore explains, “Part of our success is the fact that in addition to our extensive hire fleet of lifting and safety equipment, a large part of our business is unique in that we are able to design and install a wide range of bespoke systems using the latest computer design tools; this gives us an advantage over our competitors and technical peace of mind to our clients.

“This is one of the many reasons why we have been successful in securing tall build contracts such as Heron Tower”.

“Around 30% of our systems are custom-built and usually the simplest designs are the best, but anything is possible, as you see in our work at Heron Tower”.

For more information on Fairview’s award-winning services, visit www.fairviewliftinggear.com ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Award-winning development graces London’s riverside An exclusive new £50 million riverside development located on the south bank of the River Thames, Bridges Wharf is the product of collaboration between Weston Homes and architects Kay Elliott. The development features 267 one and two bedroom luxury apartments and penthouses.

Construction features include a concrete frame that eliminated the need for additional structural linings: this ensures fire integrity, and also enabled the creation of attractive radii corners on slabs, terraces and curved roofs at Bridges Wharf.

Small ceiling voids keep storey heights low and reduced concrete usage; pressure relief holes at basement level meant that tensile piles and related reinforcements were unnecessary.

Bridges Wharf also utilises an innovative ‘cassette wall system’ that weighs only 44kg per m², which compares favourably with block work cavity walling averaging 250kg to 300kg per m².

Combine these figures with the fact that less energy is used in its construction, and the cassette system is approximately 85% more efficient. Stainless steel balustrading for apartments allows for uninterrupted views and glazing is heat-soak toughened – this prevents heat stress and reduces the risk of glass failure.

Altura Designed as a trophy property within Bridges Wharf, the awardwinning Altura Penthouse occupies the 12th floor of the Altura Tower, a striking tower that houses Hoteliers, the first five-star hotel south of the Thames operated by the renowned von Essen group. This residence offers the ultimate in lateral riverside living over 198m², with finishings of the highest standard and wonderful views of the Thames and Central London from a landscaped terrace and unique winter gardens.

Coinford Construction Coinford assisted the client and their consultants in value engineering the design to its optimum for suitability and costs. The firm was subsequently successful in acquiring the groundworks and R.C. Frame contracts worth around £11m. This included excavation and construction of a 3 storey basement construction next to the River Thames and then 3 concrete frames of 12 to 15 storeys along with externals to complete this stunning development.

The site was situated right next to the London Heliport at Battersea, which posed some unique problems: stopping dust and particles being lifted into the air when a helicopter is either taking off or landing, as this can cause damage to the rotors of the helicopter. Coinford used a Harsco ‘Safescreen’ with gaskets between the sections, which together dramatically reduced the amount dust entering the heliport.

Coinford’s experience with Weston Homes has been close and co-operative, and has built up a massive trust between the companies, which has helped both to survive this difficult trading time.

Coinford are a progressive company and a real ‘team player’ in all their working relationships. Formed in 1981, the company works across the south east of England and provides a complete service to clients for the principle contractor role, remediation, excavations, replacement concrete piling, sheet piling, tower cranes, R.C. basement, sub and super structure construction,

along with dedicated gangs to carry out the external works.

Find out more at www.coinford.co.uk

Tecmach Tecmach designed, supplied and installed the refuse lift capable of transferring standard 1100 litre bins from level to level. The firm also designed, supplied and installed the shaft external gates, together with a locking and control system A building of the scale of Bridges Wharf creates a large volume of refuse. It is necessary to have a proficient system to transfer the bins full from basement to ground and empty from ground to basement. Tecmach were approached to supply a custom sized scissor lift, which is very cost effective compared with other solutions available.

To ensure that the installation went smoothly and at an economic cost, Tecmach designed and supplied a purpose built jig too ensure that the lift could be moved into the shaft and lowered into the pit even with the restricted access. Such attention to detail helped keep the installation time down to two days. Tecmach always supply experienced and competent installation engineers with CSCS qualifications for all installation work, even outside the construction industry Tecmach coordinated delivery, working within the time constraints applied by other trades who needed access to the area and had to complete some work before and some after installation, but did not what their schedules to be compromised.

Being a supplier to all industry sectors, not just the construction sector, Tecmach have experience of many solutions and can often bring alternative input to the table. To find out more, visit www.tecmach.co.uk ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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BFAP moves forward in latest stage of works The Broadland Flood Alleviation Project is a longterm project to provide a range of flood defence improvements, maintenance and emergency response services within the tidal areas of the Rivers Yare, Bure, Waveney and their tributaries.

Broadland Environmental Services Ltd, a joint venture company between BAM Nuttall Ltd. and Halcrow Group Ltd., has been appointed by the Environment Agency to deliver these services and, in partnership with the agency, it is now implementing the 20-year programme of works.

This contract was awarded in May 2001 as a Public Private Partnership Programme, and is the first of its kind to provide flood defences on this scale.

Compartment 7, of a total of 37, comprises an 11.4km stretch of floodbank on the left bank of the River Thurne between Thurne Dyke and Somerton Dyke. The bank passes through the important and busy tourist centre of Potter Heigham as well as some quieter areas such as around the margins of Martham Broad.

Flood alleviation improvement works started on site in spring 2009 and will be completed in 2010. There will be some restrictions on access during the works and for a period afterwards whilst vegetation re-establishes.

Currently, some 240km of floodbanks protect approximately 21,300 hectares of Broadland containing more than 1700

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properties, of which more than 1000 are residential. Most of the original material used for the construction of these floodbanks was silty clay and as a result many have deteriorated over time. Combined with changes to river channels, many are now susceptible to seepage and in danger of being undermined and/ or subject to breaching. Many floodbanks have also settled since they were built or last improved and are at risk of being overtopped by even fairly small tidal surges.

Settlement will continue over time and be made worse by sea level rise; officially predicted to be 6mm per annum at Great Yarmouth. The combination of these effects works out to be the same as an average settlement rate of about 25mm/year.

In some parts of Broadland, the existing defences are also threatened due to erosion of riverbanks caused by wind and waves, boatwash, normal river flows and the action of the tide.

Although many areas have been protected by steel or timber sheet piles, much of this was installed over the last 40 years and now needs to be replaced.

Paul Mitchelmore of the Environment Agency was able to give some insight into the project during an interview with Premier Construction: “This is a PFI initiative, so it carries more risk than our usual contracts, and it demands trust in the contractor. So far, the trust has been justified and things have progressed well. Once the improvement works to the flood defences have been completed

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t in each compartment, the contractor is responsible for maintaining those defences until the end of the contract period in 2021. At this point the defences, with a guaranteed residual life, are handed back to the client who can expect only to have to carry out light maintenance for several years...

“The latest stage of the project is still on site and it should be complete by the middle of next year. With a project of this kind, there can be a lot of concern amongst the public in the initial stages. That’s because we’re talking about sensitive areas – national parks, which are areas of natural beauty – that have quite fragile eco-systems and very little human infringement, other than for leisure. There’s a large boating industry in the area, for example, as well as a lot of fishing. Those interests, added to the local residents, make up a diverse group of stakeholders keen to protect the area.

“However, we alleviate concerns by showing that our presence is far from destructive. In fact, it’s the opposite – we’re investing a lot of money to protect the area and leave it better off than it was before. Once people see that, there’s a strong tendency for them to get right behind us, even if our work causes temporary disruption from time to time.”

Protecting the banks A computer model of the Broadland river system has been developed using detailed, current survey information of river channel shape, bank height and more, as well as predictions of sea-level rise.

This hydraulic model is used to determine what effect, if any, a particular scheme of works might have on water levels, flows and the frequency of flooding in any other part of the project area.

It is an important tool to help the project team to decide exactly what to do, and where and how their programme of works should be phased and to test other options, such as informal washlands.

The area is being protected by strengthening the existing floodbanks in their present locations by putting material on the

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back and/or front slopes.

The crest (top of the floodbank) is also raised to provide the agreed level. In many cases, the increase in height could be approximately 30-40 cm, depending on how poor the banks are at present when compared to 1995 standards, which is the target set by the environment agency.

Where the river is already hard up against the floodbank and the flood defence is protected by erosion protection, such as piling, a technique called ‘setting back’ is often used.

This solution involves building a new clay floodbank inland from the river edge with the floodbank set back far enough from the existing line of flood defence so that a new rond can be created and natural vegetation established.

The existing erosion protection will then be removed once the new floodbank is in place and the new rond has become established.

Another technique is used in some places and is known as ‘rolling back’. This technique is similar to setting back; however, the distance the floodbank is moved inland is considerably less.

It is the preferred solution when rond or erosion protection is insufficient to allow for just bank strengthening and where ground conditions do not permit full setback.

Construction News

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New school delivered ahead of schedule The new Manor Green School, which replaces the out-of-date Holyport Manor Special School, has been the biggest building project in the Maidenhead area for decades.

Contractors Willmott Dixon have now handed over the building to the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead and the council has started the exciting phase of fitting out and installing equipment so that the new school will be ready to welcome its first pupils in September.

Manor Green - a £25m One School Pathfinder replacement for the out-of-date buildings at Holyport Manor Special School will provide places for 150 children in classes of eight with specialist classrooms for science, art, computer work, design technology and food technology. There are sensory facilities, a

hydrotherapy pool (all with potential for community use), a parents’ room, therapy rooms and a training room.

The new school site is just over 2.7 hectares which includes a new access road and parking. The school itself is a 4,600 m2 single-storey building for 150 pupils aged 4 to 16+ with special educational needs. It sits on an existing education campus featuring two other schools – Lowbrook Primary and Cox Green Secondary - which will mean all the pupils can share the new facilities, including a new third generation multi-use games area, a leisure/community centre and the hydrotherapy pool in the new school.

Manor Green School has sustainability as a key priority. It is designed to meet the BREEAM ‘Very Good’ standard incorporating a sedum roof, a wood chip burning biomass boiler and a combined heat and power unit that will help to counter the impacts of climate change.

The school was delivered a week ahead of time, which only leaves the final account to be resolved and indications are that this should be very close to the original estimated construction estimate of £17m.

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John Soper, Senior Project Manager in the Royal Borough’s Building Services Department, has been working on this and related projects in the area, and found time to reflect on the Royal Borough’s latest successful job: “AS a chartered surveyor I’ve always enjoyed being involved with the construction process, in particular pulling together all the various elements that provide a client with the building they want. The new school project has been a tremendous demonstrations of what can be achieved by everyone working together – the school, the council and the contractors. I believe we have achieved a new school to be proud of and I think the pupils and staff will have the environment in which to achieve their very best.”

£99 million research centre is just what the doctor ordered!

A new £99 million facility to find treatments for serious health problems including heart and circulatory diseases, is under construction at Hammersmith Hospital.

The new six-storey building, being constructed by Main Contractors Bovis Lend Lease, will house over 450 world-class researchers and clinicians from Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, who joined forces to create the new centre.

The new building is due to be in use from December 2011 and it will form a key part of the Academic Health Science Centre, which is a unique partnership between Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, that aims to bring new therapies and treatments to patients much more quickly than ever before.

The project is the largest construction contract ever placed by Imperial College London, and is being built on the site of an old hospital building, which was demolished to make way for the new development.

Researchers and clinicians from the college and the trust will be working together in the new facility to develop better therapies for conditions such as heart failure, artery disease, arthritis, diabetes and obesity.

The new building will include one of Europe’s largest cardiovascular research facilities and will provide the headquarters for the British Heart Foundation Centre of Research Excellence at Imperial. Three hundred cardiovascular ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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scientists and physicians will occupy three floors of laboratories and offices, exploring areas including how to harness stem cells to combat heart attacks and heart failure. Heart and circulatory disease is the leading cause of death in the UK. The ground floor of the new building will be devoted to a new Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Facility. Here, patients from the adjacent hospital facilities at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and beyond, and healthy volunteers, will take part in studies to better understand disease processes and develop and evaluate new treatments for health problems.

Researchers will use a new imaging unit on the lower ground floor of the building to scan patients and volunteers, to explore how effective different therapies are and to analyse how different diseases are working in the body. This Translational Medicine Imaging Unit will include a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner and a positron emission tomography (PET) CT scanner.

On another floor, experts from the Medical Research Council Clinical Sciences Centre will be looking at the genetic variations involved in conditions such as arthritis, diabetes and obesity, in order to explore new ways of preventing and treating these conditions.

The project was launched by Sir Roy Anderson who said: “We will have a new building specifically designed to encourage the translation of research findings into benefits for patients. It will enable us to bring a critical mass of scientists, clinicians and patients under one roof, focusing on major health challenges in many areas and in particular cardiovascular medicine.

“I am very proud that Imperial has led the way in bringing the concept of the academic health science centre to the UK. It is a very different approach to university-hospital partnerships in this country. At its heart is the desire to sweep away the barriers

between the two and move exciting new medical findings quickly from the laboratory to the hospital ward. Our new facility will play a key part in this,” added Sir Roy. The finished building will form part of Imperial College’s wider Academic Health Science Centre. Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust chairman Lord Tugendhat said the new centre represented one of the largest investments ever made in Europe into translating new medical research into therapies for patients.

“The new facility will house hundreds of scientists and clinicians working together to tackle some of the most serious health challenges we face,” he said.

“Our unique partnership will pave the way for new discoveries and treatments to be translated into better patient care and outcomes quicker than ever before.”

Bovis Lend Lease is one of the world’s leading project management and construction companies operating in more than 30 countries worldwide and employing over 7,500 people.

Using industry best practices, the company work with clients to create high quality, sustainable property assets and are committed to operating incident and injury wherever they have a presence.

Their operations span six continents, with regional businesses in the United Kingdom and Ireland; continental Europe, the Middle East and Africa; Asia; Australia; Latin America and the Caribbean; and the United States.

Across these regions, the company hold strong market positions in the commercial, retail, residential, industrial and pharmaceutical sectors and also work closely with governments to deliver health, education and defence projects, amongst others.

Flashy new urban space to add to Covent Garden’s pulling power St Martin’s Courtyard, WC2, is London’s newest shopping and lifestyle destination with 25 shops creating a new urban village for the discerning shopper.

This mixed use scheme offers retail and restaurants alongside premium offices and residential apartments and is rapidly approaching full completion.

Located in the heart of Covent Garden, within reach of Leicester Square and Covent Garden underground stations, which are both within a short walking distance, the two acre mixed use development fronts Long Acre and is bordered by Upper St Martin’s Lane, Mercer Street and Shelton Street. St Pancras International, Kings Cross, Charing Cross and Waterloo rail stations also close by.

Leicester Square and Covent Garden underground stations are both within short walking distance of the scheme, which will house 25 shops totalling 70,000 sq ft, 5 restaurants totalling 29,000 sq ft, 70,000 sq ft of premium office space and 37 luxury residential apartments.

Shopping Phase one has now been completed and provides retail units fronting Long Acre. The first signings are to Banana Republic, COS, Massimo Dutti, Jack Wills, Hoss Intropia and the new concept from David Morris, Time². There are an additional two stores on Long Acre to be let out in the near future. The courtyard will provide smaller retail units and a space to relax and enjoy alfresco dining.

There are small boutiques within the courtyard providing a vibrant and unique mix of fashion, accessories and beauty retailers which will be handpicked to attract the style conscious customer.

St Martin’s Courtyard is ideally located within Covent Garden, complementing the eclectic mix of fashion to be found in neighbouring Seven Dials, Neal Street and Covent Garden

Piazza. High profile retailers in the immediate vicinity include Paul Smith, Reiss, H&M, Ted Baker and Replay.

Eating St Martin’s Courtyard houses new restaurant units totalling 29,000 sq ft. Fronting onto Upper St Martin’s Lane or overlooking ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t the courtyard, all feature external seating perfect for al fresco dining (subject to licensing where applicable). The first restaurant signings include the West End flagship of Jamie Oliver’s, Jamie’s Italian, high end Mexican concept restaurant Cantina Laredo, and London’s first Bombay city cafe, Dishoom. There are two further restaurant units available for future letting.

St Martin’s Courtyard is in the covetable position of being both in the centre of ‘Theatreland’ and in close proximity to iconic restaurants, The Ivy and L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon.

Working St Martin’s Courtyard development provides 70,000 sq ft of premium office space located in the heart of Covent Garden.

The offices effortlessly combine high specification with stylish design, featuring decked terraces, floor to ceiling windows and views over the stunning courtyard.

Bespoke reception areas off the central courtyard lead to the bright and contemporary office space in a range of sizes. St Martin’s Courtyard offices can cater for both the smaller occupiers and those requiring multiple floors or a self contained building. The largest office building has been signed to professional recruitment consultants, Robert Walters. The offices will be available to occupy by summer 2010.

Living 37 luxury residential apartments will be available as part of this mixed use scheme, offering urban village life in central London.

Apartments available include studio, one and two bedrooms together with stunning penthouses. A majority of the apartments have outside terraces, winter gardens or balconies. Green roofs and green walls are also incorporated. All flats have open plan kitchens and studio flats have special space saving kitchens.

About the Developers Permissions and Section 106 Obligations were negotiated and

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obtained in 2007 through Westminster City Council. Work has been carried out on behalf of Longmartin Properties Limited, which is 50% owned by Shaftesbury PLC, and has a long leasehold interest in the island site of almost two acres.

A team of contractors and consultants have lent their expertise to the phased regeneration and refurbishment of the area. Amongst them are architects M R Partnership and SCH Architects and main contractors Wates Construction and Killby & Gayford. The former was responsible for the first phase of the program, while Wates is taking care of the final three.

Clement Windows The bespoke steel windows installed on the project are typical of the work undertaken by Clement Windows of Haslemere, Surrey.

The Clement Group have been manufacturing steel windows for 100 years and their Part L compliant EB24 window, introduced 4 years ago, is much in demand on projects involving listed buildings and conservation areas.

The 80 EB24 windows have been installed direct to masonry, maximising solar gain. EB24 is an incredibly slim window whose fixed and opening steel sections can measure a total of 53mm when viewed from the outside, depending on the window pattern selected.

The polyester powder colour selected, a deep orange, blends perfectly with the special brickwork specified for this sensitive scheme.

The security system offered by EB24 is multi point locking and it complies with BS7950. The combination of the inherent strength of hot rolled steel and durable locking is one of the best means of preventing intrusion from the outside.

To learn more about the EB24 other products and services supplied by Clement Windows, visit www.clementwindows.org.uk

Construction News

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Perse building a better world for students

the school’s exams, while a new building is being constructed to house teaching facilities.

The structural composition of the new block is a mix of both concrete and a steel frame and the external façade is made up of vertically seamed zinc, curtain walling, Velfac windows and featured render.

The work, supervised

by QS Davis Langdon, and designed by architects Sheppard Robson, started at the end of March 2009 and is due to be completed by September this year.

The main contractor, RG Carter, is a member of the local authority’s Considerate Contractor Scheme, which means the following has been

The Perse Upper School is situated on an attractive 27 acre green field site just over 2 miles from the centre of Cambridge, and is currently overseeing a £7 million building project. The sports centre extension was finished at Christmas last year to be ready for

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taken into consideration: keeping construction teams separate from the pupils and ensuring pupil, staff and visitor safety.

The project manager from Arup, Alan Browne, is pleased with the progress made so far and states that “Our aim as a firm is captured by the phrase ‘We build a better world’”.

Contractors rise to the challenge of council’s flagship building Construction company Morgan Ashurst has overcome a series of complex construction challenges to deliver a £3.5 million flagship conference suite for Aylesbury Vale District Council.

The new building, located at the junction of Gatehouse Road and Bicester Road in Aylesbury, is used as a central meeting point for AVDC and is open to the community for meetings and events.

Morgan Ashurst handed over an elliptical building, which showcases a ‘floating feature roof’ with an oculus - a huge glass lens - placed on top to reflect natural light back into the building.

The suite, called The Oculus, has taken its name from this.

The new facility also features acoustically-designed timber veins across the internal walls, as well as a full-height atrium in the reception area. It is clad with zinc, with the external features in timber.

In addition, the building features a state-of-the-art audio visual rig which is suspended from the ceiling. All projectors and screens electrically drop down from this hub, with all wiring concealed inside.

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t Garbot Ltd

The building has a capacity for 140 people seated and can accommodate 440 standing. It has been fitted out with a public address system, a suspended audio rig which accommodates all the projectors, speakers and lighting, and a hearing loop system for people with hearing difficulties.

This design meant that Morgan Ashurst had to carry out a substantial amount of construction work at height, working around the AV rig to install the decorative timber slats, remote electric blinds for the windows and to carry out decoration.

“This is an extremely unusual building,” says Neil Dunbar, Morgan Ashurst project manager. “To have an elliptical building with timber slats, an oculus on top of the roof and this complex AV rig in the same project posed many challenges.

“We’re extremely proud that we delivered the ‘wow factor’ to the client on time and on budget.”

The new conference suite has also achieved a BREEAM rating of Very Good because its materials – timber, zinc and block work – are sustainable for the long term and have reduced whole lifecosts. The building has also passed rigorous acoustic and air quality tests.

Morgan Ashurst delivered the design and build project under the Improvement Efficiency South East (IESE) framework – a public sector initiative to upgrade schools and leisure facilities for 74 local authorities in the South East.

Garbot Ltd are proud to be associated with Morgan Ashurst on the AVDC project in their decoration work carried out in the council chambers. They have been associated with the company for over 21 years.

Garbot Limited is a successful family run company, established in 1989. They pride themselves on having an emphasis on quality and an attention to detail rarely found nowadays.

The company’s team of dedicated tradesmen have experience in all aspects of decorating and restoration, so that you can be assured that your job will always be finished to exceptionally high standards.

Garbot has restored and decorated listed buildings, churches and high specification new build properties. They have also won awards for the standard of their decorating.

The Garbot team are able to undertake all types of decorating work including specialist finishes, wallpapering and French polishing. Most of their contracts are centred on Knightsbridge, Kensington and Chelsea, Regent’s Park, Totteridge and the City of London, but they are happy to undertake work in other locations Garbot believe that their past customer’s comments speak for themselves. Their reputation has been achieved by their policy of using only experienced tradesmen and quality materials, and by the pride they take in the work that they carry out.

The company believe in the customer’s rights to expect work to be completed on time and to receive value for money.

They offer a free estimate service and are happy to advise on all manner of challenging projects.

Garbot are also working alongside Morgan Ashurst at Broxbourne Regional College, Hertford, due to commence works at the end of June.

Other projects on which Garbot have worked with Morgan Ashurst include a four-bedroom house and lodge at Totteridge Common; four villas in Regent’s Park; Hertford Regional Broxbourne College; student accommodation in Redmond Road and Bath Street and Dr Johnston’s buildings in Temple Fortune, London.

Other prestigious projects carried out by the company include those at St Paul’s cathedral; a National Trust scheme at Claydon House; Osterley House and projects at Hughendon Manor; St Mary’s Church Ealing and All Saints Church, Dulwich.

Luton schools prepare for the future Building Schools for the Future (BSF) is the single largest investment programme in education for over 50 years and aims to transform secondary education.

In Luton, the scheme led by main contractor Wates is making waves, as a massive programme of investment begins to pay dividends.

Amongst a number of schools benefiting from the BSF investment in the area, one in particular, Lea Manor High School, is witnessing the investment of a hefty chunk of cash. Many of the upgrades at Lea Manor are typical of the work done under the BSF banner.

The money spent at Lea Manor is broken down over five stages of investment. In the first, the school saw its science and design technology centres upgraded to provide more modern facilities.

Phase two, which is to be handed over in June, is the major part of the project and includes a new entrance and the relocation of communal areas, as well as construction of the largest theatre in the area to be shared with the public. In fact, making schools available to people other than staff, parents and students is a key element of the BSF program, which has as one of its objectives a

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mission to make schools part of their communities.

Further phases at Lea Manor involve refurbishing classrooms, kitchens and art and craft areas, covering open walkways and relocating a local public library to the school grounds – a further example of the school’s new links with the community.

Roger Lucas, BSF program manager for Luton, is enthused at the progress his team have been making: “Luton is like other areas on the outskirts of London in that there is a rapidly growing demand for places in decent schools, as well, of course, as other basic need provisions. Over the next ten years, there is a predicted 18% increase in the demand for places at schools like Lea Manor, and there will be a similar situation when it comes to primary schools. Migration is a factor, and Luton has one of the highest fertility rates in the UK. “The money we’ve invested from our budget is looking to have been spent extremely well, and I’m proud to have been a part of it. Partly as a result of the improvements that local schools are seeing, there has been a commitment from the council to invest even more money from its own budget, with a view to making our schools some of the best in the area. We could end up seeing

half a billion pounds spent around Luton, and I’m looking forward to seeing the area develop.”

Schools involved in Luton’s BSF programme will unveil their new facilities between 2011 and 2014, and are part of the third wave of fifteen set out by the former Labour government, which outlined plans to invest in all of the UK’s schools over the next decade.

Tactile Services As the industry leader in signage, Tactile Signs commits to helping customers to do the right thing in the best way. The company’s comprehensive range of services – from consultancy to fitting – provides everything a customer needs to comply with DDA legislation and open services to wheelchair users.

Tactile Signs are able to undertake complete surveys to assess requirements and can prepare a detailed walk-through report on a building with the recommended signage, its positioning and the price of supply and installation.

Learn more about the services Tactile Signs can offer by visiting www.tactilesignseurope.com

Multi-use auditorium will brighten Bury St. Edmunds A new £18 million auditorium known as The Apex is entering into the final stages of construction in Bury St. Edmunds.

The Apex will host a wide variety of events such as concerts, performances, exhibitions, wedding receptions, dinners, dances, conferences, seminars, markets and dance classes.

The modern multi-purpose auditorium with its two balconies and full backstage support facilities will be fully accessible and have a state-of-the art floor and seating system. This means it will be flexible enough to cater for a multitude of functions, including: • 500 people seated theatre style for performances and seminars • more than 700 standing for concert performances • up to 350 for dinner dances and wedding receptions • various conferencing set-ups Main contractors for the project are Haymills, part of VINCI UK, and St Edmundsbury Borough Council’s team is headed by ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t Mark Walsh, who spoke to Premier Construction: “Although there are a few things to finalise, we’re now moving relatively smoothly into the last stages of the project. This is actually the second phase of the works: the first phase being the shell and core of the building, completed by Taylor Woodrow Construction in 2009.

“The whole idea with the Apex is to have flexible space. That applies to the whole building, not just the performance space.

The rooms at the back can be used as green rooms, conference rooms or breakout spaces and the dressing rooms can be used for other purposes too if required.

“As for the performance space, the seating at ground floor level is designed to be movable and configured in different formats for various kinds of shows and exhibitions. This is aided by a clever pit lift arrangement where 2 sections of moving floor create the different set-ups.

Mark also spoke highly of the design and construction team: “We’ve managed to appoint some of the most respected people available in their various fields to work on the project, including the architects, Hopkins, who are internationally renowned.

“We’ve been impressed with our contractor Haymills who have shown a real care and understanding for the quality of the

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New pumping station protects fragile wetland A team composed of the Environment Agency and main contractors Jackson Civil Engineering has successfully completed work on a pumping

station which will protect a vulnerable area of wetland and the flora and fauna that thrive within it.

The project, known as the Welmore Lake Sluice Pump Improvements Scheme took approximately six months to complete and leaves the area known as the Ouse Washes, in Cambridgeshire, in a much better state. There

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finishes in the building specified by Hopkins Architects.

“The acoustic treatment of the building has been specified by acoustician Carl Giegold, who has worked on a long list of prestigious projects. Part of the final stage of the scheme will be a “hard hat concert” put on for people who’ve worked on the project, and Carl will use that to fine tune his acoustic settings before we begin to use the space for commercial events”.

Practical completion will be reached by early August, with final set-ups and adjustments being made thereafter. The Apex will be used for small events until the New Year, by which time it is expected to be fully operational.

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are large numbers of birds who make their home in the area, and many of these birds are becoming increasingly rare.

Previously, temporary diesel pumps were brought in on a regular basis to discharge excess water. Over a typical winter, three pumps would operate constantly and contribute significantly to carbon emissions.

Jackson’s framework contract has resulted in a permanent station with an upgraded electricity supply, which, it is hoped, will remove the need for extensive alterations to the area for the foreseeable future.

Ryan Ely, a technical specialist from the Environment Agency, oversaw the project. He told Premier Construction, “This project continues our relationship with Jackson, which has already been established over a number of projects. The key to their success is efficiency and health and safety.

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“Over a very harsh winter, the team of around eight people based permanently at the site had to display a lot of skill and professionalism. I’ve been here for ten years and, for me, that’s the key to a successfully completed job. Work like this – civil engineering that maintains our environment – is an ongoing commitment. I’m hoping that the work we undertake in the future will be completed in the same skilled and professional way”.

More new build at Segro’s Farnborough site Segro are in the midst of an expansive project at Farnborough Business Park, known as IQ Farnborough and located at the site of the former Royal Aircraft Establishment.

The latest development at the site is a new 21,000 m2 office space. The campus-style complex consists of four buildings constructed to Grade A specification, and will ultimately house over 1,600 staff.

The Fortune 500 Company Fluor had searched for a new UK headquarters for 18 months before finding the unrivalled business and lifestyle offering at IQ, and has pre-let the facility, which is accompanied by a 7-storey car park.

The building cost is over £50 million, and has been handed over in phases to Fluor. A new mile-long access road to the south of the 125-acre site, has also been completed and the projects are the expert work of main contractors Carillion and Volker Fitzpatrick respectively.

The new development comes as the latest piece of the 10-year puzzle at IQ Farnborough, where several large buildings have already been completed, and plans for many more are in the pipeline.

Development manager Graeme Steer, who has been using his 15 years of experience with Segro to good effect during the scheme, spared a few moments of his sought-after time to speak to Premier Construction: “The challenge in the latest new build was to follow a tight build program. We started in earnest in January 2009 and managed to complete by early June 2010, which is a considerable

achievement given the scale.

“We’ve selected contractors according to how they best suit our needs, and we feel we’ve chosen experts in Carillion, who’ve completed all the office buildings at the site so far”.

Much is made of IQ Farnborough’s transport links, as nearby motorway junctions link the site, via the M3, to the M25, and then by extension to London and its airports. The business park is served by two shuttle buses that link it to Farnborough’s two train stations, from which point London Waterloo is only 37 minutes away.

Graeme had this to say about transport: “Naturally, I often move back and forth between locations, and I can gladly confirm that what they say is true – I’ve had no trouble getting here by both car and train, and I’ve often managed to make London meetings in about an hour, so it’s a great location in that respect.”

The aim at IQ Farnborough is to transform the original site by both incorporating the existing buildings and its past usage with a modern day business environment. In 2004, permission was granted to refurbish a series of wind tunnels and The Hub. The Hub, formally known as the Weapons Testing Building, has been fully restored and converted to now form the main heart of the Park, whilst The Square, an iconic focal point, was designed to incorporate an impressive fully restored aircraft hangar measuring 70 ft high.

English Heritage has granted five of the buildings listed heritage status, two of which are Grade 1 listed.

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£363 million rail extension soon to come on line As part of Transport for London’s £10bn Investment Programme, the East London Line, part of the London Overground Network, is being extended and will open in 2010 as the East London Railway.

The £363 million project, which is the first of two phases, extends the original East London Line to Dalston Junction in the North and New Cross Crystal Palace and West Croydon in the South and will connect many communities to the network for the first time, supporting the regeneration of some of London’s poorest boroughs.

The contract is being carried out for Transport for London in a 50/50 joint venture between Balfour Beatty Rail Projects, Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering and Carillion.

The East London Line project involves railway works including track, signalling, telecommunications and electrification, and major civil engineering works including the construction of four large new bridges, new stations and a new depot at New Cross Gate.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson said: “The new East London Line, which will open later this year as part of the London Overground network, will radically transform access to the transport system for many thousands of people across the capital.

“The gleaming new edifice at Shoreditch High Street is just one example of what £1bn of good investment produces, and will be complemented by further fantastic new stations dotted through Hackney, six refurbished stations on the southern part of the route, as well as a fleet of new state of the art trains.

“The project will mean shorter and more enjoyable journeys, less congestion, and will support regeneration up and down the line.

‘It demonstrates clearly why investment in our transport network is so important.’

TfL London Rail’s Managing Director, Ian Brown, said: ‘The East London Line is about putting places on the Tube map which up until now will have had no regular rail connections - places like Hackney, which on the day the line opens will receive four new

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stations in one fell swoop.

“This will bring hundreds of thousands of people quick and convenient access to the Capital’s wider integrated transport network.

“In a year’s time, the East London Line will be connected to the wider London Overground network in the north at Canonbury and a year after that, it will loop from Surrey Quays across to Clapham Junction to give passengers access to London’s first orbital railway.’

Speaking at the start of the project, Carillion Chief Executive John McDonough said, “We are delighted to have been selected for this project, which is the cornerstone of Transport for London and the Mayor’s £10 billion investment programme to give London a 21st century transport system.”

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A40 upgraded in boost to Welsh traffic flow A scheme is under development to improve a 9km stretch of the A40 between Penblewin and Slebach Park in Pembrokeshire to single carriageway standard.

Between Penblewin and Slebech Park, the road had been suffering from a number of problems, including community severance in Robeston Wathen, a substandard alignment, a large number of accesses and junctions, a lack of safe overtaking opportunities and a poor accident record, especially in Robeston Wathen and near Canaston Bridge.

There was also a lack of crossing facilities across the A40 for pedestrians, equestrians and cyclists using the existing network of paths in the Canaston Bridge area.

These problems would have increased if traffic flows continue to grow at the present rate.

The A40 Trunk Road Penblewin to Slebech Park improvement scheme, which incorporates

the preferred route for the Robeston Wathen Bypass that was published in 1996, removes through traffic from the village of Robeston Wathen, removing the effects of It also provides safer overtaking opportunities in both eastbound and westbound directions and new public rights of way provide safe crossing facilities for pedestrians, cyclists and equestrians.

A wide range of measures have been taken to limit the impact of noise and vibration on locals, and developers have gone to great lengths to ensure that the environment remains unharmed by construction and use of the road. To illustrate, there have even been ‘otter ledges’ installed to

Multi-million pound boost to university teaching accommodation

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allow the significant creatures to pass bridges unharmed by traffic.

Main contractor Costain is to thank for the £30 million scheme of improvements carried out on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government. Work is expected to be complete later this year.

The project also includes the construction of a 20,000 sq ft twostorey science laboratory building to the rear of the refurbished school. The new building has been constructed on the former site of two old wooden classroom buildings, which were demolished.

The building incorporates science and research laboratories on both floors and is highly serviced, including mechanical ventilation, fume extraction, specialist lighting and power supplies.

A £10m project comprising a combination of new build and the refurbishment has created a second campus which has been merged with the University of Glamorgan’s original campus at Glyntaff.

Main Contractors were Interserve Project Services; Architects were Boyes Rees; Cost Controllers and Project Managers were RPA; Structural Engineers were NJ Partnership and Mechanical and Electrical Services Engineers were McCann & Partners.

The scheme involved the refurbishment of a former girls’ grammar school and the construction of a new science laboratory building.

The former grammar school building, constructed in the 1920s, has been refurbished, restored and adapted for use by the University’s Faculty of Health, Sport and Sciences. The two-storey building, measuring approximately 50,000 sq ft, is constructed in red brick in a baroque-influenced style.

“We have tried to carry out the work sensitively by retaining many of the original features of the building such as the parquet flooring and other internal features including original doors, architraves and ironmongery, as well as ceramic wall tiles. The overall aim was to restore the building to its original appearance and retain as many of the internal structural walls as possible”, said Alan Woodruff of the University of Glamorgan.

Works to the building include the removal of relatively modern partitioning to give the interior a more spacious feel, as well as the renewal, replacement and refurbishment of building services, as required. The existing windows have been refurbished and general pointing and cleaning has been carried out on the external elevations, as well as structural repairs and some re-roofing.

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Wa l e s The building is of traditional construction with brick external elevations, aluminium framed windows and a flat roof. Glazed finials along two of the facades depict various shades of litmus paper, reflecting the use of the building.

External works on the scheme involved the construction of a new access road onto the site which required considerable excavation and re-routing of service ducts.

Alan Woodruff said: “We are very pleased with the building. The project reflects the largest single investment in sciences that has been undertaken in Wales for some time.”

Joyner PA Cymru Ltd Joyner were to thank for a range of works on the project, from its steel frame to its cladding and rendering.

Rob Newell, the firm’s contracts director, told Premier Construction, “I’ve taken pride in our no nonsense approach to this project. The client has been, as our clients always are, fully confident of our ability to get our job done, no matter how dirty we have to get our hands!

“We’re a determined and versatile company with a reputation for quality, and we’ve worked on large projects with most of the UK’s major contractors, whilst still being able to do Mrs Jones’ extension!

Joyner Group commenced as a specialist service provider to the construction industry during 1982. The Group has now developed into a leading contractor, and operates across Wales and England, maintaining bases in both regions.

Find out more about the award-winning company and its services at www. joynergroup.co.uk

New government HQ with a strong Welsh accent A prestigious £20m project to construct the new North Wales headquarters for the Welsh Assembly Government is nearing completion at Llandudno Junction, with the new building reflecting the area through the use of locally sourced materials.

Built under JCT Design and Build contract, the new building will provide approximately 8,800sqm of office space, and will be able accommodate up to 650 staff from existing posts from in and around the North Wales region, posts relocating from Cardiff and some new positions created to support the office function.

It is not the intention to fill the office to capacity from the outset, but to allow room for the business to expand.

Internally, the layout of the new headquarters features an open plan floor area to accommodate 520 workstations, a reception area, meeting rooms, conference facilities, breakout areas and Y Bont, a dedicated public space providing direct access to the Welsh Assembly Government. The building straddles an existing embankment with two-storey accommodation on the upper terrace and three-storeys to the lower.

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The building design utilises many local materials, with the cladding being predominately natural Welsh slate and folded copper. Local slate from Penrhyn Quarry, Bethesda, was used to clad the external walls and Pwllheli company, Cerrig fitted the slate on site. Cerrig also worked on the slate beforehand, including polishing and shaping it.

Where possible, Pochin Construction Ltd used local labour. To date the value committed locally is over £8.7m. The percentage of local labour employed on site throughout the project stands at over 50%. Over £400k of contracts has been awarded to local companies as a direct consequence of the Meet the Buyer event held in January 2009 hosted jointly by Pochin and the Welsh Assembly Government.

Specific security and bomb blast requirements have also been incorporated into the design of the building, which has been awarded a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating and incorporates a biomass boiler, grey water recycling and a water feature cooling system.

Commenting on the project, the former First Minister for Wales

(2000 – 2009), Rt Hon. Rhodri Morgan has previously said: “The Welsh Assembly Government made the commitment that by 2010, new offices would be established in Merthyr Tydfil, Aberystwyth and Llandudno Junction, bringing the full breadth of Assembly Government services closer to the people of Wales.

“This new Welsh Assembly Government office is something the whole of North Wales can be proud of. With a design inspired by the area’s heritage and local slate used throughout, the Llandudno Junction office will be a striking building. It is being built to high environmental standards with features including natural light and ventilation, recycling rainwater and biomass heating. We are also committed to using local suppliers whenever possible,” Rhodri Morgan continued.

Richard Wilson, the Welsh Assembly Government’s programme director, had this to say about the project: “We selected Pochin for the project for the experience and value we saw they could offer. We requested that they pay attention to economic sustainability as part of their work. One way in which this was achieved was the ‘meet the buyer’ event we staged, for

local suppliers and contractors to meet and try to secure work.

The event led to £400,000 of contracts being awarded on this project alone, and led to more contracts being awarded on other local projects, so it turned out to be a success. £8.4 million has now been spent around the area.

“Another aspect of the project that gives me pride is the way in which we subjected the project to peer review. Demonstrations and open events were held to invite comment and constructive criticism of our working methods. It’s a process I strongly advocate, and one which is becoming more common. I personally invite robust criticism because if ever I’m unable, for example, to answer a question, it spurs me and my team on to improve our work”.

Managing Director of Pochin Construction, Jon Pochin echoed these positive sentiments: “From the outset of this project we have continually strived to ensure the scheme sits well within the community. This has included using locally sourced materials where possible, to organising community-based initiatives, such as inviting a group of local female students on site to encourage girls to become involved in construction skills. Our expertise in delivering complex buildings incorporating high levels of sustainable design and technology will provide an excellent platform for which to deliver a building the whole of North Wales can be proud of.”

Pochin Pochin is one of the UK’s leading names in construction and development, with a diverse range of skills and expertise across four divisions.

Since 1935, when the company was founded as a joinery firm in Manchester, Pochin has grown significantly and now work with clients and partners to supply specific services or total solutions.

The company’s services include design and build, along with traditional contracting, plus industrial, commercial and residential property development and concrete pumping.

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Successful partnership between Robertson Homes and West of Scotland Housing Asociation The development at Kings Park Drive in Ayr, known as the ‘Bakery Site’, is the result of a design & build contract with Robertson Homes in line with South Ayrshire Council’s Affordable Housing Policy. The association’s initial development of 32 homes will form part of the larger development by Robertson Homes to provide homes for outright sale.

In total, the site will provide 129 new homes, and the first phase entailed: • • • • • •

4 x 3 apartment 3 person Amenity Flats 8 x 3 apartment 3 person Mainstream Flats 8 x 3 apartment 3 person Mid Terrace Houses 7 x 3 apartment 4 person End Terrace & Semi Detached Houses 4 x 4 apartment 5 person End Terrace Houses 1 x 5 apartment 6 person Semi Detached Special Needs House

The development at Kings Park Drive is the Association’s first in partnership with Robertson Homes. The development started on site in April 2009 and was completed in January 2010.

The association has undergone successful discussions with Robertson Homes and the Scottish Government regarding a second phase of 21 units at Kings Park Drive. This second phase has received funding approval and will commence in the coming months.

A total of around £4 million will have been invested in the scheme by its completion, with funding provided from HAG and private sources.

About West of Scotland Housing Association West of Scotland Housing Association is one of the longest established social landlords in Scotland, established in 1965 with just under

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3,000 stock across Glasgow, North and South Lanarkshire and Ayrshire. The association is a provider of social rented homes across a spectrum of mainstream, amenity, sheltered and other special needs properties across all it’s areas of operation. It also delivers New Supply Shared Equity units and provides factoring services to approximately 400 privately owned properties. It has one of the largest RSL development programmes in Scotland which has allowed it to continue to grow in recent years.

World class! Glasgow’s new national sports arena and velodrome is a winner!

Glasgow’s impressive new National Indoor Sports Arena (NISA) and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, is under construction and will provide a facility that will host badminton and cycling at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

The NISA and velodrome - which will be one of the biggest indoor sports facilities of its type in Europe - is located on a 10.5 hectare site in the East End of Glasgow, close to Celtic Park and the new Commonwealth Games Athletes’ Village.

The Main Contractor for the NISA and Velodrome project is Sir Robert McApine, with the civil engineering works package being carried out by IH Brown. The project involves a total workforce of 200, including 20 new apprenticeship places.

The complex will be the principal new dedicated sports facility for the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, and will include Scotland’s first indoor velodrome, building on the celebrated successes of Sir Chris Hoy and other Scottish cyclists.

The facility will be a national training centre for athletics, basketball, netball, track cycling and volleyball, and will include Scotland’s first dedicated indoor velodrome, providing elite training and an international competition standard venue.

The indoor arena, which will host the badminton events during the Games, will have a flexible 5,000 seater events arena capable of staging international and world sporting events in a wide range of sports; a 200-metre athletics track; a 137-metre warm-up sprint straight; three sports halls and ancillary facilities

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including athletes team changing rooms, referee changing rooms, equipment storage, first aid and event control space.

The velodrome will have a permanent capacity for 2,000 seated and 500 standing spectators viewing the 250-metre cycle track, which will be increased to 4000 seats during the games for the track cycling events. Other facilities will include a 1.2-metre depressed track centre in concrete to be used for cycling competitions, or as a demountable roller sports park, or for court sports activities. Ancillary facilities will comprise cyclists and roller sport changing areas, cycle stores for the national squad, clubs and for general hire, a hire station and workshop, equipment stores and an event control space.

Minister for Sport Shona Robison said: “The Scottish Government, along with its partners, is committed to showcasing the best that Scotland has to offer by delivering

an outstanding Commonwealth Games. World class sporting facilities such as these will not only help to deliver a successful games in 2014 but provide opportunities for others to progress in sport for years to come.”

Mr Andrew McAlpine of Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd, said: “My company is delighted to be associated with this prestigious project which will benefit not only Glasgow, but the whole of Scotland. Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd has its roots in Scotland having been founded near Hamilton by my great great grandfather in 1869. Since then we are proud to have completed work on many notable projects including Hampden Park and Kelvin Hall, two wonderful Sports Arenas here in Glasgow. We look forward to playing our part in ensuring the success of the 2014 Commonwealth Games.”

Building work is due to be completed by late Spring in 2012.

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Scottish Water completes Glasgow improvements Scottish Water has completed the last and biggest of a scheme of three major projects which will help improve the waste water network and protect the natural environment in and around two burns in the East End of Glasgow.

The projects have been boosted by Scottish Water’s investment of around £3 million and will help to improve the waters of the Molendinar and Camlachie burns.

The final stage of the scheme is the work of main contractor Mackenzie Construction, and involved the installation of a new storm overflow in the car park area of the Forge Retail Park and the abandonment of a storm overflow in Camlachie Street.

More than £2 million of the funds went to the

Camlachie works, which provide improved screening and ensure greater dilution of spills into the Camlachie Burn under stormy conditions. Completed in spring this year, the works allow Scottish Water to comply with the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.

Associated works were carried out in existing storm overflows in Orr Street and Fordneuk Street, where the weirs on the storm overflows were raised to reduce storm spills and further improve the network’s performance.

The first two projects in the scheme, at Gallowgate, involved the closure of a storm overflow where waste water was spilled

Good progress on Scotland’s largest flood prevention scheme The first phase of Scotland’s largest flood prevention scheme is underway on White Cart Water, a tributary to the River Clyde.

The £50m scheme, being carried out for Glasgow City Council, is an ambitious project and a significant milestone in removing the threat of flooding to properties in the south side of Glasgow.

It will reduce the risk of flooding for around 1,750 homes and businesses, providing major long-term benefits to people in the south side of Glasgow. The project will also enable a range of environmental improvements along the White Cart Water corridor.

Contract 1 of the first phase involves the construction of three floodwater storage areas and is being carried out by Carillion.

Work started in February 2008, with planned completion in summer 2010.

The three flood water storage areas will each have earth embankments with a culvert running through. The embankments have a maximum height of 15m and each flood storage area has a design capacity of 2.6 cubic metres of water. 140,000 cubic metres of earthworks is being carried out to create the embankments. Flows of water to the flood storage areas will be controlled via Hydrobrakes. Work commenced in February 2008,

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unscreened into the Molendinar Burn and the installation of a new storm overflow with powered screen nearby.

The scheme is part of Scottish Water’s mission to improve watercourses throughout the Glasgow area.

with planned completion in summer 2010.

Contract 2 comprises the construction of 4.5km of flood defence walls and embankments and is being carried out by VolkerStevin.

“The project is currently making good progress and we hope to be finished on time. These first two contracts will provide protection to 95 per cent of the properties at risk,” said Mr. Sandy Gillon of Glasgow City Council.

Fettes-ching new homes in Inverleith CALA Homes has announced that it has started work on a new phase of homes at its East Fettes development. Located within the picturesque Inverleith area of Edinburgh, East Fettes offers a selection of contemporary two and three bedroom apartments and penthouses designed for luxury living on a site formerly occupied by dated and now demolished offices.

Set in over two acres of landscaped private grounds, East Fettes boasts an understated blend of modern contemporary architecture, excellent specification and stylish quality. With many apartments also enjoying views of the city skyline, this development offers an ideal opportunity for stylish home buyers.

East Fettes will be home to 84 units, comprising 12 town houses and 72 apartments, thanks to the scheme. The development offers contemporary 2 and 3 bedroom apartments and town houses with prices starting from £300,000. It also boasts an underground car park – a unique selling-point in Edinburgh city centre.

Safety is an important feature of the buildings. The car park is secure and is fitted with remote controlled electric gates.

There is a fire detection system in the car park, along with a CO extraction system. All of the stairwells to the apartments have smoke detectors fitted and a smoke extraction system installed.

What’s more, entry points to the apartments and the car park are secured by means of keypad/key fob operated video entry panels.

CALA Homes East Ltd have teamed up with Michael Laird Architects to bring the project to completion, and hope to see all the properties ready by September 2011.

Peter Hosie Peter Hosie Carpets supplied and fitted flooring to the East Fettes development – in show houses and flats, and for private clients.

The company supplied and fitted carpets and Spacia design flooring, working within individual budgets and site timescales to ensure the jobs were completed prior to occupation. Peter Hosie Carpets have also taken on all aspects of customer care through Cala Homes for the next two years at this development.

The flooring specialists have worked with Cala Homes on various developments in the east and west of Scotland over the past ten years.

Peter Hosie’s team of experienced and professional tradesmen take personal care when fitting any flooring, whether it is a small

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S c otl a n d bathroom or an entire house. Customer service is a top priority and all of the firm’s fitters are accredited with the Construction Skills Certificate Scheme.

Peter Hosie Carpets is one of Scotland’s leading suppliers to major house builders, providing quality flooring from an extensive product range and a fitting service that is second to none. Those same principles are applied to contracts with interior designers, private households, charitable organisations and commercial properties.

With over 50 years experience, the company specialises in carpets, Amtico, Spacia and Karndean design, border work, vinyl, laminate, solid and engineered wood flooring. Products are sourced from all leading suppliers to provide for all the client’s requirements.

For further information, call 0131 443 2099 or visit www. peterhosiecarpets.co.uk.

New school is designed with community spirit at its heart A new school, designed as a hub for the whole community, is under construction to replace the original Tinto Primary School building on the school’s original site at Nether Auldhouse Road, Pollokshaws, Glasgow.

The approximately £14.5 million project is being carried out for Glasgow City Council, Education Services.

Main Contractors are City Building Glasgow LLP; Lead Consultants are Anderson Bell + Christie; Project Managers are Glasgow City Council, Development and regeneration Services; Structural, Civil, Mechanical and Electrical Engineers are Jacobs; Quantity Surveyors are Reid Associates; CDM Co-coordinators are Scott Bennett Associates and Landscape Architects are Mike Hyatt Landscape Architects.

The new Tinto Primary School will be created from the amalgamation of the existing Tinto Primary School, Sir John Maxwell Primary School, Shawbridge Nursery School and Pollokshaws Day Nursery.

The school, which will house 507 pupils, will incorporate 16 classrooms, a new early years centre nursery facility for 85 full time equivalent 3-5 year old nursery children, 30 toddlers between the ages of two and three years and up to 15 infants.

The site’s location adjacent to an existing church provides the new school with the potential to be the catalyst for the creation of a new community ‘hub’. The design brief reinforces this, giving the potential for community use of the school’s assembly hall, artificial pitch and a number of classrooms during the evenings and weekends.

The project has been designed to provide a building which has presence and becomes a local landmark; which accommodates both teaching and community needs in a way that enhances the functioning of both. The building is planned to take cognisance of the differing security, presence and amenity needs of these two elements and resolve any potential conflicts in this regard.

The school has been designed as a key community building, reinforcing the urban structure but at the same time being a friendly place.

The building is set back from the busy Nether Auldhouse Road by the creation of a small new public space. This gives the building some breathing space at the main public entrance, lessens the impact of road noise and creates a civic sense of place.

A new community hub has been created by locating the community facilities, including the games hall, library and multi purpose classrooms - all of which will be available for use in the evenings and weekends - on the ground floor adjacent to the church and accessed from the public square. The classrooms are located with east-west orientation along Hillpark drive.

By placing the buildings around the urban edge, a sunny southfacing safe play courtyard is created with a variety of covered and open play spaces. The nursery is located to the south with its own dedicated play space. The existing site boundaries encourage the creation of a variety of interesting and extensively landscaped play spaces of different characters.

The project is due for completion in August 2010.

City Building (Glasgow) LLP was formed in 2006, evolving

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from the former Building Services Department of Glasgow City Council. Its new status, operating as an autonomous company and with its own board and managing director, enables the organisation to deliver quality construction services across the public and private sectors.

In addition to delivering many projects in their own right, City Building has already agreed several working partnership agreements with other major building contractors who wish to benefit from both the company’s expertise and their team of more than 2,000 full-time skilled professionals. The company welcomes the opportunity to work in partnership with organisations who share their commitment to developing people from all backgrounds and giving them the opportunity to help deliver excellent service across the nation.

City Building’s simple philosophy of ‘building better’, combined with their commitment to developing and promoting best practice, means that they will always be able to add value to building projects and work programmes. The company has extensive experience in the construction and design of primary schools and other educational projects, office and accommodation projects and housing association developments. And all of this delivered by their team of over 2,000 skilled professionals geared to ensuring that they exceed clients’ construction expectations.

City Building is involved in a diverse range of building projects and work programmes, such as the construction of new primary schools, sports, community and training facilities, residential and day care centres and new build housing.

They are also involved in the refurbishment of office accommodation, civic buildings and commercial retail outlets.

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Forging the missing link for Kirkintilloch The £18m 4.7km Kirkintilloch link road construction project lies at the heart of a £56m regeneration programme that is being taken forward by Kirkintilloch’s Initiative (KI), a partnership between East Dunbartonshire Council and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Now close to completion, the new road, which will run from Kirkintilloch town centre to Hornshill interchange at the M80 Stepps by-pass, will: link Kirkintilloch to Scotland’s motorway system for the first time; provide benefits to the local economy, jobs and businesses and a better quality of life and improve the environment and increase public safety by diverting heavy traffic away from residential areas and the existing Kirkintilloch/ Lenzie road. The project will also create a brand new area of wetland to protect and attract wildlife, including birds, fish, otters and water voles.

The project is being carried out by main contractor, Carillion Construction Ltd. Preparation work for the project included utility diversions and tree and plant clearing.

Following completion of the preparation works,

the contractor commenced the physical construction of the road. In addition to the construction of the single carriageway road, the works involve a considerable number of structures including three new roundabouts, a signal controlled junction, three over-bridges and three major culverts. Other works include alterations to two existing roundabouts on the route and the installation of collision protection to one of the masonry arches of a viaduct through which the road passes. The scheme also involves a significant amount of bulk earthwork including cuttings of up to 9m deep, as well as the creation of embankments.

The extension of an area of wetland to support local species is also being carried out to compensate for an area of wetland that was lost to the new road.

Duncan Hamilton of the Kirkintilloch Initiative said: “The contractor has made very good

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progress in terms of the construction of a number of the structures and is also now applying significant resources to the bulk earthworks.”

Commenting on the contract, East Dunbartonshire Depute Council Leader and KI Board Member, Billy Hendry, added: “The link road has always been a central part of the multi-million pound regeneration programme.

Its construction is central to the delivery of many of the other proposed projects and will boost business and tourism in the area.”

Glasgow’s nautical heritage welcomes investment New Campus Glasgow is developing plans to create a new £300 million city centre learning quarter: one integrated campus on 2 sites for the 40,000 students with 1,500 staff of Central, Metropolitan, Nautical and Stow Colleges.

As part of the early phase of this large scale development a new Marine Skills Centre, a striking hybrid building (on land and in the river), has just been completed on the banks of the river Clyde.

It will improve existing facilities, meet the teaching requirements for Merchant Navy personnel and fit with the New Campus Glasgow development plan.

The new facilities comprise state of the art classrooms and specialist marine and launch facilities, including a pontoon and free fall life raft structure for practical teaching purposes.

New Campus Glasgow has awarded a contract to main contractor C Spencer Ltd, and work began on the £5.6million project in June 2009.

Programme Director Iain Marley took time out of his busy schedule to talk to Premier Construction: “The team has been making good progress under a challenging technical project, and I’m proud to say that we’ve delivered outstanding facilities on time and within budget and

achieved excellent value for money. This scheme is part of a wider regeneration of the Clyde, and the area, including the educational facilities, are becoming more accessible to the public.

“I always say that before you begin a project like this, it’s important to consult widely and early. In this case, once locals saw the benefit of the program and our vision to create a more ‘permeable’ campus, that coupled with the respect people already have for the colleges has put local communities firmly behind our project.

“I’m very enthusiastic about what we’re achieving here. I like to see this as an example of what can be done to improve both education and environment, and I am sure the facilities that are being delivered through our wider programme will continue to deliver a high quality learning environment and improve the city’s public realm”.

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New tenants to occupy sought-after Glasgow location Tesco Bank is set to move into a new customer service centre in Glasgow. The office will be based at Broadway One in central Glasgow and will manage customer sales and service for Tesco Bank’s banking products: savings, credit cards and loans.

Jenny Wilkinson, Tesco Bank Personnel Director, commented: “When we made the decision to locate our new office in Glasgow, we did so based on a confidence in the talent pool available in and around the city. The applications so far have proved that there is a very capable workforce with significant depth of experience which will ultimately help us to offer high levels of customer service.”

Broadway One has achieved a ‘Very Good’ BREEAM environmental rating. The building was completed last year and the recent fit-out for Tesco Bank has been completed by a team led by main contractors George Sharkey & Sons.

Tesco Bank has taken a 20 year lease as the sole occupier of the sleek new 125,000 sq. ft. building on Renfield Street, Glasgow.

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Workers will benefit from a range of important installations:

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150mm raised access floor.

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Four pipe fan coil system for efficient climate control.

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Occupational design density of 1 person per 7.5 sq m.

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Diversely routed resilient telecom provision with multiple incoming containment ducting.

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Full DDA compliance and access to all floors.

Metal suspended ceiling system with recessed low energy LG7 high frequency light fittings providing up to 500 lux at desk height.

High quality male, female and accessible toilet facilities on each floor.

Male/female and disabled provided on every floor.

person

shower

facilities

Secure basement car parking for 65 cars.

About Tesco Bank Tesco Bank is the UK’s largest supermarket bank. Since its launch in 1997, the enterprise has grown to have six million customer accounts across 28 financial products and services.

The company’s principal activities are: general insurance motor, home, pet and travel; credit cards and personal loans; personal savings; Tesco Compare and a network of cash machines.

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New £70 Million Ayr Campus One Step Closer Following Topping Out Ceremony University of the West of Scotland’s new £70 million Ayr Campus has entered the final phase of development, with a topping out ceremony taking place at the new campus site on 4 June 2010.

The ceremony marked the structural completion of the new 18,000m2 campus by project contractor Raynesway Construction, appointed by Bovis Lend Lease UK. The campus is being developed by University of

the West of Scotland (UWS) in partnership with Scottish Agricultural College (SAC) and is situated on the Craigie Estate, next to the River Ayr. Planned and designed by leading Scottishbased architects RMJM, and part-funded by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC), the development will see SAC joining UWS on the site. Shared facilities will include teaching and learning spaces, gym, refectory, library and computing labs.

The new Campus is part of the University’s £250million development programme and replaces its existing campus on the edge of the estate. It will create an innovative learning environment for over 4000 students.

South Ayrshire Council Provost Winifred Sloan said: “I am positive that having such an environmentally friendly building, with up to the minute facilities located in such pleasant surroundings will encourage increased numbers

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of students to apply to study there. In turn many of these students may decide once they graduate to live and work in Ayr or South Ayrshire, which will bring economic benefits to the area.”

University of the West of Scotland, Scotland’s biggest modern university, caters for almost 20,000 students and 2,000 staff with campuses in Ayr, Dumfries, Hamilton and Paisley. The University’s new campus is scheduled for opening in September 2011.

Chalmers Hospital extended and upgraded Work has started on site for the £9m refurbishment and conversion of the listed Victorian hospital and an extensive new build extension to form new state-ofthe-art genito-urinary medicine and family planning clinics for NHS Lothian.

JM Architects are the lead consultants responsible for the design and taking the project forward. The Main Contractor is Ogilvie Construction.

The new development is formed by refurbishing the original hospital structure and included the demolition of out of date accommodation to the rear of the building. A purpose built new extension has been formed and this houses state of the art clinical service facilities and benefits from a glazed atrium that links and compliments the two buildings.

The atrium allows several technical and aesthetic issues to be overcome in placing the new building against the historic building. It is also a cost effective method of construction and, ultimately, is designed to reduce overall fabric heat losses from the development. The new extension complements the existing building, with a smooth transition from one to the other.

Currently, work is progressing well and the mechanical and electrical services installations are reaching an advanced stage in the Chalmers building. The steel frame of the new extension is completed and the floor decking is being installed to create the appropriate floor levels.

NHS Lothian’s David Brown spoke to Premier Construction: “The extension roof has a green sedum roof and the building will also have solar panels installed to meet energy efficiency requirements associated with the water services which is representative of NHS Lothian’s policy of making all construction projects as green as possible. In the 29 years I have been involved

in capital projects there have been many improvements in respect of infection control, disability and access requirements and the projects now involve considerable input from patient groups.

In summary the key changes are to strive for environmentally and sustainable buildings which are user friendly and meet the service demands of modern healthcare provision. This project is an exciting opportunity to meet those aims”.

Work on the hospital is expected to be completed during 2011, when the new sexual health clinic will open.

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Rathcoole estate background Rathcoole estate is one of the largest housing areas in western Europe, built by the former Northern Ireland Housing Trust initially to tackle housing conditions that existed in post war Belfast. The estate was built in a number of phases from 1953 to early 1970s and at its peak included almost 4,000 homes, with accommodation ranging from 2 storey houses to medium rise deck access accommodation and high rise flats (four blocks).

A popular estate in the 1950s and 1960s, the estate suffered

from problems associated with The Troubles and, during the next two decades, demand for housing fell dramatically and the level of vacant properties increased.

In 1991, the Housing Executive’s Board approved a major Strategy for Rathcoole, at an estimated £30 million, to regenerate the estate. Implementation of the strategy since then has seen a dramatic transformation, through a combination of selective demolition, mainly of non traditional stock together with programmes of major refurbishment and environmental improvement.

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I re l a n d The strategy included addressing problems associated with the four blocks of high rise flats located close to The Diamond, the heart of the estate. An innovative project completed in 1997 created a defined space around the four blocks, identifying them as a single complex, Bradan Court. This project included the construction of reception building, a base for concierge staff who control entry to the blocks 24/7.

Over the years, the flats have also benefited from external maintenance and Health and Safety projects.

Glencoole House Contract Glencoole House is one of the four blocks of 15 storey high rise flats in Rathcoole in the area known as Bradan Court. Glencoole House currently contains 72 flats, amongst which are 58 twobedrooms and 14 bedsits, and the building is served by 2 lifts.

Housing Executive plans include a major programme of refurbishment for all four blocks, as funding permits. The current contract is the first phase of this programme.

After a rigorous selection process based on Egan principles, which included a quality submission as an integral part of the tendering process, as well as a clear demonstration of value for money, the framework contract for this project has been awarded to Bann Ltd. On successful delivery of the work to the first block, Bann Ltd will retain the contract for the other blocks within the complex.

Key aspects of the Egan approach are partnership working and customer satisfaction. This is of particular significance when the extent of work is considerable and complex, and requires occupiers to be temporarily relocated while work is carried out.

The relocation of the tenants of Glencoole House is largely being achieved through use of existing stock, held for this purpose, in the Rathcoole estate.

Consultation with residents has been a vital part in the planning stages of the contract, involving both the Housing Executive and Bann Ltd, and will continue as work progresses.

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The tenants have been consulted by Bann Ltd’s Tenant Liaison Officer, Pauline Nevin, and Housing Executive housing management prior to decanting to their temporary addresses, and further consultation is currently ongoing to allow the tenants to choose their new kitchens, worktops and flooring.

Bann Ltd have worked in the Social Housing Sector for almost 30 years. Over time they have established a highly trained management team and workforce who understand the unique requirement of the social housing sector. In partnership with the Housing Executive, they are providing a customer focussed service to the Housing Executive tenants on NEC3 framework contracts in the South Region for all revenue replacement and external cyclic maintenance works and now at Bradan Court, Rathcoole.

Main elements of the contract include:

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•

Designing out the 14 unpopular bedsits and utilising the space to increase floor space in adjoining flats Internal rearrangement to improve space/layout and storage New kitchens and bathrooms and woodwork Installation of double glazed windows and new heating systems in each flat Upgrading health and safety standards in individual flats and in communal areas within the block. This will include: hard wired smoke detectors in each flat with battery backup; a new automatic detection fire alarm system for monitoring from the Concierge station; additional emergency lighting in communal areas; installation of new lifts; improvements to door entry systems and installation of automatic smoke ventilators Upgrading plumbing and electrical services

Current Status Given the extent of the work, the first part of the contract involved

relocating all residents to temporary addresses, including carrying out some work to properties being used for this purpose in the estate. This aspect of the contract has been completed, as has an asbestos survey and any necessary follow up action.

Improvement work is now in progress in the block, both internally and externally, with the new windows currently being installed by Radbury of Ayr, who specialise in fitting windows in high rise blocks throughout the United Kingdom. The project team on site are engaged as partners with Bann Ltd and have long term partnering experience with Bann Ltd on similar social housing programmes. Bann Ltd are committed to the principles of partnering and believe that working in partnership in an open and transparent way, in a spirit of mutual understanding and trust, ensures that the client achieves a high quality of service and product for their tenants.

Indaver making progress at Meath site Indaver is constructing a Waste-to-Energy facility in Duleek, Co. Meath. The development is valued at €130 million, and represents the largest ever single investment in solid waste management infrastructure in Ireland.

Indaver’s Meath facility will use the most advanced technology to process 200,000 tonnes of waste annually, generating enough energy to meet the needs of 20,000 homes.

As part of the project, Indaver Ireland has awarded Babcock &

Wilcox Vølund the contract to develop and supply its waste-toenergy technologies. B&W Vølund are collaborating with thermal engineering specialists Wellman Hunt Graham on the scheme.

The Meath plant is the first project contract that B & W Vølund has been awarded in Ireland. The project will be a show case for the company’s dedicated R&D efforts that have resulted in probably the world’s best waste-to-energy conversion technology.

“We see the Meath facility as an important breakthrough in Ireland for this environmentally friendly technology as a competitive and efficient alternative to conventional energy production,” says Mr Peter Laursen, Department Manager at B & W Vølund.

B & W Vølund’s project manager, Henrik Pagh, spoke to Premier Construction about his work on the site: “Final handover is in September and we’re on schedule, having got started on site slightly earlier than expected.

“The incinerator we’re installing is a standard model of ours,

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I re l a n d and it’s our latest and most modern design. It’s an impressive model, and it can incinerate up to 27 tons of waste per hour. It reaches temperatures of around 400°C and pressures of around 43 bar.

“Only 2% of what goes in is left as waste, and even that can be recycled and used in the concrete industry, so it’s a much better solution than landfill.

Asked about his experience of working in Ireland, Henrik replied, “There’s a much bigger focus on health and safety in Ireland than in Denmark, but the communication is so good on this project that there have been no delays. There certainly haven’t been any accidents, either!”

Swift progress continues on the site and the main structures visible at the moment include the walls of the waste holding area or bunker and the walls of the main building. Tree planting and shrub planting is ongoing and will continue for the coming months.

John Sisk and Son continue their successon the site, having been awarded the civil, structural and architectural contract for the main phase. The coming months will also see the on-site assembly of large energy recovery equipment. Residual waste will be accepted into the facility as of 2011.

Energy from Waste Under the European Waste Framework Directive and the Landfill Directive, Ireland is committed to recycling a large proportion of its waste. A residual fraction, however, or ‘black bin’ waste remains, which is unsuitable for recycling and is currently disposed of to landfill. Ireland is also committed under these European Directives to recovering as much residual waste as practically possible prior to final disposal.

Waste-to-energy provides a sustainable way of managing residual waste. Waste-to-energy technology is already playing a key role throughout the European Union. Every year, over 300 plants convert almost 50 million tonnes of waste into renewable energy and provide an alternative to fossil fuels.

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Schmidt & Danielsen A/S Schmidt & Danielsen supplied the whole of the plant’s refractory lining: around 300 m² of air cooled Tiles (JYSYS AIR), 200 m² of Low Cement Castable on the boiler walls and casting various parts (Slag Cute, Ash Tray, Casing Boxes). It gives in all a total of 200 tons of refractory materials.

The company has a long-standing relationship with B&W Vølund and the two have combined to install factory linings to a range of facilities across Europe. Schmidt & Danielsen have over 50 years’ experience in working with waste incinerators, and the sector represents half of the company’s turnover.

Schmidt & Danielsen is a highly specialised company with extensive experience in waste-fired heating plants and combined heat and power plants, and in masonry for crematory incinerators in both Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries.

The company is adept at building thermal and regenerative flue gas-cleaning incinerators, as well as refractory structures both for new systems and for servicing existing ones.

For more information about the Danish company’s products and services, visit www.schmidt-danielsen.dk

Belfast is Streets Ahead The Belfast Streets Ahead scheme, a £28million project, is currently transforming 14 of the main streets in Belfast City Centre, in a project led by the Northern Ireland Department for Social Development.

Since the commencement of the construction works, main contractor Farrans (Construction) Ltd have worked to minimise inconvenience to traders, shoppers and visitors in the affected streets. Farrans recently won an award for their work on the scheme. The national Silver award, from the Considerate Constructors Scheme, is in recognition of the high standards of consideration towards the general public, the environment, local stakeholders and the Farrans workforce during phase one of the project.

Speaking after the awards ceremony, John McReynolds, Farrans’ Contracts Manager said: “The Belfast Streets Ahead project is a very challenging project and a tremendous effort is being made by everyone on the team to deliver it as considerately as possible, with particular attention being paid to the needs of businesses, shoppers, and visitors to the city centre.

“We are therefore delighted that our efforts have been recognised with this award and I would like to congratulate everyone involved.”

The award covers the following streets: Arthur Square; Ann Street; Cornmarket; Arthur Place; Arthur Street; Castle Lane; Callender Street; Fountain Street; College Street; Queens Street; Fountain Lane, Castle Street, Castle Place and Donegall Place.

Improvements include extensive use of natural stone, new carriageway surfacing with traffic calming measures, coordinated street signage, contemporary street lighting, high quality street furniture, public art sculptures, tree planting, and new bus shelters and traders’ kiosks.

DSD’s role is to implement this project by working with key stakeholders to achieve ‘world class’ standards in urban design, maintenance and management of the streets and public spaces at the heart of the city.

The aim is to improve Belfast’s image as a destination for shopping and tourism, thereby boosting the city’s economy.

Belfast’s guardians aim to bring the city the recognition that a major European capital deserves, and this is just one of many schemes designed to that end.

For Farrans, this is just one of five awards recently handed out to the major construction firm at the recent Considerate Contractor Scheme Awards held in London.

Social Development Minister, Alex Attwood MLA, commented, “People shopping in Belfast and traders alike will greatly benefit when this work is complete. There is no doubt that it is an ambitious programme of works. This award recognises the skills, dedication, care and consideration of the Belfast Streets Ahead construction team”.

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New pool for Wexford Work is complete on Ferrybank Swimming Pool in Wexford. On 3rd June, the pool commenced a period of limited opening hours as a ‘dry run’, during which time staff at the centre will familiarise themselves with their new surroundings, and a few lucky locals will have the opportunity to get wet.

The pool was completed by main contractor Mythen Construction, and the building sits in an ideal location, across the road from a caravan park overlooking the river and the harbour.

Trevor Austen, of the National Building Agency, spoke to Premier Construction: “Mythen were excellent with us. There was very little dialogue in the end, but only because they got on with the job so well.

They’re a local firm with their reputation to uphold, and that’s exactly what they did.”

The building’s original roof was retained, and

the facedes have been protected with rain screen cladding. The plant room is brand new, with a woodchip boiler and a filtration system. The pool had to fit the original structure, so it measures 9m by 25m, whilst the shallow pool for learners measures 4.5m by 10.5m and has a maximum depth of 3ft.

The changing rooms are a modern, unisex arrangement, with private cubicles. There is also space for group changing, to be used by school parties and their ilk.

Trevor adds, “There’s a sauna and a fitness centre within the complex, and I’ve so far

New Rail Link Joins Irish Towns An extension to Ireland’s rail network is boosting morale among commuters, who are looking forward to a regular and rapid service into Dublin.

The first phase of this project, which will eventually extend as far as Navan, involves reopening 7.5km of railway line running off the Maynooth line, at Clonsilla, to the M3 interchange at Pace, north of Dunboyne. Three new stations will be constructed, at Hansfield, Dunboyne and Pace.

Park and Ride facilities comprising 1200 spaces will be provided at Pace whilst a 300 space car park will be opened at the proposed Dunboyne Station. This phase of the project will allow 15-minute peak hour frequency commuter services into Docklands Station in Dublin city centre and a 30-minute frequency off-peak. The service from Dunboyne to Docklands is expected to take 30 minutes.

The new section of track follows the old Navan branch which operated for over a hundred years, commencing service in 1862. Passenger services were suspended temporarily at times during the second world war due to fuel shortages and finally suspended on 27th January 1947. Goods traffic continued to use the line until it was closed completely in 1963. The track was lifted and most of the land disposed of.

A study published in 2000 recommended re-opening the Navan - Dunboyne - Clonsilla railway line. Re-opening the line is also an objective of Meath County Council’s development plan and is included in the government’s Transport 21 programme, a significant investment in Ireland’s transport network.

The planned route follows the alignment of the former railway line. The alignment is still intact and largely free of development.

The route distance is approximately 5 kilometres to Dunboyne plus a further 2.5 kilometres to the site adjoining the M3 at Pace.

Pace (M3) to Navan is scheduled to open in 2015 under the Government’s investment programme.

Mark Dunne, Irish Rail’s assistant project manager for the development, provided Premier Construction with a progress report: “At the moment we’re finishing up the main construction work with SIAC. The track is already laid over the 7.5km, along with the

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avoided the temptation to try them, although they look good now that they’re finished.

There was actually a debate amongst the construction team as to who would be the first thrown into the pool as an initiation. All I can say is I’m glad it wasn’t me!”

signals, and final adjustments and tests are being carried out.

“This is a big contract for Irish Rail and SIAC and we’ve both shared the view that you always have to be pushing forward and getting the job done on schedule. We’re currently on time and things are going well, so I’m happy with our work so far.

“Once the line is complete, I know as a local that it will be a big boost to people in Dunboyne. It’s such a big change, especially since thousands of people could be using the service and keeping their cars off the road.”

The Dunboyne link is expected to be operational by September of this year.

Marlborough Engineering Marlborough supplied all passenger, cycle and motorcycle shelters across the scheme, using a design approved by Irish Rail. The shelters are sturdy and tamper-proof, as fastenings are hidden from potential vandals.

The structures’ seats are foldable and lockable, and are protected from rain by the structures’ internal water drainage.

Marlborough work across Ireland and Great Britain, and can even extend their range of operation to Europe when required.

The company’s fabrication section can handle products ranging from coat stands to multi-storey staircases, and its expertise extends to producing valves for the oil and water industries, custom-built machines, precision components that can be used in products ranging from cameras to aeroplanes and bespoke jigs and fixtures.

Marlborough Engineering was founded in 1984. Over twenty five years, the company has developed a depth and range of skills and knowledge that are unmatched on the island of Ireland.

From first beginnings, the company has focussed on delivering exceptional levels of quality and service to its customers and has successfully built an enviable reputation, both locally and internationally.

Today, Marlborough occupies more than 18,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space conveniently located in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter. The company is fully equipped for CNC Machining & Milling, Fabrication of a wide range of materials, Material processing and specialist Assembly & Testing. The company is progressing through an aggressive five year expansion plan and two years in is on track to achieve its goals.

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A better way to get to Belfast A project designed to improve traffic flow along the A24, a main arterial route into Belfast, is on the verge of becoming fully operational.

The park & ride scheme will provide over 700 car parking spaces along with a terminal building on the A24 at its junction with Purdysburn Road. Access will be provided at two locations on the Purdysburn Road and by a new signalised junction on the A24. The site will be served by a dedicated bus service operating to and from the city centre.

The terminal building will be managed under a contract to be awarded to the bus company offering the most suitable package, and will house toilets, baby changing facilities, cycle storage and an information desk.

The scheme is an important element of the Northern Ireland Roads Service’s commitment to promoting more sustainable travel, by offering commuters on this corridor an attractive alternative to using the private car for their journey into the city centre.

Project manager Harry Armstrong took time out from his work alongside contractor FP McCann to talk to Premier Construction: “We’re almost at completion, with final touches being made to the surface and fittings. It’s difficult to predict exactly the impact the scheme will have, but our other park and ride sites show that usage tends to grow at a steady pace when these projects are well managed. There’s already been plenty of interest from the public, which is encouraging.

“It’s a good way to make use of the site, which was previously unused land. It’s useful for me and for my colleagues, and I’ll be able to use it for certain meetings that form part of my schedule.

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Ballymena Bypass to cut accidents A new bypass is being constructed to improve traffic flow around Ballymena, and the new development will go some way to reducing an unacceptably high number of accidents around the area.

The scheme will divert strategic north-south traffic using the A26 Antrim to Ballymena Dual Carriageway and the Ballee Road East Dual Carriageway onto a new 2.1 kilometre long dual carriageway underneath the Larne Road Roundabout to join the M2 Ballymena Bypass North of the roundabout, the Ballymena Bypass is dual 2-lane motorway carrying in excess of 25,500 vehicles per day. South west of the roundabout, Ballee Road East is a 2-lane all purpose dual carriageway carrying more than 22,500 vehicles per day. About 15,000 of those vehicles represent long distance strategic north-south traffic passing straight through the roundabout. This long distance traffic conflicts with local traffic and results in queues and delays at peak times.

The high speeds on the large roundabout are a contributory factor in the number of accidents at this junction.

The new scheme leads traffic onto a 2.1

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The site is well placed to pick up traffic coming down the A24 from Carryduff, as well as people living around Cairnshill. It’s aimed at the individual commuter and it will go some way to easing traffic stress on the A24, which is a very well used route”.

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kilometre long dual carriageway allowing the strategic northsouth traffic to continue uninterrupted underneath the Larne Road Roundabout. The scheme will: Deviate from the existing Ballee Road East dual carriageway east of the Ballee Roundabout.

Continue underneath the Larne Road Roundabout.

Connect to the southern end of the M2 Ballymena Bypass.

East of the new road, traffic using the Liminary Road from Kells leads traffic onto a 0.9 kilometre long single carriageway road connecting directly to the Larne Road Roundabout.

Contractors FP McCann and Magherafelt are collaborating on the £12.1 million scheme, which is led by Ronnie Faloon of the Northern Ireland Roads Service, who spoke to Premier Construction:

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“Right now the project is on programme to be open to traffic in July. Road drainage, cement bound road base and kerbing are progressing well thanks to a team drawn mainly from the local area that has a good work ethic.

“The main aim of the scheme is reduction of accidents, so it’s pleasing to know that your work will benefit the thousands of people who use this route”.

Extension for Meath primary school A €2.8m project to extend and refurbish St Mary’s Primary School in Meath has already reached completion under main contractor Aidan Elliott Construction.

job done well and we offer value for money. We work across the Meath, Dublin and Kildare region, and our reputation is well known.”

Aidan Elliott Construction Aidan Elliott Construction Ltd. specialise in the provision of high quality commercial, industrial and domestic buildings and the supply of suitable material and products.

The company is based in Stradone, Co. Cavan, and was founded by the man who gave his name to the company in 2000.

Aidan began his career as a Draftsman in Thomas Garland & Partners, Rathmines, Dublin, in 1978. He left there to join his father’s firm, P. Elliott & Co. Ltd, where he worked his way up to Contracts Manager and was in charge of projects to the value of €40 million.

Aidan’s family is heavily involved in the construction industry, and his firm has an enviable network of contacts in the sector.

Visit Aidan Elliott’s site at www.aidanelliottconstruction.com

Work involved remedial measures and a two-storey extension to the existing structure, and have left the school with a range of new uniform classrooms and a general purpose room, plus the necessary ancillary spaces and toilets.

Eoghan Elliott spoke to Premier Construction about his firm’s work on the school: “The majority of the work was sent out to a solid team of subcontractors, although we carried out some of the work ourselves, such as the joinery and the block work. There was an average of 25 workers on site, and despite the wettest November on record in the area, we were able to keep delays to a minimum and move ahead with our programme.”

Asked what his firm had brought to the project, Eoghan replied: “We have a lot of experience with schools, and we’ve recently been awarded another school contract in Navan. We get the

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New fire station for County Cavan A new €600,000 state-of-the-art fire station serving the area around Belturbet, in County Cavan, has reached practical completion under main contractor McGurran Construction. The new station is located on the site of the area engineer’s office on the Clones Road.

The 9-month project began in earnest in August of last year and has benefited from a design drawn up by architects White Young Green.

Built around a structural steel frame with a mixture of cladding and masonry walls and a timber roof, the building, which covers 300sq.m., replaces facilities that dated back to the 1950s and had been deemed unsuitable.

Firefighters will welcome the building’s two-bay vehicle capacity, accompanied by a drill tower and a drill yard to aid training and

preparation. The drill tower is effectively a shell, with three upper floors connected by ladders. The new station also features a dedicated BA (breathing apparatus) room for safe storage and cleaning.

Elsewhere in the station, its residents will enjoy a kitchen, bathrooms and showers, a drying room, lockers, storage rooms, a watch room and a lecture room to be used for training.

To match the local authorities’ commitment to fire safety with the new building, two new recruits have been enlisted as a further boost to the area.

“For the past 20 years we have been

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lobbying for a new fire station and that wish has now come true. This new fire station is a welcome addition to the town,” said chairman of Belturbet Town Council, John McDonald. He continued, “[The firefighters] provide a valuable service for the town and it is much appreciated by all the residents.”

Trinity College seeks investment in science Dublin’s Trinity College (TCD) is campaigning for funding, with a view to spending €131m on a vast new facility in the centre of the city. The new addition to the college, due to open in early 2011, will accommodate Trinity’s Institute of Immunology, a Centre of Excellence in Cancer Drug Discovery, an expansion of the Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience and TCD’s Bioengineering Centre.

The building will host all of the college’s preclinical medical training and researchers from the schools of medicine, pharmacology and pharmaceutical science, biochemistry and immunology, chemistry and engineering.

According to the college’s website, the new development “will allow Ireland to take an international lead on the delivery of quality pharmaceutical and biotechnology research infrastructure. This will position us in the global competition among the emergent knowledge economies to underpin the attraction of foreign direct investment and to sustain our burgeoning indigenous expertise in this area”.

What that means is that the college’s bosses want their establishment to be considered important, so that foreigners will invest in it.

Additionally, college representatives proclaim, “the building will facilitate knowledge creation, intellectual property generation and spin out indigenous enterprise”. This means that some intense thinking will be done inside building, and then that this thinking will spin out indigenous enterprise.

The 40,000 sq. m (430,560 sq. ft), 11 storey building sits over a three-level basement with a site frontage of 4, 000 sq. m (43,056 sq. ft), and is being developed on a former surface car park site fronting Pearse Street.

The development is divided amongst a 3rd level science facility of 23,000 sq. m (250,000 sq. ft), office accommodation totalling 15,000 sq. m (160,000 sq. ft), and a further 2,000 sq. m (21,500 sq.

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ft) of ground floor retail provision. The city-centre development is completed with a new main rail transport hub entrance.

The two glazed atria form the main building entrances for Trinity College – (west atrium) – and the commercial entrance – (east atrium) – respectively, with the central public concourse providing the new entrance to Pearse Street Railway Station and a significant ground floor retail shopping arcade fostering trade and interaction, providing key amenities for local residents and the college population.

The site is located in a transition zone between the Georgian city core with the TCD Campus to the west and south, and the emerging new Dublin Docklands area and commercial and residential areas to the north and east. The site for this project immediately abuts Pearse Station, an important transport hub at city and national level, providing access to main line and DART services.

According to architects RKD, “Reflecting the best traditions of TCD, high quality materials have been specified for the elevations, including white granite cladding to all elevations and feature elements in pre-patinated copper cladding.

“The building is designed to form a new landmark, acting as an attractive and dramatic ‘gateway’ to the city centre, and addressing the major incoming route of Pearse Street.”

At the time of writing, the recession-stricken college is still asking for donations towards the costs of construction, and “provides many naming opportunities at various levels of giving”.

To see your name inscribed commemoratively on a plaque above the main lecture hall, simply scribble out a cheque for €2.5m. A mere €1,000 will see your name printed on a chair in the hall, but there are no guarantees as to whose posterior will obscure it.

PJ Walls has been selected as the main contractor for the development, and has been busy on site since 2008.

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EnBW begin a wind energy initiative in the Baltic Sea Energie Baden-Wurttemberg AG (EnBW) is the third largest energy company in Germany and primarily focuses on electricity and gas in addition to providing energy and environmental services across the country.

A key player in the renewable energy market, EnGW has been involved in the pioneering Baltic 1 project, Germany’s first offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea and the most highly developed commercial project, since its early development stage. An agreement between themselves and Siemens Energy to construct and deliver the wind farm was signed in April 2009 and proved to be another important milestone in the realisation of the first commercial wind energy provider in the Baltic area.

Baltic 1, which has a contract value of €50m, lies approximately 16km north of the Dar/Zingst peninsula and will comprise of 21 SWT 2.3-93 types wind turbines that span across an area of about 7sqkm, generating a total energy output of 48.3 megawatts.

Initial offshore construction works began in spring 2010 and the wind farm will come online in the final quarter of this year.

“The signing of this contract brought us a significant step closer to realising Baltic 1 as a key component in EnGW’s commitment to offshore wind power,” Dr Hans-Josef Zimmer, Technical Director for EnGW, commented. “As one of the first commercial projects ever to be undertaken in German waters, the project is of particular significance to the German offshore market in general and especially for EnGW.” The signing of the contract for the installation of the wind turbines signified the completion of the final major contract for the project. This followed Erndtebrucker Eisenwerk GmBH &Co.KG.ABB signing a contract to supply the foundations and electrical equipment for the distribution platform in January 2009.

ABB will provide the power for the platform’s auxiliary system and other EnBW partners include Ballast Nedam, Weser Wind, NKT and A2SEA. Various current projects are due to be completed within the next few years and will represent a total renewable energy investment

by EnBW of approximately €3bn. Against this background, EnBW and Nordex AG also announced that they will work together on future developments of wind farm projects in Europe. The focus of the combined cooperation will be the N80, N90 and the N100 modal range, with 2500kW nominal output, of which Nordex has already produced over 1000 turbines.

“ENBW considers investments in growth to be sensible, specifically in the current challenging economic environment,”

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Han-Peter Villis, CEO of EnBW commented. “It is imperative because at EnBW we plan with foresight and intend to remain a reliable renewable energy supplier for our customers in the long term. Consequently, the investments we make today, like those being in Baltic 1, will contribute to the company’s future sustainability.”

To complement the magnitude of EnBW’s involvement in Baltic 1, the involvement of Siemens in the project, the leading manufacturer of offshore wind turbines, will ensure that this revolutionary Baltic Sea wind farm is of the highest standard.

Erndtebrücker Eisenwerk German firm Erndtebrücker Eisenwerk supplies steel pipes and provides services for all kind of industries. To clients worldwide, Erndtebrücker Eisenwerk is also well-known as EEW. Nowadays, EEW is one of the leading specialists with the widest material range producing submerged-arc welded (SAW) pipes.

For its European offshore wind projects, including the Baltic project, EEW constructed a dedicated pipe mill plant in Rostock, on Germany’s northern coast. The company supplied foundations, piles and related components, which relied on S355 grade steel for strength were transported to the wind farm site by barge.

EEW’s work spans the globe, with the latest base recently opening in Malaysia. The privately-owned firm owes its success to “quick turnaround, constant investment in know-how and a worldwide network of partners,” according to EEW’s Michael Hof. The firm’s work has contributed to offshore installations, pipelines, heavy machinery, civil construction and much more.

The EEW group is an association of SAW pipe mills and trading/ representation companies. The traditional EEW strength is the production of SAW steel pipes.

Within the EEW group, a worldwide unique combination of dimensions (from 406 mm (16”) to 7000 mm (275”) OD with wall thickness up to 130 mm (5”) and length / weight up to 120 m (400’) / 1.000 tons) and material grades (from standard carbon steel, stainless steel up to high alloy and clad pipes) can be manufactured.

The yearly capacity of all pipe mills in the group exceeds 400.000 tons, which is based on optimal production machines and sequences, combined with more than 30 years experience in manufacturing of steel products.

Find out more about EEW at www.eew-group.com

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Renewable energy springing up in Sprogo Sprogo is a small-protected Danish Island located in the Great Belt, the strait that separates the main Danish islands of Funen and Zealand.

The island has a history that dates back to the beginning of the 12th-Century and the remains of vast buildings that were built

by King Valdemar the Great can still be seen on the tiny piece of land.

Currently, Sprogo has no permanent population and instead forms part of the Great Belt fixed links with road and rail bridges connecting its surrounding land.

It has also recently become home to a new offshore wind farm commissioned by infrastructure developer Sund & Baelt, situated just a few km north of its coastline.

At a time when it is becoming exceedingly apparent within world media that climate issues are high on the agenda, transport and infrastructure are being recognised as strong contributors to the climate challenge and, as the owner of several infrastructure facilities, Sund & Baelt is aiming to set a greener agenda and contribute to the increased use of green energy through its construction of an offshore wind farm.

Following extensive environmental investigations, in 2008 the Danish Energy Agency gave Sund & Baelt the green light for the construction of Sprogo Offshore Windfarm.

The windfarm will include seven offshore wind turbines and will generate 66 million kWh per annum, equating to annual electricity consumption of more than 16,000 households and

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will be used to provide the total energy needed for of all Sund & Baelt’s infrastructure facilities. As a consequence of this expansion into wind farm development, Sund & Baelt will be one of the first infrastructure companies in Denmark whose facilities will be completely CO2 neutral.

The turbines will be located parallel to the East Bridge running off Sprogo on a straight line at 450m intervals between each turbine. Each turbine structure will be painted light grey which will harmonise with the architecture of Storebaelt Bridge and the structural surroundings located on Sprogo. The turbines will also be equipped with synchronised flashing lights on the nacelles and railings to ensure the safety of aircraft and shipping around the wind farm.

Ongoing environmental monitoring will continue throughout the project as, close to the location of the development is one of Europe’s largest populations of common porpoise. The impact on this population is expected to be minimal; however, there may be some contact made during the construction process.

On behalf of Sund & Baelt, Denmark’s National Environmental Research Institute (DMU) will carry out a porpoise monitoring programme during the entire construction phase and the project was specifically delayed until mid-August so as not to clash with the porpoises’ breeding season.

As one of the world’s leading pioneers in wind technology, Denmark continues to break ground in its carbon emission reduction and Sund & Baelt is determined to help the country on its mission to do so.

Wind turbines – Vestas Offshore A/S Foundation – Joint Venture between Aarsleff A/S and Bilfinger Berger Cables – NKT Cables A/S Digging and laying down cables – Peter Madsen Rederi A/S and Svensk Sjoentreprenad AB Transportation of wind turbines – A2Sea

Major rail project will revolutionise transport in Sweden

The Citytunnel project in Malmö is a railway project that will benefit Malmö, Skåne, the Öresund region and the whole of southern Sweden. The project will create a fast and effective link between the major rail routes, comprising the Southern Main line and West Coast line to the Öresund Bridge and the Ystad and Trelleborg lines.

The scheme involves the construction of a 17-kilometre rail link running between Malmö Central Station and the Öresund Line.

6 kilometres of the new railway will run underground through the city centre. The purpose of the project is mainly to increase capacity on the Scanian network by changing Malmö Central from a terminus to a transit station.

The railway will start from a new underground station section built beneath Malmö Central station, called Malmö C Nedre (Lower). From there, the railway will run in a tunnel to the new underground station Triangeln, built 25 meters underground in central Malmö. It then turns south until it reaches Holma, and then continues in an open shaft to the new station at Hyllie, a new development area south of the city centre. Here two lines will branch out - one route will run west to connect with the Oresund Railway Line, while the other branch will connect to the Ystad and Trelleborg (Kontinentalbanan) lines.

The project is being carried out by a number of contractors, with MCG and NCC being major players.

Malmö Central station is being extended and converted from a terminal station - one in which all trains have to turn around - to a modern station for through traffic. A new underground section being constructed will have four tracks and two island platforms.

The tunnel section of the project covers the stretch from Malmö C to just south of Annetorpsvägen in the Holma district. The total length of the tunnel is 6 kilometers. Twenty to twenty-five meters below ground level, two shielded tunnel-boring machines bored parallel single-track tunnels, each 4.5 kilometers in length. At the start and finish of the bored sections, the tunnel is finished in open shafts.

The bored tunnel comprises two parallel tunnel tubes with an internal diameter of 7.9 metres. A total of 13 cross tunnels were built between the two tunnel tubes. The distance between the cross tunnels is approximately 350 metres. These cross tunnels are used partly for technical installations and partly as a provision for evacuation in the event of an accident when the railway is in operation.

Work on a cross tunnel began by drilling ten test bores. This was done to determine the water content of the rock and whether there was a need for sealing. Then, a hole was cut in the tunnel wall. Limestone was removed with a smaller cutting machine and a hydraulic hammer. When necessary, the rock was strengthened with rock bolts and shotcrete. Each cross tunnel took a couple of months to dig.

Vibrations are caused when trains are driven through the tunnel and are propagated via the tunnel tubes, the rock and the ground into adjacent buildings where they can then radiate out as audible structure-borne sound. This audible structure-

borne sound is perceived by humans as a very low-frequency rumbling noise. The tracks in the tunnel will have a damped track system with anti-vibration mountings so that the noise levels will be reduced to those set by the Environmental Court.

At Holma, the bored tunnels change to two 360 meters long concrete tunnels with a tunnel portal and an open ramp wich were built in an open shaft. This is where the tunnel boring machines started.

The third new station, Hyllie, lies right after the tunnel entrance in southern Malmö. The Hyllie station will form the centrepiece of the new Hyllie urban area planned by Malmö City. The urban area will be arranged so that the station will form a natural hub close to the Malmö Arena - a new large events stadium, the shopping centre, housing, and areas for businesses and services.

At Lockarp the tracks will connect from the Öresund line with a branch to the Ystad line and the Continental line to Trelleborg.

The project is due for completion in December 2010.

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Choosing the right roofing contractor When it comes to roofing, most people say get in the local builder. This could be the biggest mistake you could make. Roofing is a specialised trade and should be treated as such. The local builder may be quite proficient at roofing, but then again he may not be.

General builders are jacks of all trades: bricklayers, plasterers, window fitters and much more.

A reputable roofing contractor is a specialist in roofing; he may specialise in all types of roofing, while some only work on flat roofs and some will only work on slate and tile. It is normally the larger company that specialises in industrial roofing and cladding.

A reputable roofing contractor will know the pitfalls of the work he is contracted to do. He will also be able to explain to you in plain English why certain work has to be carried out to make the roof both safe and watertight.

For instance, if you have a slate roof at the moment and would prefer a concrete tiled roof, you may think that it is a straightforward job replacing one with the other. Wrong. Concrete tiles are much heavier than slate, therefore your roof will require strengthening.

Bolting extra pieces of timber on every second or third roof truss does this. If this were not carried out you would notice in a year or two that your roof had developed a bow, after a period of time this could lead to a complete collapse.

If you look at some old peg tiled properties you will notice that they often have a bow; peg tiles are very heavy and when you consider the many thousands that are used to cover a roof area the weight is tremendous. Look inside the roof voids of these properties and you will see that the timbers used in the old days were mostly oak or in some cases complete trunks of immature trees. Over a period of many years these timbers have changed shape due to the weight of the tiles and the weakening of the timbers by wood boring insects like woodworm. The various councils now list many of these properties and even when they are renovated the shape of the roof could remain the same, but you will find that all the roof timbers have been strengthened to prevent further movement.

In order to prevent any problem arising, your roofing contractor and surveyor should work together to ensure that all safety aspects are fully covered. Remember, your roof is one of the most vital parts of you property: it should be regularly inspected and minor repairs carried out as they occur. In the long run, this could save you being faced with a repair bill running into thousands of pounds.

Who is reputable?

“The last time I used a roofing contractor he turned out to be a

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cowboy”. How many times have you heard that? “He knocked at my door and told me my ridge tiles are in a dangerous condition.

He was on the roof for twenty minutes and charged me £350.00”.

There are horror stories every day from members of the public.

Unfortunately, the roofing industry is infested with rip off merchants; you only have to watch the news to see that when the tornado hit the south coast the police had to set up road blocks to keep the cowboy roofers out. It seems that these people are just waiting for a disaster to happen so they can cash in.

Rule number one is never to employ a door- knocker; these are the worst of their kind. The usual type of people who will knock on your door are travellers, they are tarmac layers in the summer and roofing contractors in the winter. They will normally want cash payments and in extreme conditions have been known to forcibly take you to your bank to withdraw the cash.

Even if you look through the yellow pages, whom do you choose? Behind many of those impressive adverts lies a firm of cowboys just waiting for you to call. You may think that a company is reputable because the advert has trade association logos all over it. Don’t be fooled by that - many of the companies using trade association logos are not and have never been members of any trade association.

The Confederation of Roofing Contractors would advise you always to ring the trade association first to see if your contractor is an approved member. The yellow pages have dedicated two pages in the back of every book to trade associations; their telephone numbers and addresses are now published.

In truth, the majority of roofing contractors are reputable; it is the minority that give the industry a bad name.

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A s s o c i ati o n s How can I ensure that a roofing contractor is reputable?

The Confederation of Roofing Contractors was formed in 1985 to protect the general public against unscrupulous roofing contractors. Since then, the confederation has expanded to become an elite organisation specialising in the provision of roofing services to all market sectors.

Members of the confederation are totally committed to providing all clients with a quality driven service that reflects good craft skills, working practices and reasonable fees. A strict vetting procedure ensures that only reputable roofing contractors are afforded membership, the fringe element is totally excluded.

The confederation has approved members in most areas of the country and a list of members in your area is available by phone, fax, or letter.

Today’s reputable roofing contractors not only have to have a vast knowledge of roofing, they also have to be well versed in all aspects of health & safety, another reason why you should not employ a door knocker with a ladder on his shoulder. Gone are the days when a man could climb a ladder with his mate at the bottom holding it in position. Today, scaffolding is a vital part of the roofing contractors equipment, and erecting and dismantling it is also a skill. It is also your duty to provide adequate safety precautions to comply with current health and safety regulations.

Your contractor should make you aware of this need.

Members of the Confederation of Roofing Contractors are instructed to supply sufficient information at the commencement of a contract to satisfy client needs. This information should include rates/total price/extra over items, technical information and additional options, if relevant.

Each quotation for the general public must reflect their limited technical knowledge. All wording should be self-explanatory and avoid over technical bias. Care is taken to describe exactly what the quotation covers Every effort is made to finish contracts on time, to price agreed, to the total satisfaction of the client.

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What if my roof starts leaking and the contractor has ceased trading?

Unfortunately this happens time and again. You often find that when you need a repair carried out under the terms of your guarantee, your contractor has either ceased trading, disappeared, or is trading under a different name. You are then left with another bill to pay to have the roof repaired.

By using a member of the Confederation of Roofing Contractors you need never worry about this happening to you. All members are able to offer an exclusive fully insured 10-year back up guarantee. This covers you in the event of the contractor ceasing trading for any reason whatsoever; it even covers you if the contractor retires.

The insurance backed guarantee covers both domestic and commercial properties; there is no limit as to the cost of the contract.

The Confederation of Roofing Contractors is available to assist you with any problems you may have with your roof, even if your contractor is not a member. They exist to protect you and will give you any advice you may need.

For further information including approved members in your area, look in our membership directory or contact:Mike Wolfe The Confederation of Roofing Contractors 72 Church Road Brightlingsea Essex CO7 OJF Telephone: 01206 306600 Fax: 01206 306200 Email: Enquiries@corc.co.uk Or visit our web site on. www.corc.co.uk

Construction News

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Green Infrastructure – taking precedence over the built environment?

Time was when buildings came first and the green infrastructure in which they stood was an afterthought and at the bottom of the pile when it came to budget allocation.

But the hitherto natural order of things is changing – and not before time. The use of landscaping to counter the effects of climate change in urban areas is now a priority, and one that is recognised by urban planners. And in city centres where space between buildings is limited, landscapers can still ‘green up’ the environment.

Amidst the projects receiving accolades at the 2009 BALI National Landscape Awards in London were commercial and public realm schemes that epitomised our industry’s enthusiasm for, and commitment to, environmental sustainability.

The creation of a number of roof gardens as part of the refurbishment of the Ropemaker Place building in London won the BALI

landscape contractor responsible two awards. Incorporating green roofs into this building presented some major challenges, including craning in 1100 tonnes of materials – topsoil, plants, turf, paving, aggregates, lighting – and installing permeable paving and a water harvesting system to allow rainfall to be reused for irrigation and within the building itself.

The same contractor won an award for the green roof landscaping of the Abbeygate Vizion development in Milton Keynes. This particular green roof is surrounded by townhouses, covers an area the size of a football pitch and conceals beneath it a flagship Sainsbury’s store, retail and leisure outlets and a 1000 space car park. 1300 tonnes of manufactured substrate incorporating recycled materials were used to create the planted and turfed areas and, again, water harvesting has been installed.

The development overall gained a BREEAM rating of ‘Excellent’ and provides a communal green space with clear environmental and social benefits.

Both schemes, and others like them, are making a major contribution to reducing flood risk, moderating the urban heat island effect, ensuring no net loss of green cover in urban

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areas, and encouraging airflow in areas of intensive urban development. Each of these is cited as a desired outcome within the Landscape Institute’s position statement published in May 2009: Green infrastructure: connected and multifunctional landscapes.

This document makes the case for affording Green Infrastructure the same priority as more conventional infrastructural components, such as highways, the rail network and housing stock. At the very least it makes an irrefutable case for involving landscape practitioners in the planning and development of urban areas and public realm at the very outset.

The British Association of Landscape Industries is the UK’s largest trade association for professional landscape and garden designers, landscapers, grounds maintenance contractors and suppliers to the industry. See the website at www.bali.org.uk

CAI stands for professionalism in the aerial and satellite industry As the recognised body for the aerial and satellite industry, the Confederation of Aerial Industries (CAI) is committed to raising standards and the criteria for membership are extremely high.

One of the many membership requirements is that any installing member company will agree to the examination and test of any equipment manufactured or supplied, the inspection of any installation, or investigation into conduct which could have a

detrimental effect on the reputation of the CAI or its members.

CAI Members employ only qualified personnel whose work is monitored by an inspector. If a CAI member is undergoing inspection, it may be that the CAI inspector will wish to accompany them to view their installing capabilities. Although this would be at no extra charge to the customer, it is within the rights of the customer to refuse to allow the installation to be inspected.

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A s s o c i ati o n s All CAI members guarantee their installations for a minimum of 12 months. In addition to this, the CAI undertakes to back this guarantee with its own 12 month guarantee, for domestic installations only.

This means that should a CAI member fail to honour their 12 month guarantee on a domestic installation, the consumer can seek redress via the CAI. Provided that the problems concerned fall within the realms of the original guarantee, the CAI will arrange to have the work corrected - at no extra cost to the consumer.

In addition, all members are required to work to the exacting standards laid down in the CAI’s Codes of Practice.

CAI Members should also carry identity cards that clearly state their name and company details, together with a photograph. If you are in any doubt about the validity of an installer, ring the CAI on 01923 803030 during normal office hours.

All CAI Members are required to have full insurance cover for all aspects of their business. Most importantly there is a minimum requirement of £2,000,000 for public liability insurance. This gives the consumer total peace of mind before the company even commences work.

If a customer is unhappy with the standard of workmanship carried out by a CAI registered installer, or indeed is dissatisfied with any aspect of the job, the CAI has an official complaints procedure. The CAI will fully investigate any complaint that it receives against one of its members and is empowered to impose sanctions on members if necessary.

When it is deemed that a member has fallen outside the boundaries of the CAI Codes of Practice, they will be instructed to correct the areas that have been identified.

The CAI will monitor the complaint to ensure that the defects are rectified. The member company will then be asked to confirm to the CAI that this has been done, within the pre-determined timescale that will have been set. The CAI will then check with the customer to ensure that they are now satisfied.

Depending on the severity of the complaint, the installer may

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be asked to take the appropriate training and/or have their membership reviewed. A CAI member who fails to rectify work or to carry out the necessary training will be removed from membership and will no longer be authorised to use the CAI logo.

The CAI is unable to become involved in any complaints against a company that is not registered. If however, a company is not a member of the CAI but is displaying the logo, the matter will be reported to the local trading standards office immediately. If you are unsure whether a company is a member of the Confederation of Aerial Industries Limited, please check with the CAI office, or check the the A to Z list of all CAI members on the organisation’s website (www.cai.org.uk).

Those installers that are properly qualified and properly vetted are always the ones to choose. In order to have a professional installation carried out, its always wise to seek credentials and preferably choose one that belongs to a professional trade organisation such as Confederation of Aerial Industries.

A current problem is that those regions that have still not experienced switchover are areas where a lot of money can be made by unscrupulous aerial installers. There is nothing legislatively to say an aerial installer must fulfill any requirements before they can install, and because of this, many installers are climbing ladders and fitting aerials and satellite dishes when they are inexperienced, and unqualified. As switchover is due to be completed in 2012, this is an ideal time to make a quick buck, even if the end result and the quality of work is appalling.

To be accepted as a CAI member an applicant must formally apply, and undertake a formal inspection by a member of the CAI assessment team. It is now also mandatory when joining the CAI that installers working in a domestic capacity must undertake a working safely at heights course, as well as a criminal record check.

The CAI also requires every member to carry an ID badge including a photograph of themselves, details of the company they work for and a unique ID number which can be checked with CAI HQ, if there are any doubts. The CAI also advise that

any installers who are just starting out, or wish to undertake a refresher course, should complete the organisation’s basic aerial and satellite course so that they learn to install the ‘CAI’ way.

So it seems that anyone can just have a ‘go’ at installing aerials, but this doesn’t mean that a professional job will be the result.

For the discerning customer, following and checking all the criteria listed above, will help ensure satisfaction and a job well done. Remember also that the phrase ‘you get what you pay for’ really applies. It might not be that a CAI installer is necessarily the cheapest, however do you really want the aggravation of trying to call them back when you are not happy with the end result. The reception may not be accepted by you especially if an aerial isn’t installed properly, or worse an uncertified installer may have no insurance so you cannot make a claim in the event of any damage.

There is every reason to choose someone that has the correct and up to date qualifications and experience and no reason at all to choose someone that has none - so be sure to choose a CAI member every time.

The CFA - So much more than just a trade organisation The Contract Flooring Association (CFA) was established in 1974 through the amalgamation of three small flooring associations; The Floor Covering Contractors Association, whose members specialised primarily in smooth floor coverings, the Association of Flooring Contractors (hardwood flooring) and the Carpet Planners Association. The CFA is the national representative employers’ organisation for the Contract Flooring Industry and represents all flooring installation formats from carpet, resilient and timber flooring to rubber, raised access, resin ancillary products and maintenance.

Its present membership, therefore, consists of contractors

engaged in the installation of all floor finishes including insitu floorings and sub-floor screeds, with manufacturers and distributors of flooring materials, adhesives and accessories.

There is also a category of membership for flooring consultants.

The objective of the CFA is to promote the highest standard of professionalism, safety and training while at the same time providing essential services and expert information to ensure the quality and productivity of the members’ business.

Members of the association include contractors, manufacturers, distributors and consultants – large and small that now operate from locations throughout the UK. The CFA’s 500 members account for a large proportion of the UK’s total industry workload and are increasingly making their mark in Europe.

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Flooring is an important part of most contracts these days and, with more products to choose from than ever before, getting the right advice has never been more important. Specifiers and main contractors need quality of service, installation and support information CFA members can provide. Consequently, many public and private organisations and an increasing number of local authorities are now demanding that CFA members must be used.

The CFA has always stood for quality in materials, installations and in their approach to business and the association is leading the way for trade organisations in the 21st Century. CFA members have access to all the elements that help them compete in the modern market place as SME’s.

A network of industry experts provide CFA members with support in all aspects of running a flooring business. When choosing a company to install a floor, specifiers need to know that they can rely on the sub-contractor to meet the required specification and not cause them problems. A CFA branded contractor delivers this promise, and in the unlikely event of a problem, they can draw on a wealth of experience to resolve it.

The CFA provides members and their clients with a wealth of advice to assist with installation including: •• British Standard Codes of Practice •• Employment Law •• Health and Safety •• Insurance •• Technical standards and problems •• Training and recruitment The association regularly publish articles and support material on key subjects, either direct to members or via the Contract Flooring Journal. The support material includes: •• Consultants Code of Practice •• Contractors Code of Conduct •• Environmental policy •• Equal opportunities policy •• Health and safety policy •• Technical advice The organisation produces a directory of members for architects, specifiers, main contractors and their clients. This information is also available from the directory section of the website: www.cfa.org.uk In addition to providing up-to-date information through publications the CFA has various committees working on a national basis for the benefit of the industry as a whole and these include: •• Contractors Committee

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•• Environmental Committee •• Manufacturers Committee There are also ten regional committees.

Each committee works to improve the contract flooring industry by providing members with the resources they need to be successful, and are attended by industry member experts from across the UK. With this level of commitment from so many companies and individuals the CFA has a wealth of resources at its fingertips and it is this breadth and depth of information that makes it so much more than just a trade association.

Atkinson & Kirby Launch New Hardwood Flooring ‘Bible’ A Hardwood Flooring Species and Grading Guide that can be regularly updated, therefore giving it an almost infinite lifespan, was recently launched by Atkinson & Kirby and Hardwood Flooring Imports.

The guide demonstrates both the colour and grade of each product, together with a brief product specification. Split in to 6 sections, products are broken down by general colour, light, medium and dark with the Company’s flagship CONCEPT and CONCEPT II ranges having their own sections. There is also a Technical section which includes basic information regarding hardwood flooring, NBS Plus clauses, fitting instructions for various types of flooring and maintenance instructions for different finishes.

For more information, visit www.akirby.co.uk

Finding out more about lead LCA launch the next 25 Years More than 70 architects were among an audience of over 100 that attended the launch of the 2010 Directory of Specialist Leadwork Contractors. Organised by the Lead Contractors Association (LCA) and jointly sponsored by the Lead Sheet Association (LSA), the launch took place at the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining in Carlton House Terrace, London.

2009 saw the LCA celebrate their Silver Jubilee and Chairman David Martin opened the 2010 Directory launch by assessing the objectives he had set last year.

These are: •• More specifications nominating LCA members for the lead work •• Every leadwork project of historical, architectural or commercial significance to be carried out by a member of the LCA •• Contractors involved in leadwork that thought they knew how to design and install the material to prove it by applying to join the LCA and having their leadwork standards checked.

In looking back, Mr Martin considered that each objective had been addressed with varying degrees of success and he saw no reason why this momentum should not be continued as the LCA start their next 25 years.

He closed his presentation by posing the question to the architects and specifiers in the audience as to whether they

had a responsibility to not only cover materials and standards of workmanship in their specifications, but also to ensure a registered competent contractor was used to install.

Joss Campbell, Chairman of the Lead Sheet Association welcomed the opportunity to put the case for lead sheet in modern day construction, emphasising the unique proven long term sustainability of the material that had now been in use in UK construction for centuries.

He emphasised the green credentials of lead, its total recyclability and, given its low melting point and comprehensive national materials reclamation network, the minimal carbon “footprint” of producing and using lead sheet.

Not least among the advantages of using lead sheet, he said, was the availability through the Lead Contractors Association of a quality controlled workforce to install the product, which maximised its long term performance credentials.

Mr Campbell went on to explain the complexities of the London Metal Exchange which set the price for lead but which was nevertheless at the mercy of market speculators who had no interest in the industry other than to trade in metal warrants the same as they did in stocks and shares on the London Stock Exchange.

Given the relatively small use of lead sheet in construction (some 200,000 tonnes world wide compared to 6M tonnes (and rising) in car batteries) the price of lead was therefore out of the hands of the UK sheet manufacturers and contractors. The recession and performance of the stock exchange had caused speculators to look for other markets in which to trade and the London Metal Exchange had proved an easy target, resulting in the spectacular price surges in recent years of the metals, including lead, that were traded on the LME. The price surge in the LMA lead price in 2008 had led to the unwelcome escalation in thefts, particularly from vulnerable ecclesiastical properties. Thankfully, as a result of better site security, DNA type identification through using such as Smartwater and an improved accountability through the reclamation network, theft issues now appeared to be subsiding.

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A s s o c i ati o n s were recovering and traders were returning to them for the more varied options than were available on the LME. Carl Edwards, Managing Director of the CEL Group and Chairman of the LCA Promotions Committee then explained the differences between the three types of lead sheet available in the UK market, as there was often confusion among specifiers, or worse, a general assumption that they were all the same.

Rolled lead sheet was the most commonly used, produced from a refined cast slab on a computer controlled rolling mill that achieved thickness tolerances of +/- 5% at any point on the sheet, as required by the European manufacturing standard BSEN12588.

Traditional sand cast sheet is the oldest method of production (circa 16thC), where molten metal is poured onto a bed of sand, skimmed to the required thickness whilst still molten and then cut to size when cooled.

Machine cast, or Direct Method (DM) sheet is produced by immersing a rotating, water cooled drum into a bath of molten lead. The lead solidifies on the surface of the drum and is lifted from the bath and peeled away in sheets as the drum rotates.

For further information about the LCA phone 01342 317888 or Email rwr@lca.gb.com For technical or training information contact the LCA on 01622 872432

CPCS: What you thought you knew firm requirements in place that ensure a standard of fairness and equality is maintained.

The scheme is expensive

Trevor Gamble, a Chairman of the CPCS Management Committee, looks at some of the common misconceptions about the Construction Plant Competence Scheme The Construction Plant Competence Scheme (CPCS) is the largest and most highly recognised card scheme for the plant industry, helping to prove workers’ operating skills and health and safety awareness to potential employers.

Since its introduction in 2003, we have worked with the sector to ensure CPCS enables operators to demonstrate competency, supports the drive to fully qualify our workforce and helps us all in our efforts to reach the common goal of zero fatalities on site.

The scheme has recently come under fire due to misconceptions about the way it works. Below, we answer a number of common myths that people associate with CPCS.

The scheme is too complex In essence, the scheme is straightforward – you will be independently tested to prove basic skills and understanding and then achieve the NVQ or SVQ that proves your competence.

You can renew the competence card by either proving that you’ve worked the necessary hours or by taking a practical on-site assessment. The scheme has concessions which have been agreed with industry, particularly to make allowances for incidents where cards are not renewed in time. However, to ensure a national and consistent standard, there are clear and

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Testing operators on plant machinery is expensive, particularly when additional machines, specialist equipment and/or extra personnel are required. Providing it meets the appropriate safety checks and standards, you can reduce cost by using your own plant, by arrangement with the test centre. To effectively check skills and knowledge requires considerable resources, with oneto-one testing and time for the operator to comfortably carry out study and practice. Test standards are monitored so that, without being excessive, they ensure a sufficiently high skill level at a nationally consistent standard.

The tests don’t cater for specialist functions or limited types of work When tests are created, the core function of the plant it covers is considered. Where there are highly specialist functions or a worker’s activities are limited, re-testing has to take place if the role of the operator or employer changes, which creates additional expense. Guidance from the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) suggests that specialist training follows core skills attainment and we ensure that all categories are reviewed when working methods change.

You don’t need training to get a CPCS card CPCS is designed to comprehensively and independently measure how much an individual has learnt, through informal training, formal training and experience. The scheme does not impose specific training durations or styles, which means that training is flexible to benefit both the employer and operator.

Guidance is available, with training syllabuses available for download on the CPCS.

Renewing a card is complicated It is a simple process. If the CPCS card holder meets the minimum number of hours of experience (300 per category) and records their activity in their logbook, only health and safety tests are needed to renew the competence card. Even if the hours haven’t been done, they can take an on-site assessment.

If you hold several categories, the hours of experience needed to renew a card are far too much.

Once qualified, you must accumulate a minimum of 300 hours per category to maintain your competence card. This amounts to five hours per month (a bit over an hour a week) and experience shows that most cardholders easily exceed that. Irrespective, if the hours can’t be attained, there is the option of taking an onsite assessment. Alternatively, the category can be banked and claimed back when the hours are done or on-site assessment achieved.

There is no flexibility to the scheme The scheme does provide flexibility through the industry committee and CPCS staff whilst also ensuring that a nationally consistent standard is maintained. CPCS defends consistent standards and recognises that allowing too much flexibility will result in different levels of operating ability across the country. CPCS is conscious of the need to provide fair access to certification but without disadvantaging one operator over another.

Experienced operators don’t need an NVQ or SVQ NVQs and SVQs provide proof of skills and experience within the workplace, something even the most experienced operators should welcome the opportunity to demonstrate.

Tests could easily be done on site instead of at test centres Test centres have been established based on criteria set by CPCS. Experience has shown that, despite the best intentions of instructors, tests taken on site have had to be cancelled because of a lack of resources or space. The effort of procuring resources for tests had a detrimental effect on production, and test candidates are better served by having centres with resources that replicate the working area. Tests for specialist categories can be done on site and even on-centre categories may be completed away from a centre if you request. On-site renewal assessments can be taken in the workplace during normal duties.

Categories are lost because the hours can’t be achieved Categories can be banked, and although they won’t appear on a renewed card, they’ll still exist on the CPCS registration system.

Once the hours are done or an on-site assessment is completed, the categories can be reclaimed within the next five years.

The scheme doesn’t cover the plant area I need so I can’t be assessed Plant categories are included in CPCS at the request of the employer federations, organisations and associations. CPCS works closely with other sector-specialist schemes to ensure that all areas are covered and would not encroach on other available cards. However, CPCS continually adds categories at the request of employer groups.

In these difficult times, CPCS is not affordable The scheme provides national consistent standards to ensure cardholders have the right level of skill, knowledge, understanding and experience for operating plant. A competent workforce is a regulatory requirement for operators and employers and the cost of claims will far exceed the cost of certification. With fewer contracts to bid for, a competent qualified workforce could be the difference between winning and losing business.

Modular Buildings meet the criteria Chief Executive of the MPBA, Jackie Maginnis, discusses the importance of Modular and Portable Buildings in the 21st Century

Sustainability, Embodied Energy, Carbon Omissions and the Reduction of Waste; Clients today are looking to meet this selection of criteria more then ever before. With the need to focus on these particular issues as 2010 gets into full swing and, when looking beyond the next 12 months, the importance of identifying the final aims and desires for zero carbon tolerance, off site construction in the form of Modular or Portable buildings could prove to be the answer.

Manufacturers of modular and portable buildings have worked extensively over a number of years to produce a product that ticks all the boxes to comply with legislation. Still today, the technical development involved with suppliers assisting to produce the correct components to achieve these aims is an ongoing process.

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A s s o c i ati o n s Off Site Construction Progress throughout the last 70 years that the MPBA has been established has been considerable, with buildings of all types of design and uses now being manufactured and installed. The development of structures such as hotels, hospitals, schools, offices and even prisons have come a long way since the original modular and portable concept. Traditional buildings are no longer the only option available to meet the ever increasing exacting demands and regulations within the construction industry.

Portable Buildings can best be defined as those made wholly in a factory and then transported for installation on prepared foundations. The majority of portable buildings can be removed and relocated to a new site while producing little or entirely no waste. Manufacturers produce the ubiquitous cabin in all its various guises; mounted on telescopic jackleg wheels or skids are used for everything from offices to shops, canteens to classrooms and computer suites to hospitality areas.

In contrast, modular buildings are often larger and more permanent and are produced in modular or sliced patterns, bolted together on site in a variety of configurations to produce the clients required accommodation. They provide the most environmentally friendly method of construction and generate less than 10 per cent of carbon emissions and use less than 3 per cent of energy during construction.

System buildings are yet more permanent because they comprise steel or timber frame, erected on site to which fixed cladding panels are then produced by a number of different ‘systems’ or designs.

Volumetric units are defined as factory built modules which are typically residential designs or increasingly sophisticated hotel rooms or toilet and bathroom pods for installation in other permanent buildings.

The MPBA tackling modern day issues The leading world Governments today continuously talk about sustainable solutions and what can be done to reduce carbon emissions and conserve energy. There can be no better example of an energy saving construction than a modular building, within which embodied energy is preserved.

In these current times, modular buildings are proving equally efficient if not markedly better than their traditional counterparts, with the added advantage of speed and potentially lower costs depending on an individual client’s specification and requirement.

This fast track solution is also enhanced by the knowledge that through this method, the industry will continue to be focussing on reducing waste.

The MPBA is determined to continue its tireless campaign to promote modular construction as a fast, energy efficient and sustainable solution and uses the skills of the industry to assist or advise on any modular or portable building issues.

The MPBA is fully funded by its members and works for the interest of the future growth and development of the Modular Building industry.

For more information on the MPBA visit the website www. mpba.biz or email mpba@mpba.biz

Don’t Dig Without TSA Guidance Every day, there are newspaper articles about near misses and accidents, even fatalities, disruption to supply and costs of repairs associated with strikes on utility plant and equipment buried in the ground. On average there are “12 deaths every year and over 600 serious injuries.”

In 2003 Dr Mike Farrimond of UK Water Industry Research commented that there are “75,000 incidents of third party damage costing £25million to repair” with “total direct and indirect costs to utilities, industry, society and government of over £3billion per year will continue to rise unless better information and more effective technologies can be made available to those doing the work.” Costs have increased significantly since 2003 but there is now greater recognition of the risk.

Many incidents are entirely preventable if appropriate action is taken prior to breaking ground. This would normally be a combination of desk study to gather all relevant records and

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historical data and survey by the utility companies themselves or experienced utility surveying companies or contractors with appropriately qualified staff. Methodology, techniques, equipment and knowledge all play an important part, but crucially the results need to be correctly interpreted and communicated clearly and precisely to the people working on site.

The Survey Association (TSA) has recently produced a new Guidance Note on Utility Surveys which includes detailed guidance notes for specifying a utility survey. This has been put together after much consultation and as a result of the confusion across industries of what may be required and how the likely results can improve risk when commissioning and undertaking a utility survey prior to any ground breaking.

If your project identifies any potential hazards in the ground and any associated risk then consult the TSA Guidance Note for Utility Surveys downloadable from www.tsa-uk.org.uk and find an experienced TSA member company to help design a survey

to minimise that risk. Neil Harvey, the immediate past President of TSA commented “TSA is incredibly proud that it has again put together a guidance note that will help inform professionals and contractors. Being web based it will be regularly updated reflecting advances in new technology and methodologies keeping it a live, dynamic document.

The Survey Association is keen to have your views and would welcome any feedback on the document from both clients and practitioners. Please pass any comments to the TSA office in Newark (details on the website).

Costs and Risks The considerable risks and costs that result from inaccurate or non-existent sub-surface utility data are not to be taken lightly, writes Colin Murphy, Director of Murphy Surveys.

Recent press coverage has highlighted the negative impact of poor sub-surface utility data on budgets and schedules, and of the failure to include vital site investigation surveys in the planning and design stages of many projects.

With the increase of responsibility on the contractor, especially in the current economic climate, the value of underground utility surveys is becoming even more evident. Without such a survey, problems emerge as the project progresses, such as striking unmapped underground cables, and they can quickly translate into spiralling costs and delays.

Utility company records are often unreliable, and as a result, the integrity of the project data must be further ensured, and risk - which equates to financial loss - eliminated. A range of integrated survey services must be implemented to achieve these goals.

Typically a non-intrusive underground utility survey is employed to identify and map utilities, services and any anomalies beneath the surface. By carrying out desktop, GPR, radio detection,

manhole and topographical surveys, the integration of many techniques provide a complete picture of the site, thus eliminating risks.

The benefits of a professional utility survey include: •• •• •• •• ••

Minimise utility damage Avoid delay and damage costs Design and plan knowing the constraints Reduce traffic management costs Provide an overall view of the site

Mr Colin Murphy, Director of Murphy Surveys

What does it cost?

Very little. The outlay for accurate data and peace of mind is minimal compared to the potential cost of damage resulting from poor site information.

As members of the TSA, Murphy Surveys has been providing cost-effective survey solutions since 1983. www.murphysur veys. co.uk

RenewableUK Offshore Wind Conference 2010 Within a period of a few years RenewableUK’s annual offshore wind conference has become one of the most prestigious and well-attended events of its kind in the world. On the 29th and 30th of June a total of 2000 visitors and delegates is expected to make its way to Liverpool’s Arena, also the venue for last year’s highly successful BWEA31 annual conference.

The steady rise in delegate numbers for the RenewableUK’s offshore conferences bears witness to the dynamic growth of the country’s offshore sector. The UK is currently the first country in the world with over 1GW of capacity installed, but even more significantly there are 40GW+ of projects in the development pipeline, set to deliver over 120TWh of electricity, or a third of UK’s annual consumption.

The sector is also attracting keen interest from some of the world’s best known companies, with £500 million of investment pledged in the first quarter of 2010. Last year’s Offshore Wind Conference attracted a wide international audience, in line with industry trends, as an increasing number of countries including Germany, China and the United States, pursue their own offshore wind projects, while looking at the UK for expertise, know-how and practical experience.

The two day conference programme is packed with high-level speakers, industry oriented conference sessions, latest industry announcements and opportunities to network. The Liverpool Arena has already won numerous plaudits for its high levels of hospitality and there are many accommodation options in the immediate vicinity.

This is set to be an essential event by RenewableUK, and an unmissable date in the annual conference calendar.

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The BWEA: a gathering force for wind and marine power The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) has well and truly come of age as an umbrella body for Britain’s wind and marine renewable industries. The Association now encompasses more than 300 companies active in the renewable sector and its role as a champion for renewable power sources becomes increasingly prominent with each passing year.

In its early years, the BWEA purported to provide advice, guidance and support to its members, and offer a directory of the UK’s leading renewable firms. In 2004, the Association decided to expand its mission to embrace a more public position and become a figurehead for wave and tidal energy. Over the past five years, the Association has lobbied tirelessly for the promotion of renewable energy and is now recognised as a font of facts and figures illustrating the benefits of wind and marinebased power.

The BWEA’s findings have earned a stream of support in high places. In October 2008, the Association published a report emphasising that the wind industry is one of Europe’s highestgrowth sectors and arguing that wind wave and tidal energy projects could drive job creation and stimulate sectors of the economy crucial to delivering the country’s 2020 renewable energy targets. In March 2009, this report received the backing of Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and the Association believes his endorsement will pave the way for firm action on renewable energy.

In addition to publishing research about the benefits of wind and marine energy, the Association is now a familiar presence in the corridors of the Houses of Parliament and holds regular gala receptions. In January last year, the BWEA held its first parliamentary reception of 2009, featuring a keynote speech from Huw Irranca-Davies MP, the Parliamentary UnderSecretary at Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who has Ministerial responsibility for the Marine bill.

The event was attended by several ministers and shadow ministers, including the Rt. Hon Stephen Timms MP, financial secretary to the treasury; Richard Benyon MP, shadow marine minister and Lord Teverson, climate change spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats.

As well as working closely with the Government and senior politicians, the BWEA endeavours to build firm relations with regional bodies and local authorities throughout the UK, as well as the business community, the media and the public. The Association organises a series of annual conferences as well as the industry’s annual conference and exhibition, BWEA31, and runs a series of networking events, BWEA Connect, which are free for members.

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These flagship occasions are augmented with regular meetings and informal workshops and the BWEA lends its support to a host of conferences and exhibitions run by other similarly prominent umbrella bodies. Each activity is conducted with openness and accessibility; indeed all information provided by the BWEA on behalf of the renewable industry is made freely available on its website (www.bwea.com), which has won awards for presentation and content.

Renewable firms clearly see the benefits of alignment with the BWEA. In 2007, the Association’s membership grew by 15% - a rate of increase that compares favourably with any other umbrella trade body in the UK. In the same year the BWEA’s executive complement increased from 14 to 21 staff, almost entirely devoted to policy and communications which reflects the Association’s commitment to getting its point across and hitting the right audience with the right message.

The BWEA is committed to cementing its position in the vanguard of the UK renewable industry through a raft of events over the coming months. In April 2009, the BWEA spearheaded the inaugural International Small Wind Conference, the first ever global event for small wind system providers ever held in the UK. The event was co-hosted by the BRE, a world leader in sustainable development, and was held at the BRE’s offices in Watford. The conference included seminars, educational sessions and networking opportunities and brought all constituents of the global sector together with a common focus on renewable energy policy, international markets, technology awareness, technical research, and educational issues.

Attendees were drawn from the international micro-generation industry, national government bodies, policy making agencies, the financial sector, the construction sector, academia, the media, as well as consumers and businesses who were interested in generating their own clean green renewable energy.

Later in the same month, the BWEA hosted the world’s largest event dedicated to wave and tidal stream energy. Known as BWEA Wave and Tidal 09, the event took place in Bath with sponsorship from the South West Regional Development Agency.

Over 300 government and industry professionals attended and over 25 companies were on display at the accompanying exhibition, which had to be extended due to demand. A networking reception the evening before the conference, at Bath’s historic Pump Rooms also provided an early opportunity for attendees to meet, socialise and bounce ideas off one another and created a melting pot for new theories and initiatives.

For information on these and other events please visit the BWEA’s website or phone 020 7689 1960.

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Japanese knotweed – a nightmare or a manageable problem?

Why is Japanese knotweed such an expensive problem on so many construction sites today? The focus on the re-development of Brownfield sites in recent years has meant that many contractors have had to deal with the problem that is Japanese knotweed. Failure to recognise or manage this problem in good time can lead to potentially unnecessary and costly last minute solutions.

There have been discussions about new treatments for Japanese knotweed; one potential treatment is a biological control. This would involve the introduction of the sap sucking Aphalara psyllid from Japan. This is a host specific bug i.e. it won’t create new problems with other plants. There are many advantages to biological control, not least that it will reduce the vigour (and hence spread) of large areas of Japanese knotweed, which are currently not being treated.

However, the release of biological organisms into a new environment is strictly controlled and is subject to scrutiny and legislation. Once the decision has been taken to release this insect, it could take up to 10 years before it controls Japanese knotweed successfully and it is not guaranteed to eradicate the Japanese knotweed completely. Developers will still need to factor in sufficient costs and time to manage any knotweed on site.

The key challenges for the battle to control Japanese knotweed

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in the next few years are likely to be getting the necessary funds to treat the large land bank that developers and others have. While this should be through a relatively inexpensive herbicide programme, lasting a minimum of three years, there is a temptation to not spend the necessary money. This may not be the best strategy as with every year that passes, the knotweed will cover larger areas on the re-development sites and, when the time comes to develop the site, the solution may prove very expensive. To put matters into perspective a herbicide programme for a small area of knotweed on a site (20m² of visible growth), may cost as little as £2000.00+VAT to treat over 3-4 years. At an

annual cost of £500.00+VAT, this is not an expensive option and, if you have the time, why not use it? You could even claim Land Remediation Relief for the work! To contrast this, a budget cost for the ‘dig and dump’ methodology ranges from £800.00 (ex VAT) to £2500.00 (ex VAT) per 20-tonne load. To excavate the 20m² as above would consist of more than ten such loads.

Within the Japanese knotweed industry, there are a number of new techniques that are being developed. One developing technique is that of reduced level excavation (typically to formation level), and then encapsulating the knotweed under a specialist root barrier. Root barriers can then be sealed effectively to the new or existing buildings structure provided always that the surface to be sealed to is clean and firm. This technique can be cost effective and is an approved method of dealing with Japanese knotweed.

Construction companies may wish to keep Japanese knotweed away from their sites, and indeed there have been instances of knotweed being imported onto site in loads of crushed concrete or soil. The more usual problem that arises on construction sites is when knotweed is already present on site and is spread in an uncontrolled manner across the whole site.

Trevor Renals of the Environment Agency states that: “Japanese knotweed is unlike any waste a developer is likely

Ensuring a bright future for the past

to encounter on a Brownfield site. If you remove 99% of most contaminants, the tiny residual that gets spread around the site usually doesn’t do much harm. Try that with Japanese knotweed and within a few years you’re back to where you started. It is a waste that can perpetuate itself, which is why we have to be so strict with its management.”

Costs can escalate if knotweed is spread by site clearance or demolition works across the area to be developed; typically remediation costs will rise tenfold.

If you have or suspect you have Japanese knotweed on your development site, than you need to take the following steps: • Identify the problem. Is it knotweed?

• Quantify the problem. How big an area(s) does it cover?

• What options are available for this site?

• How much time is available to manage this problem?

A professional Japanese knotweed company could provide you with simple cost effective solutions, so that when you need to develop the site, you are able to do so. However they can only do this, if they have enough time.

The answer to whether it is a nightmare or a manageable problem is in reality down to the options that you have. The more time you have to manage the problem, the more options you will have. If you have time, use it wisely! groups of people.

Examples given include Oxford Archaeology East, who were awarded a ‘Your Heritage Grand’ to search for the lost Bishop’s Palace at Wisbech castle. This project engaged the local community, bringing in many local volunteers and encouraged the local community to ‘own’ their heritage Nexus Heritage discuss their work in the Sahel of West Africa, mapping the landscape and finding sites that are an important part of the heritage of local people. Archaeological Project Services have run a project which has developed a history of the area known as South Holland, (one which has always had a large migrant population). This project has been carried out in

The Institute for Archaeologists (IfA) is the professional institute that represents archaeology and allied disciplines in the in UK. It has over 2800 individual members and over 60 Registered Organisations.

The institute operates a Registered Organisations scheme which is the only one of its kind in the historic environment and the scheme’s logo is a kitemark which assures quality work.

Registered Organisations in this scheme carry out a range of archaeological work, some of which is showcased in the IfA Yearbook and Directory of Members, published in March 2010. This year’s theme is ‘What’s the use of archaeology?’ which demonstrates how archaeological work can contribute to community development, help form identities and empower ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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A s s o c i ati o n s a manner that appeals to the diverse range of people who live there and has resulted in the publication of a book which will be translated into a number of languages.

This year the IfA are also publishing their new strategic plan for the next 10 years. The organisation changed its name last year (from the Institute of Field Archaeologists to the Institute for Archaeologists), as a means of demonstrating that their membership was broader than field archaeology alone and this new strategic plan takes their aims further still. The IfA will continue to expand the profile of archaeology and ensure that the study and care of the historic environment brings real benefit to people’s lives.

Later this year, the new Planning Policy Statement 15 (PPS15) is due to be published which will replace PPGs 15 and 16 in England. These have been in existence since 1990 and are the policies that have allowed commercial archaeology to develop in England. The new PPS, which will comprise a high level policy document and practice guide, has been consulted on and is now in the final drafting stages. The IfA has responded to the consultation on this new legislation in one of the many consultations that they respond to, in order to influence high level decision-making. Planning policy reform is also underway in Scotland, and the IfA has also contributed to this at the consultation stage.

The IfA has a wide range of members whose skills embrace not solely traditional archaeological excavation, but a wide range of other activities within the heritage sector. The IfA also represents those involved in education and those with

a curatorial role. For instance, the Royal Commission for the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland, an IfARegistered Organisation, was featured in a BBC Radio 4 series ‘Ankle High History’ focussing on efforts to encourage local communities to record and interpret their local landscapes.

Over 2800 people have so far joined the IfA. Membership is open to anybody who works within the historic environment, whether they are employed or voluntary. Individuals achieve membership after rigorous peer review of their technical and ethical competence, and can be identified as corporate members by using the appropriate post-nominal letters: PIfA, AIfA or MIfA. The IfA also has two non-corporate grades: Student and Affiliate. All members agree to abide by the organisation’s Code of Conduct, because all archaeologists have a duty to adhere to the highest professional and ethical standards.

The IfA continues to develop (and enforce) standards for use within the sector – widely accepted as the general standards for archaeological work. It is important in these difficult times not to lose sight of the need to maintain these high standards.

Although the Institute cannot ‘solve’ the current economic downturn, it aims to put its members and the sector in the best position to recover from it.

Inquiries about Institute and its work should be directed to: Tim Howard, Institute for Archaeologists, SHES, The University of Reading, Whiteknights, PO Box 227, Reading, RG6 6AB. Email: tim.howard@archaeologists.net Tel:0118 378 6446.

Providing a vital service to the construction industry The British Pest Control Association (BPCA) promotes the highest standards of professionalism within the pest control industry. Formed in 1942, it plays a major role in enhancing these standards by way of training courses and examinations, publications, exhibitions and conferences.

The aims of the association are to represent a responsible industry committed to the control of public health pests without risk to the general public, non-target animals and the environment; represent the interests and opinions of the UK pest control industry; encourage high standards of professionalism within the industry and explain the role of the industry and its benefits to the community.

The role of pest control in the construction industry Rats and mice have caused serious fires by gnawing the insulation off electrical cables, floods by puncturing pipes, and have been known to chew holes in gas pipes. Pigeons and starlings incur substantial cleaning costs to remove their nests and droppings, which are also reservoirs of insect infestation, can block guttering and damage stonework. In all aspects of pest control, prevention is better than cure and measures should be taken to proof buildings against bird and rodent damage.

Mice can squeeze through a gap of just 10mm, therefore, it is imperative that in the construction of buildings all gaps are sealed, drains have U-bends, and any other gaps (such as grilles and the space under doors) are proofed. Selection of the right systems and their installation and integration is a specialist job, which should only be undertaken by a trained professional.

By choosing a British Pest Control Association member company, you are ensuring that the contractor is able to provide a thoroughly professional and consistent service. Before being able to join the BPCA as a full member, the business must

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initially be able to meet, and then maintain, the rigorous criteria laid down for membership.

On site reassessments are conducted on all members every three years and member companies must conform to the Association’s Code of Practice and Code of Conduct.

Members are listed on the BPCA website at www.bpca.org.uk.

The BPCA also has the facility to provide a postcode search for the closest member company to you.

ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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