Premier Construction 16-4

Roma Publications

Volume 16 - Issue 4

Exclusive interview with Lembit Opik RIBA Award winners 2011 Aberdeen Airport The £10 million extension of the main runway is underway

“Don’t be dammed, make it a Beaver…”

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Contents PREMIER CONSTRUCTION

Volume 16 • Issue 4

Dear readers, Roma Publications Ltd would like to apologise for an error on page 46 in issue 16-3 of Premier Construction. The editorial on Arun District Council Decent Homes project should have highlighted R Benson Property Maintenance Ltd as main contractors on this project after Connaught Construction, originally appointed as main contractors, went into administration.

Architectural excellence is high on the agenda this month as Premier Construction takes a look at this year’s crop of RIBA award winners These include an Eco friendly Woodland Trust HQ, a striking new village hall at Raasay, Scotland, an innovative extension to a Victorian terraced house in London, Bethnal Green’s town hall reborn as a luxury hotel, a home designed by an architect for his own family, a London adventure playground and, surprisingly, two new housing developments - one in Southwark and the other near Dunoon - just to name a few.

Another highlight in this issue is Premier Construction’s exclusive interview with leading Liberal Democrat figure and media personality Lembit Opik, who commends the recently completed project to refurbish and transform Condover Hall - one of Britain’s most impressive stately homes - into a new Educational Centre in Shrewsbury. He hails the project at “A success story right from the start.”

Moving from Shrewsbury to London, we call in to take a look at the construction progress of the prestigious new £70 million Grange Tower Bridge Hotel, set to redefine luxury accommodation and conferencing facilities within the famous Tower Bridge district.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the country, we zoom in on a team of construction high fliers who are taking Aberdeen airport to a completely new level with the construction of a £10 million extension to the main runway.

And that’s just a taste of things to come - read on and find out more!

Follow Premier Construction on: Twitter: twitter.com/PCbyRoma Weblog: http://premierconstruction.wordpress.com

Managing Director: Marcus Howarth Editor:

Lesley Coward

Production Manager: Kelsie Howarth Advert Co-ordinator: Nicola Owen

Published by:

Roma Publications Ltd.

t: 01706 719 972 f: 0845 458 4446 e: admin@romauk.net

Graphic Design by:

www.marcusmacaulay.co.uk

RIBA Awards Town Hall Hotel.................................................................................................12 Kilburn Grange Park Adventure Playground..................................................20

North West ColorMatrix Expansion ....................................................................................28 Prototype eco home on the move to Rusholme ............................................31

North East & Yorkshire Revamped Hall to become a class act ..........................................................32

Midlands & East Anglia Exclusive interview with Lembit Opik on Condover Hall ..............................36 Sidney Stringer Academy................................................................................44

South West Chedworth Roman Villa ..................................................................................48 Gyllyngdune Gardens.......................................................................................51

London & South East Grange Tower Bridge Hotel ............................................................................54 TAG Farnborough Airport................................................................................59

Wales New extra care housing schemes...................................................................90

Scotland Aberdeen Airport main runway underway .....................................................94 A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch Bypass......................................................102

Ireland Empowering Ireland .......................................................................................110

Heritage English Heritage ..............................................................................................120 Lead Contractors Association.........................................................................125

Associations Construction Skills .........................................................................................126 NFRC...............................................................................................................130

www.premierconstructionmagazine.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.

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Birmingham Metro extension out to tender Centro, the West Midlands passenger transport executive, has published a contract notice for the £129m extension of the Midland Metro into the centre of Birmingham.

The extension from Snow Hill Station to a rebuilt New Street Station remains on course for completion by 2015, having been spared in the government’s comprehensive spending review and

given £75m funding by the Department for Transport.

The Birmingham city centre extension works will provide an extension to the existing Midland Metro line 1 from its current terminus at Snow Hill Station through to Stephenson Street to provide interchange with new street station and gateway project.

Work will include new track and associated infrastructure connecting into the existing line 1 system, construction of four new tram stops, road resurfacing works, and structural and drainage improvements to the existing brick arched Network Rail Snow Hill viaduct.

Construction is expected to take 30 months to complete.

The joint project by Centro, the Black Country and Birmingham City councils, is expected to boost the West Midlands economy by £50m a year and create up to 1,300 jobs.

Midland Metro line 1 opened in 1999 and now carries more than 5.2 million passengers a year between Wolverhampton and Birmingham.

Durkan revives North Circular homes in £10m contract Durkan is refurbishing 280 derelict houses in the Bounds Green area of North London, as part of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) drive to bring empty homes back into use.

The £10 million contract, awarded by Notting Hill Housing Trust, includes the internal and external refurbishment of houses and flats, complete with new kitchens and bathrooms, bringing them up to affordable living standards by spring 2012.

The houses have been empty since the 1970s, when they were bought by the Department of Transport for a long-since abandoned scheme to widen the A406 North Circular Road.

Problems with fly tipping, neglect, and overgrown vegetation have made some of the homes in the Bounds Green area uninhabitable.

The homes were inherited by Transport for London (TfL) in 2000. Many were left uninhabitable and no money was invested in their repair. In October 2010, the homes were purchased, with funding from the HCA, by Notting Hill Housing Trust (NHHT), which has contracted Durkan to refurbish and upgrade 280 homes to become affordable housing. Notting Hill Housing also purchased a number of vacant sites and commercial properties and is working with Enfield Council on regenerating the area.

Squatters had to be evicted form 50 of the properties before work could start.

Balfour Beatty consortium wins £317m offshore power asset A Balfour Beatty consortium has been appointed preferred bidder for the transmission assets of the Greater Gabbard offshore wind farm project, off the coast of Suffolk.

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City of London scheme to start on site Land Securities has secured planning permission for a 375,000 sq ft office redevelopment in the City of London and is set to start on site next month.

The mixed-use development at 30 Old Bailey and 60 Ludgate Hill will replace current 1960s properties with new office accommodation, new restaurant and retail facilities, improved pedestrian links and new public areas.

Demolition is expected to start next month (July) and completion of the scheme is scheduled for December 2013.

The Old Bailey scheme is designed

by German architects Sauerbruch Hutton. It will offer 195,000 sq ft of office space across nine levels with floors averaging 22,600 sq ft.

60 Ludgate Hill, located on one of the City of London’s principal routes has been designed by London-based architects Fletcher Priest.

It will offer 152,000 sq ft of prime office space and 25,000 sq ft of retail and restaurants, as well as a new pedestrian thoroughfare. It is also nine storeys.

“This is the latest part of our clear plan to deliver over two million sq ft of new space by April 2014,” said Colette O’Shea, Land Securities’ head of development, London portfolio.

The contract is part of the Offshore Transmission Owners (OFTO) regulatory regime.

Ownership of the Great Gabbard OFTO is worth an estimated £317m to Balfour Beatty Capital, Equitix and AMP Capital, which each hold a one third equal share of the project.

After financial close Balfour Beatty will jointly own the 504MW offshore high-voltage transmission asset and will be responsible for operation and maintenance as well as connecting the wind farm to the onshore electricity grid. The OFTO will carry out its responsibilities through a 20-year licence awarded by the regulator Ofgem.

This is the final and the largest project to be awarded in the first transitional round comprising nine OFTO assets. Combined with the Thanet offshore wind farm asset, Greater Gabbard gives

Balfour Beatty the leading investor position in this new and growing market, with responsibility for £480m of OFTO transmission assets with a combined transmission capacity of 804MW. Balfour Beatty has also recently been selected by Ofgem to participate in the next round of bidding for three more OFTO assets which have a combined capital value of £1.0 billion.

Balfour Beatty chief executive Ian Tyler said: “Greater Gabbard is a significant step in the development of our non-PPP infrastructure investment business as well as our wider strategy of developing our delivery capability in the offshore renewables industry. It firmly places Balfour Beatty in a leading position within the fast growing and potentially very large offshore transmission markets, and provides a stable long term income stream to the group.”

£80 million Enfield estate project for Mullaley

PMI survey points to construction growth

Essex-based Mulalley has been awarded an £80m contract to regenerate the Ladderswood Estate in Enfield, north London.

UK construction companies reported a marked rise in new business wins last month and construction activity increased.

The Markit/CIPS UK Construction Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) survey for May signalled “a solid expansion of activity”.

However, civil engineering contractors saw a reduction in activity for the first time in five months. House-building expanded after posting a contraction in April, but the rate of increase was below the long-run trend. Commercial construction was again the strongest performing of three broad sectors, for the second month running.

UK construction companies reported a marked rise in incoming new business during May that was in line with the historical average. Anecdotal evidence suggested that a general increase in opportunities to tender and the conclusion of protracted contract negotiations had led to the latest rise in new business.

Sustained growth of both new contract wins and activity led to an overall increase in employment in May that was the first since June 2010. However, the rate of job creation was modest, with continuing reports by some companies of limited new work and job cuts acting to moderate the overall increase in staffing levels. Meanwhile, subcontractor usage continued to fall.

Markit economist Sarah Ledger, author of the UK Construction PMI, said: “Construction sector activity grew again in May, with the rate of expansion accelerating slightly since April. Moreover, new order growth was marked, suggesting that increasing levels of output will be sustained.

“A look at the sub-sectors monitored shows a mixed picture, with levels of civil engineering activity down markedly, but a return to growth for housing. Commercial output growth was broadly consistent month-on-month, with the average for the quarter so far outpacing that of Q1.

“Positive sentiment regarding future business activity rose to a one-year high, although concerns over public sector spending cuts continue to weigh on confidence.”

In partnership with One Housing, Mulalley will build 491 new homes, a new community centre and more than 3,000 sq m of commercial space, along with associated public and highway improvements.

The development team was appointed by Enfield borough council.

A planning application is now be prepared by Mulalley and One Housing with the former Sir John Lawrence pub as the first site to be developed.

Building will start in early 2012 and the first properties will become available in 2014.

The development meets Enfield council’s core strategy requirements of providing 60% private and 40% affordable housing. Almost 100 new family sized dwellings will be provided.

Cllr Del Goddard, cabinet member for business and regeneration, said; “The regeneration of Ladderswood is the first major flagship project for Enfield Council, and the appointment of Mulalley and One Housing marks an important milestone for the project.

Cllr Ahmet Oykener, cabinet member for housing, said; “Ladderswood is the first of several estate renewal programmes that the council is leading on. This development will provide new, sustainable housing for Enfield residents and will increase the supply of affordable housing in the borough, in particular increasing the supply of family-sized housing.

Follow Premier Construction on: Twitter: twitter.com/PCbyRoma Weblog: http://premierconstruction.wordpress.com www.premierconstructionmagazine.co.uk

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Prestigious awards honour exceptional architecture 8

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The recently presented prestigious RIBA awards judged new buildings in the UK, Europe and further afield to find the 2011 RIBA Award winners and RIBA International Award winners.

RIBA Awards are for buildings in the UK by RIBA Chartered Architects and RIBA International Fellows, or for buildings in the rest of the EU by RIBA Chartered Architects.

RIBA International Awards are for buildings outside the EU by RIBA Chartered Architects and RIBA International Fellows.

Now in its sixth year, the Lubetkin Prize shortlist is drawn from winners of RIBA International Awards. These are for buildings outside the EU by RIBA Chartered Architects and RIBA International Fellows. The Lubetkin Prize is presented at the RIBA Stirling Prize dinner to the best RIBA International Award winner.

Judging criteria for the awards includes: budget; size; complexity of brief; detail; invention/originality; contract type; client satisfaction; sustainability; social factors and delight.

This year’s RIBA award-winning buildings range geographically

from a winery in Spain to a community hall on the Scottish Hebridean island of Raasay, and in style from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford to ‘Love Shack’ - a self-build hideaway in the Lake District National Park.

The recently completed Velodrome is the first ever 2012 Olympics event building to win an architecture prize and is one of five RIBA Awards for Hopkins Architects, a practice previously shortlisted three times for the RIBA Stirling Prize.

2011 has been an exceptional year for private houses which constitute 17 out of 89 UK winners. Schools and universities have also flourished with 14 schools (including three BSF projects and two Academies) and 9 university buildings winning awards. Last year’s RIBA Stirling Prize winner, Zaha Hadid, is an award winner this year with the Evelyn Grace Academy in South London.

Three very different health buildings – the NHS Teenage Cancer Trust in Birmingham, Foster + Partner’s private Circle Hospital in Bath and a new Maggie’s Cancer Care centre in Cheltenham – showcase carefully designed, comfortable spaces to aid patient wellbeing.

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RIBA accolade for challenging project 10

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One of London’s Grade II listed buildings, lovingly brought back to life with a modern, chic new look as a new 98-room luxury hotel, has achieved one of the country’s most prestigious architectural awards.

Recently completed, the Town Hall Hotel is a new hotel, restaurant and bar housed within the old Bethnal Green Town Hall, at the heart of London’s burgeoning East End. Involving the provision of a contemporary extension comprising a new top floor and wing, the project also included the restoration and refurbishment of the existing listed building.

And in recognition of the project’s architectural merit, the Royal Institute of British Architects announced the Town Hall Hotel as one of the winners of the 2011 RIBA Awards.

The RIBA Awards celebrate architectural excellence and the hotel is now on the shortlist for the RIBA Stirling Prize for the building of the year.

Originally constructed in 1910, the Edwardian town hall on Cambridge Heath Road was extended in 1937 onto Patriot Square, where the entrance to the new hotel can now be found.

Through the years, the building housed the area’s municipal administration, but was victim to numerous modifications insensitive to its preservation and finally fell out of use and was vacated in 1993.

Used only as a location for films and television, the building was left to decay in the intervening years until it was bought in 2007 by Singaporean hotelier Peng Loh. Architects Rare, a partnership between Michel da Costa Gonçalves and Nathalie Rozencwajg, were tasked with designing the luxury hotel, while also being sensitive to the existing building.

Their brief was also to restore the building and add to its volume with an extension. Rare saw the project as the building’s ‘third age’, after the 1910 and 1937 phases, and an opportunity to reinvent and restore a forgotten architectural treasure of the East End.

The design and build project was undertaken by MP Brothers Ltd, who brought the architectural designs from the drawing board to reality in this complex and challenging scheme.

Nathalie Rozencwajg said: “Opportunities like this arrive very seldom: a beautiful, stately building; a visionary owner.

A project like this is more than simply work, it has taken over our imaginations and it will take pride of place on our books for years to come.”

Michel da Costa Gonçalves added: “We have been involved at every stage of the process, from planning out the generous space for each apartment to reflecting the traditional craftsmanship of the first builders in cutting-edge techniques for wood and metal-work.

“The building plays with the division and connection between old and new and is a reinvention as well as a restoration – one which we hope will become a treasured landmark for East London.”

Despite the building being on the at-risk register, Rare’s considered approach to the project, a guiding concept of the development and use of traditional techniques and motifs within contemporary cutting edge design and manufacturing technologies, won the approval of English Heritage and planning permission was granted by Tower Hamlets.

The extension to the building, a new wing that stands behind the original 1910 structure and an additional floor that sits atop the flat roof of the 1937 extension, provides a further 1500 square metres of accommodation.

Wrapped entirely by a laser cut powder coated aluminium skin, no windows or doors are externally visible, allowing it to create a striking abstract backdrop to the original structure, while simultaneously making a definite statement as new architecture.

The pattern cut into the skin was taken from a pattern book Rare developed for the project. The effect of the pattern cut into the skin is performative, allowing natural light into the rooms behind it, while also preserving the privacy of those both inside and out.

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The dimensions of each of the 98 rooms are different, something dictated by the nature of the building and its listed status, therefore allowing it to provide 98 unique layouts.

Rare performed an entire internal re-planning of the space in the building and inserted zones of contemporary hotel comfort into these rooms with what they call their ‘spatial furniture’.

The reinvention and restoration of the existing building was driven by Rare’s intensive research of the town hall’s archive of original design elements and realised by numerous highly skilled craftspeople; bringing the building back to its former glorious grandeur, breathing new life into marble floors, ornate moulded ceilings, Edwardian and Art Deco detailing.

In addition to the residential accommodation Rare has also provided a new 14 metre titanium tiled lap pool in the basement, restored the Conference Room and Mayor’s Room for functions and provided a separate bar and restaurant in the Edwardian wing of the building.

The imposing Edwardian frontage and neo-classical façade have been restored and preserved. The new space added to the roof is discreetly set back from the frontage, but then forms a stunning new rear facade, which marries together three phases of construction.

Speaking of the construction challenges of this prestigious project Mr Suresh Rabdiya of MP Brothers said: “As the design and build project we were in charge of the whole project team and responsible for bringing the scheme off the drawing board.

We took the original proposals and had to work out how to construct and co-ordinate the scheme to maintain the original concept of the architects through the life of the project.”

“We were responsible for the whole value engineering of the project and for putting everything together. This was not a straightforward project since the design involves many curves and angles and varying degrees of pitches. The work also involved close co-ordination of the whole scheme in terms of the roof, steelwork, facade and cladding, with the main feature being the facade which was in sheet metal. There were four ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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or five sub contractors involved in this element of the project, together with a separate architect design team and structural engineers, with all the works being undertaken in liaison with English Heritage” said Mr Rabdiya.

He added that another challenge was posed by the fact that every one of the hotel’s bedrooms features a different design - from bathroom designs to floor finishes and doors, requiring particularly close co-ordination with the architects throughout.

“At every stage, the project required careful cost control, whist remaining faithful to the original architect’s concept. However we took on the challenge on and have successfully completed the project” said Mr Rabdiya.

Major players take project from preplanning to timely completion Working in the role of project managers and quantity surveyors, Barrie Tankel Partnership (BTP) were appointed by the client well before they purchased the property. They took the project from the purchase point to handover and the opening of the hotel.

Working with the architect, BTP assisted with the management of the planning process, procurement of the contractors and construction right through to completion, through the whole life of the project.

“Our role included agreeing on the strategy and putting forward the planning application, working out what was required and what professionals were needed to be brought into place from day one to ensure that the project was successful, whilst also being mindful of the client’s timetable, ensuring that the project was completed on time. I am pleased that this was achieved to the required schedule” said Mr Charles Halvieim of BTP. He added that one of the challenges of the project was the need to comply both with the requirements of English Heritage and to come up with commercially cost effective solutions when working on the building, which included both Grade 1 ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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and Grade 11 Listed elements. “We also needed to keep in mind the construction programme and ensure that everyone was briefed as to what the requirements were throughout the scheme” he added.

Regarding choosing the right contractor he said: “We chose the route of negotiated tender and made the chosen contractor part of our team to ensure that we got the very best out of all the sub contractors - and by specifying a design and build arrangement, albeit with a high level of specification being provided we knew that we would get the quality and value for money that we wanted at the end of the day.”

Fiske - craftsmen in fine furniture Fiske supplied all the loose furniture for the Town Hall Hotel project. A workforce of 50 make all the furniture supplied by the company, using a variety of imported woods such as Oak, Beech and Teak.

In addition, Fiske have supplied loose furniture to other hotels in this chain in Singapore, including Hotel 1929 and New Majestic.

A furniture company dedicated to the creation of well crafted furniture in timeless designs, Fiske was founded in 1995, when it specialised in importing and restoring mid-century classic pieces, mainly from Scandinavia.

As time went on, the company’s own workshop started to make their own range of furniture and soon private individuals, architects and interior designers started to request special pieces for their homes, as well as for projects such as restaurants and hotels.

Fiske makes each piece by hand, one at a time in their own workshop, using a team of talented craftsmen experienced in

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the time honoured tradition of creating fine furniture.

Unrivalled craftsmanship in the fine art of ornate plasterwork Ornate plasterwork specialist craftsmen Plasterite carried out two phases of work at the Town Hotel, comprising restoration and new design plasterwork.

The majority of the restoration work was undertaken in the building’s large listed ballroom on the first floor, which in the past had been partially converted to another use, resulting in the fact that half of the ballroom’s original intricate and ornate plasterwork ceiling was missing and needed to be restored.

The works involved re-making the missing half of the ceiling to match the existing half. “This was a very, very ornate barrel ceiling, with every square metre covered in ornate plasterwork” said Mr Allen Paterson of Plasterite.

Other work included single repairs where sections of plasterwork, including ornate cornices, had fallen away and needed to be re-cast from the original and replaced seamlessly.

Sevenoaks-based Plasterite is headed by Mr Paterson, who has been a master of his trade having started work as a plasterer in the City of London in 1959, before establishing Plasterite in 1972. More recently, his three sons have joined the business.

“We tend to get contracts through people such as conservation officers who know that we have been in business for a long time and have the experience and expertise to do a good job” said Mr Paterson.

Prestigious plasterwork projects carried out by the firm include schemes at Leeds Castle, Merryworth Castle, Hever Castle and Penthurst Place.

Award-winning homes are “A fine example of what Scotland needs” A unique low-energy housing scheme, shortlisted for a major RIBA award, has been opened in a ringing endorsement from a government minister who described it as ‘a fine example of what is needed throughout Scotland’.

Mr Alex Neil, Scottish Minister for Housing and Communities officially opened Tigh- NaCladach in Dunoon – a development from Fyne Initiatives, the commercial subsidiary of Housing Association Fyne Homes.

Tigh-Na-Cladach, which is Gaelic for ‘Houses by the Shore’ were designed by Architect Gokay Devici who took inspiration from Brighton Beach Huts with their terraced arrangement along the shoreline.

The project was one of ten Scottish buildings that were recently recognised for their architectural excellence by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). They are now being considered for the £20,000 RIBA Stirling Prize, which is awarded to the building of the year.

Tigh-Na-Cladach, boasting an unrivalled location with spectacular views over the Firth of Clyde and less than a mile from Dunoon, consists of 15 homes.

Features include private roof-top spaces and gardens. With energy consumption in mind, the properties also benefit from Passivhaus technologies including super insulation and triple-glazing.

The scheme boasts the First Passivhaus for Scotland, the first affordable Passivhaus for the UK, a Scottish Saltire Housing Design Awards 2010 commendation and also demonstrates that low energy homes can also be affordable.

Passivhaus or ‘Passive House’ is the fastest growing energy performance standard in the world with 30,000 buildings realised to date, the majority of those since 2000. The Passivhaus Standards strengths lie in the simplicity of its approach; build a house that has an excellent thermal performance, exceptional airtightness with mechanical ventilation!

Fourteen homes, a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom properties were all sold within a couple of months of completion to mainly first

time buyers through the Scottish Government’s Shared Equity purchasing scheme known as ‘LIFT’.

Architect Gokay Deveci, who is also a professor at the Robert Gordon University Aberdeen, said: “Success with any type of building project all comes down to good teamwork and wouldn’t have been possible without a quality contractor. John Brown (Strone) Ltd has been a joy to work with and have undertaken the work with great care and attention to detail.

“I would also like to thank the supplier of the closed wall timber kit system, RTC Timber systems, Morham and Brotchie Quantity Surveyors, Ramage Young Ltd, Engineers, NHBC, Pentran Planning Supervisors, and the SPHC. Gokay Deveci is a chartered architect and is able to draw on a wide range of experience from private practice. His main contribution to research has been in the field of innovative housing design, especially relating to low cost solutions that use appropriate technology and building materials. His projects have won a series of design awards and he is an expert member of European TASK 28: Sustainable Solar Housing, where he represents Scotland. He is also accredited in ‘Sustainable Design’, with specific innovation and research achievement by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).

Gokay’s research-based practice unit is based in the Scott Sutherland School, specialising in the design of affordable and sustainable housing. His main research objective is to ensure that ‘affordability’ is not achieved at the expense of architectural design or construction quality and that design solutions meets the requirements of best practice in environmental sustainability.

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Architects scoop honours for prestigious bank HQ project Leading Denmark-based architectural practice 3XN (3XNielsen) has just won a prestigious 2011 Royal Institute of British Architect’s (RIBA) European Award for a project to design a head office for Middelfart Savings Bank.

“This was certainly good news and we were all very happy about the award” said Mr Kim Herforth-Nielsen of 3XN. “This project is much more than a bank building, it is a facility for the whole community” he added. “Our aim was to design a building that fits into the small town of Middlefart whilst at the same time creating a community facility.”

Projects from all over the Europe were reviewed in the selection, and it is recognised as being one of the most prestigious International Architectural Awards in Europe. The project was reviewed and personally visited by the RIBA Jury on two separate visits earlier this year.

Middelfart Savings Bank is a key institution in the town of Middelfart, located by the Lillebælt waters on the island of Funen, Denmark. Thus the savings bank wanted their new head office at Havnegade 21, to provide a new public space for the local citizens as well as an architectural icon for the town and the savings bank.

The 5,000 sq m new building constructed by the roof and facade contractors HS Hansen is far from just a bank and thus the head office created in the project is not just a traditional office building. The bank is a realisation of its ambition to be amongst the best workplaces in Denmark and – at the same time – act as a social agent in the local community. 3XN interpreted these ambitions into a tactile design, understanding architecture as a comprehensive framework for social life.

The building is characterised by a dramatic roofscape accommodating multiple functions. 83 prism-like skylights compose the spectacular roof surface defining the geometry of the building – in reference to the maritime environment as well as the surrounding timber framed buildings. Thus, the new head office gently reflects and interacts with the dimensions, scales, roofs and cornice lines of the old town.

The roof is specially designed to frame a perfect view towards the water while at the same time shading from direct sunlight; thereby demonstrating a perfect synergy

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between design and function.

A bookshop, a café, a real estate agent and the cash desk are placed around a central plaza, resulting in the building forming an informal public meeting space at the ground floor level. The savings bank work stations are located on three open terraces internally connected by broad staircases encouraging interaction and informal meetings or breaks. All plateaux are endowed with plenty of daylight and an unhindered view to the water.

The working environment is further improved by sustainable features such as natural ventilation and the latest technologies in energy efficient heating and cooling. Thermo active concrete elements facilitate energy savings of 30-50 percent.

Kim Herforth Nielsen, Principal and Founder of 3XN says, “It is great that Danish architects are receiving such awareness and respect around the world lately.”

The project has been referred to as Denmark’s best office building by a leading Danish architecture critic. Since then, the project has received widespread attention from around the world for its iconic architecture and social philosophy combination. It has previously been awarded the MIPIM/ Architectural Review Future Projects Award in 2006 and IIDA Global Excellence Awards 2010, Honorable Mention.

3XN was founded as Nielsen, Nielsen and Nielsen in Aarhus in 1986 by the architects Kim Herforth Nielsen, Lars Frank Nielsen (partner until 2002) and Hans Peter Svendler Nielsen (partner until 1992). The three Nielsen architects, often referred to as the Nielsens – and today simply as 3XN – quickly became known for two things: their preference for ground-breaking architecture, in defiance of the anti-humanistic modernism, and projects demanding a high level of detail and employing workmanship of the highest quality.

3XN Architects define their philosophy as “Architecture shapes behaviour. That is why we try to create places where people can interact and communicate and where synergy can grow. We believe that buildings, like people, are more than just the sum of their many parts. We believe that it is possible to achieve a synthesis of design, function and context. That is why a holistic approach is our guiding principle, and why we are forever exploring the possibilities of building better, cleverer, more beautifully.”

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RIBA

Bringing design expertise into play

A London adventure playcentre which has brought joy to hundreds of children has been lauded by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).

Kilburn Grange Park Adventure Playground, designed by erect architecture and constructed by contractor Kier Wallis on behalf of client Borough Council of Camden, scooped both a RIBA award and an International Children’s Making Space Award.

RIBA said what distinguished the project “is its ambition to challenge and rethink the health and safety preconceptions that surround children’s playgrounds, most obviously characterised by the ubiquitous use of ‘bouncy tarmac’.

“Instead of approaching the project from a standpoint of risk aversion, architect and client have adopted one of risk benefit, whereby the learning benefits to children during supervised play of encountering reasonable degrees of risk – including fire and water - outweigh the potential dangers.”

It added: “The whimsical playcentre is a timber structure which in many ways resembles a big piece of playground furniture.

“This imaginative thinking has produced a visually, physically

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and educationally stimulating series of play structures that are characterised by their extensive use of reclaimed and recycled materials.”

The £976,000 scheme, which took a year to make, was built following extensive engagement with and consultation with children. During a series of workshops erect architecture introduced the youngsters to playing with natural materials and taught them about structural principles, which they tested on simple large-scale models, making propositions for playground structures.

The site has a wealth of very different mature trees and it is the remainder of a Victorian Arboretum. The trees made the story.

The overarching theme was playing in and around trees.

The play centre is a timber frame building. The undulating biodiversity roof is a natural extension of the landscape, which dominates the scheme.

The timber structure is exposed, the columns are natural tree trunks, partially machined, elaborating further the existing theme of trees and their manufacturing process.

The internal play space is a ‘tree room’ dominated by a large column, which acts as a tree trunk from which all beams branch off. The building is timber clad internally and externally.

The undulating biodiversity roof is a natural extension of the landscape, which dominates the scheme. The roof overhangs in the south-western area to formulate the entrance and create a large canopy protecting outdoor play. The canopy is supported by natural tree columns. It frames views and embraces the landscapes. The external timber cladding is sawn larch, contrasting the smooth touch of internal lining.

Sustainability was a key factor in the design of the building and the landscape, but also in integrating measures for the children to learn about sustainable living. The project encourages sustainable behaviour through growing and planting areas, rainwater collection and habitat creation.

The play centre is also a short breaks centre for SEN children.

It accommodates facilities such as a hygiene room and a fully accessible kitchen to allow for overnight stays.

The playground design followed the Play for England guidance for natural play. The target age group for the playground is 8-13 years.

The Children’s Making Space award is given every 5 years (awarded in 2010 in this case). by Children in Scotland (supported by the Scottish Government). erect architecture is an award winning team of architects led by Barbara Kaucky and Susanne Tutsch, with projects ranging from architecture to public space design to different kinds of interiors.

APES contribute to project’s success APES (Adventure Playground Engineers Ltd) have worked closely with erect Architecture since the design stage of the project by providing source materials (previous APES playground builds).

APES are proud to have been involved in the project, and to have built such innovative and exciting play structures which complement the beautiful building at Kilburn Grange Adventure Playground. The company is delighted the site has now won the Royal Institute of British Architects’ award.

APES is dedicated to being an environmental low-impact construction company and use as little digging equipment and heavy machinery as possible. The company also avoid using concrete and aim for minimal ground disturbance. APES are expert in the manual handling of large timbers and dab hands at using block-and-tackle lifting gear (a practice that is rarely used these days).

The firm continues to innovate in the use of recycled materials, either sourced from old playgrounds or the discards of general construction sites. They are expert at finding the play value in all sorts of things and are currently recycling materials from the Olympic Park. The Kilburn Grange project took around four months to complete and cost £80,000 for the play structures.

APES has a close working relationship with erect Architecture and has just completed another successful public park project at Clapton Common in Hackney. They are currently working in partnership to develop new innovative projects.

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Architects extend their talents to award-winning status The innovative and ingenious design of an extension to Hoxton House - a Victorian mid terraced private house in Buttesland Street, London N1 - won David Mikhail Architects national recognition in the form of a 2011 RIBA Award.

The main contractors were Euro Build Contractors Ltd and the Topp Partnership designed all the mechanical services for the project. Structural Engineers were BTA Structural Design and Renlon Ltd were involved in the specification and installation of waterproof render, damp proofing, specialist rendering and an epoxy damp proof membrane to the floor in the basement area.

Britain has an enormous stock of traditional terraced houses, which increasingly struggle to meet the needs of contemporary living – clearly a significant challenge. Hoxton House - a typical four-storey London terraced house - is a case in point, characterised by multiple levels and small dark rooms set around a winding staircase. The clue to realising the full potential of this house came in the small rear yard.

The lower-ground and ground floors have been unified by the addition of a double-height extension, just one-metre deep and with a gross internal area of 124 sqm. This has allowed the ground floor to be pulled away from the existing rear wall, uniting the living spaces on both floors with a modest doubleheight volume.

According to Peter Chiu of David Mikhail Architects, “The rear garden was half a storey above the basement originally, and we lowered the rear garden to the same level as the basement.

We then introduced a double height space from the basement to the ground floor, so the ground floor became a mezzanine over the basement. Basically, the extension is a five metre high, one metre deep glass box incorporating a double height space and has created much more useable accommodation for the owners.” The extension is a cruciform timber framed structure glazed on all sides.

The basement level of the new extension, which is one storey below the street, includes a new kitchen and dining area, with the ground floor mezzanine level being utilised as a living area and overlooking the basement below.

“We don’t set out to win awards, although it’s nice to achieve recognition. Our main aim is to fulfill the needs of our clients and win more work through recommendation” said Mr Chiu.

According to RIBA “This project achieves a delightful sense of space and light that is hard to believe possible in a house of this type.”

David Mikhail Architects work closely with clients to make exceptional, bespoke homes. Each of their projects is unique, tailored to brief and location.

The practice is based in Clerkenwell Green, London, and was

Photograph courtesy of Tim Crocker

established in 1992. Their work has won numerous awards, including RIBA Awards, and been widely published, both in the UK and abroad.

Whilst they don’t look it, David Mikhail Architect’s projects are often created within strict budgetary constraints and represent excellent value for clients.

In 2005 David Mikhail co-founded sister practice, Riches Hawley Mikhail, specialising in public projects, including the RIBA Award-Winning ‘Clay Field’ social housing. Riches Hawley Mikhail Architects was awarded Building Design Magazine Housing Architect of the Year 2009. Clients include housing associations, schools and developers.

Euro Build Contractors Ltd are a more traditionally focused company with a large direct labour force. The company works in partnership with their specialist sub-contractors which include roofing and M & E on project after project; this enables Euro Build as a company to focus on the build, rather than managing other companies. Euro Build believe that this gives them the edge against other companies working in the market at the moment.

Euro Build specialise in high class residential new build or refurbishment in the South East of England. In addition they work with various churches, refurbishing and fitting out their offices, flats and the churches themselves. This work can be anywhere in the UK and the company is currently completing a large fit out project at a church with offices and a flat in Dublin.

Euro Build have their own joinery shop, which carries out any cabinetry works and specialist spray painted finishes that the company is involved with. Also their joiners build special one- off bespoke joinery items, for example very large wooden sliding doors and fixed panels that Euro Build has used on many of their projects - all manufactured by their own team in Surrey.

Euro Build prides themselves on the quality of their work and have completed all of their projects on time and on budget.

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RIBA

“Residential architecture of the highest order” says RIBA Hailed as “residential architecture of the highest order” a striking new housing development at Bear Lane Great Suffolk Street, Southwark, London SE1, has won a RIBA 2011 design award for architectural excellence.

Designed by Panter Hudspith Architects and carried out for Galliard Homes who also constructed the scheme, the £12 million development comprises 89 apartments arranged from first to seventh floor penthouse level. 38 per cent of the homes are for affordable housing, with the rest being for private sale.

“Bear Lane Southwark London SE 1 so clearly and substantially elevates itself above the benchmark of standard urban housing design that it is surprising to discover it is the result of a volume house builder operating through a design and build contract,” said the RIBA judges.

“The project is expressed as a terrace of tall individual brick buildings. The design is understood as both a series of elements and a singular entity, with a crenelated skyline and heavily articulated facades – almost in the manner of the towers of San Gimignano.

“The project wraps a triangular site, rising up from an unfortunately but necessarily retained corner pub which does historically and formally anchor the scheme. Three facades look into a communal courtyard. This is sophisticated residential architecture of the highest order.”

The apartments range in size from one to two and three bedrooms, with the majority being one bedroom, with approximately 500 sq.ft of internal space. Each apartment is finished to superior specifications and equipped for contemporary living and the majority of the apartments enjoy

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an aspect over the development’s internal landscaped courtyard. The lower and ground levels of the scheme provide a mix of commercial space and car parking facilities.

Simon Hudspith of Panter Hudspith Architects said: “We were one of a number of architects interviewed for the project and spent some time in discussion with the Southwark planners to determine what was best for the site which was previously occupied by a series of industrial sheds.

“This was a very tight site and one of the most challenging aspects of this project was determining how we could get a very high density housing scheme on such a small site.

Because the pub was retained, we also had to make sure that the new development was not visually overbearing in relation to the existing building. So this was really an exercise in three dimensional manipulation involving a building ranging from seven to two storeys.

“The design we came up with was almost like brick blocks piled on top of one another and as they change in level, this created the opportunity for roof terraces and also helped us with our aim of enabling the people who live there to be able to point out and clearly identify their own apartment. This was something which we felt particularly strongly about.

“Unlike traditional housing schemes which have a very strong horizontal bias, we tried to do the opposite and create a vertical feel to the development”

Recognition for cuttingedge Strange House A new home, built by a well-known architect for his family, has landed a top honour – recognition from the Royal Institute of British Architects.

The Strange House, designed by Hugh Strange, is one of 17 “exceptional” new homes that feature on the long list for the RIBA Manser Medal 2011 for the best new house or major extension in the UK. The awards are in association with HSBC Private Bank.

The award is considered to be the UK’s pre-eminent private housing design award.

The 2011 long list, which was revealed recently, highlights some of “the most cutting-edge trends in housing design and lifestyle choices and recognises some of the UK’s most talented architects.”

Strange House, based in Deptford, south-east London, uses a pre-existing slab, and off-site construction to create a basically timber and glass lightweight house. The house was built by contractor Solmaz Ltd and the Structural Engineer was Price & Myers.

The recently completed two-bedroom house is located in an old pub yard, largely concealed from the street outside by an existing brick perimeter wall.

The house is single storey and structured with solid timber panels fabricated in a Swiss factory and was erected on site in a week.

The windows, doors and internal fit-out utilise FSC tropical hardwood from Nicaragua, felled by Hurricane Katrina, and create tremendous charm and character along a long wall of the living area, where every centimetre of space has been considered.

The lightness of the new building allows it to sit, platform-like on the existing site slab without the need for excavations for foundations.

This enduringly likeable house is dropped into a tight housing hinterland, surrounded by backs and boundaries. Above a highly glazed timber-framed base sits a set-back upper tier clad in profiled rigid board.

This industrial-looking top gives a sense of historic

continuity of use, belying the function and sophistication of the concealed base The cladding is one of a number of intelligent devices for constructing to budget, including the reuse of an existing slab as a raft foundation for the new lightweight house and a high degree and quality of offsite fabrication.

The art of fine design wins national recognition A £5.1 million project to expand and refurbish a Llandudno art gallery has won a prestigious national award from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) for architectural excellence.

It is an amazing turn around for the Mostyn Gallery which was closed for three years while undergoing a major expansion and refurbishment by contractor R L Davies, to a design by Ellis Williams Architects.

In giving its award, RIBA said of the gallery: “The original Mostyn Art Gallery has an elegant brick and stone façade with a delightful linked steel and glass canopy.

“The extended and refurbished gallery has more than doubled the size of the original, having incorporated a former retail area at street level, which has increased visibility for the new gallery space.”

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RIBA It adds: “The architects have cleverly arranged three new gallery spaces; one double-height features a series of angled rooflights, and the quality of light playing on the walls both softens and draws out the texture of the shuttering.

“This is a confident and refreshing addition to the art scene of Wales that complements the art it houses.

The contemporary gallery’s new look premises are on the same site as the old one in a refurbished and largely restructured building.

The building now incorporates 450 sq metres of exhibiting space across six different-sized galleries, making it the biggest contemporary gallery in Wales.

The challenge for Ellis Williams Architects and the rest of the design team was to carve a new building, with increased facilities and enhanced spaces within the existing building’s footprint.

The dramatic architectural move for the Mostyn is the insertion

of a stunning new concrete tube. This space evolved as the key threshold between the gallery spaces and the main entry and social functions of the gallery in the front original building, its main job to draw people into the gallery spaces and negotiate the floor level change.

The front façade on Vaughan Street has been extensively re-structured with the delicate insertion of new supporting steelwork to key areas together with general refurbishment and cleaning.

RIBA award is a triumph for the whole community Raasay Hall in Raasay, near Inverarish in Scotland a multi functional village hall designed by Dualchas Building Design is one of 10 Scottish buildings that have won a 2011 RIBA Award.

Practice partner, Alasdair Stephen said: “It is fantastic that Raasay Hall has won this award. It shows that this is an important building, not just for Raasay but for Scotland.

“The building is a tribute to a strong community that were dedicated to great quality, despite a limited budget. It is an exemplar of how a good client can achieve great things by having confidence in their own abilities and culture” “We were really pleased for the community of Raasay who worked so hard to raise the money for this building. It’s nice to have it recognised in this way” said Mary Arnold Forster, also of Dualchas Building Design.”

Designed on the lines of a simple agricultural shed, the building is on two levels, set back into the slope of the site so it is accessible from the ground at both levels blends into

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the landscape. Structured around a steel frame, the building features a double glazed main frontage looking out across the Raasay Sound. The side walls are timber clad using local larch.

The architects aimed to produce a beautiful, durable, public building which can provide for the range of current and future community uses for years to come.

The interior has been designed to provide maximum flexibility of use. Downstairs the building comprises a main hall (the full height of the building), a kitchen which can open onto the hall, toilets and showers, with changing facilities.

Upstairs is a large glass fronted lobby which can be used for meetings and small scale events, a small meeting room and an office.

The building design incorporates state of the art insulation, thermal control and renewable resource features to maximise energy efficiency and minimise long term running costs. The heating is from a ground-source heat pump with under-floor heating and a heat-recovery ventilation system.

RIBA accolade for Woodland Trust’s new eco-friendly HQ

Photograph courtesy of Fielden Clegg Bradley Studios

A £5.1million RIBA 2011 award-winning building which has become the new home of the Woodland Trust is being held up by international companies as one of the leading examples of eco-friendly office space in Europe.

Designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, the new three-storey HQ, at Autumn Park, Kempton Way, Grantham, Lincolnshire has also won a host of other awards throughout 2011, including the RICS East Midlands Awards: Sustainability; BCO Midlands Awards for Best Corporate Workplace; Grantham Civic Society: New Building: Winner, and Sustain Magazine Awards: Design and Architecture.

The building is thought to be one of the most environmentally friendly in the UK and international companies like Microsoft and Dell see it as a European-leading example of eco-friendly office accommodation.

The building has been constructed on a greenfield site in Grantham, Lincolnshire just a few hundred metres from the Trust’s previous accommodation.

The form of the building is one of an ascending spiral which moves seamlessly from landscape to building: The higher portion of the building which accommodates the open plan work space is orientated north-south and comprises a three storey, 15m deep block situated towards the middle of the site.

A wing of service and cellular space descends from the three storey volume along the western boundary, culminating in a single storey bike store which encloses the central woodland glade. The form helps create an idiosyncratic and interesting building that communicates the mission and values of the

Woodland Trust, whilst providing an exemplar workplace that meets BCO and institutional requirements.

The building is innovative as it uses ‘standard’ materials in an inventive way in order to reach an affordable solution to achieving thermal mass in a new office building. This has been achieved by creating ‘concrete radiators’, which serve to cool the building, whilst working structurally compositely with the timber.

Rather than expending budget on innovative technologies and materials, the solution sought to use standard materials in a new way. It has demonstrated that sustainable solutions can be truly affordable.

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Expansion drives construction for leading plastic specialists Increased customer demand has driven a dramatic expansion in the premises of plastic colourant and additive manufacturing specialists ColorMatrix, located in Knowsley Business Park, Knowsley, Prescot.

The expansion has comprised a number of construction contracts including extension of the company’s existing European offices, the acquisition and refurbishment of accommodation to create a new Global Technology Centre, the provision of additional office and laboratory accommodation, the construction of a new shipping yard, and the reconfiguration of the firm’s manufacturing facility.

The extension, built by Main Contractors Sutcliffe Construction, features a new reception area with a double height atrium, meeting rooms including a boardroom and offices.

The two storey extension, completed in April 2011, was constructed on an empty site and is structured around a steel frame with external elevations in white metal cladding to blend with the other buildings on the business park. External works included the creation of a new landscaped garden with patio area to the rear of the building and new paving “The upgraded premises are now a much nicer place to work - light, bright and airy” said Caroline Porter.

The construction of the new extension sparked another project carried out by White Space Interiors - to design and fit out the new extension in addition to internally refurbishing the existing building to which it is attached, to make the new and old elements read as one. These works included re-decoration, the installation of new fixtures and fittings and re-carpeting.

Two further projects carried out by Adrian Lewis, involved the refurbishment of a newly acquired building on the same business park to create the Global Technology Centre and the provision of additional accommodation and laboratory space for the European business within its existing buildings. The Global Technology Centre consists of two buildings; one being the equipment hall housing large scale equipment used within research and product development phases and the second incorporating three laboratory facilities and office space.

The newly acquired building was stripped back to core state, with the works including the installation of new building services such as heating, lighting, electrics and drainage, the creation of new employee welfare facilities, re-decoration and the re-location of equipment. Externally, the works included the installation of new windows, cladding, landscaping and external re-decoration.

“Everybody thinks the new facility is wonderful” said Caroline Porter of ColorMatrix.

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A third phase of works, now underway, involves the creation of a new shipping yard to the rear of the company’s premises, to allow finished products to be despatched more efficiently and safely. These works, which include the construction of a bridge system over natural water channels on the site and the construction of concrete loading platforms, are also being carried out by Sutcliffe Construction. The works are being undertaken mindful of the needs of indigenous water voles on the site.

The final phase of work involves the internal reconfiguration of the company’s manufacturing facility to utilise space made available following the relocation of the teams to the European extension and Global Technology Centre. To maintain the Company’s continuous improvement approach the works will be undertaken using LEAN manufacturing principles already familiar to the business.

ColorMatrix is dedicated to advancing the potential of plastics. Their advanced colorant and additive technologies are engineered to improve the aesthetics, sustainability, performance and processing of plastic products. Their additives also play an important role in protecting products that are contained in plastic.

Working closely with customers, ColorMatrix develop a deep understanding of each client’s production systems. This, combined with the company’s extensive knowledge of polymer processing, enables them to deliver technologies that can add real value.

With a strong focus on innovation and more than 30 global patents, ColorMatrix is now widely considered to be the leader in the research and development of liquid colorant and additives for thermoplastics.

Using state-of-the-art analytical equipment their dedicated R&D teams undertake detailed material analysis, rheological testing and production trials. Their expertise in engineering advanced carrier systems and functional additives is unrivalled.

ColorMatrix has a strong focus on innovating technologies that help their customers to become more sustainable. In the PET packaging sector in particular, ColorMatrix has made advances throughout the PET processing pipeline to improve container recyclability, improve energy efficiencies during processing, reducing material consumption by enabling container light weighting and developing advanced colorant and additive systems that drive down waste and inventory.

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Church project wins praise for contract team The congregation of Bethel Church in Liverpool has every reason to give thanks - following a project which has just been completed, involving significant demolition, together with major refurbishment and extension which has completely transformed the building.

The project, which commenced in September 2010, was carried out for the Bethel Church Trustees by Main Contractors Krol Corlett and Co, working with Architects Condy and Lofthouse.

“The project has benefited from what has been a very good relationship between the client, the building contractors and the design team” said Mr Robert Patkai of Condy and Lofthouse.

The original building incorporated a 1970s built element to the front (which included the worship hall), with an older church hall to the rear.

The project involved significant demolition of the original buildings. “Basically there wasn’t much left of the original church, most of the walls were demolished and the roof was removed. We did however retain the 1930s built element to the rear” said Mr Patkai.

The footprint of the original building has been enlarged and incorporates new facilities including the addition of a new stage, a new baptistry, an audio visual room, a second meeting room, a new vestry and a coffee room, as well as the installation of new building services throughout. Other new facilities include a large lobby and a buggy and coat store. The works also involved the refurbishment of an existing creche and the original toilets have been completely refurbished, including the provision of

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facilities for disabled people.

The original church has been virtually rebuilt, with new elevations in brick to one and a half storeys high, incorporating all new doors and aluminium framed windows with integrated roller shutters for extra security, together with new roofing in metal with a tile effect.

The building’s original car park has been resurfaced, a new play area has been created, a new storage building has been constructed and new paved access to the building has been laid.

Prototype eco home to move to Rusholme after Greenbuild An environmentally sound micro-building will be constructed in the Manchester Central exhibition hall and moved to nearby Rusholme as part of the North’s largest sustainable building event, Greenbuild Expo.

Dwelle is the brainchild of Ric Frankland, a Manchester based architect and his design has already won accolades at Grand Designs and The British Homes Awards.

Frankland will be building a demonstration project in partnership with Eastlands Homes at Manchester Central for Greenbuild Expo, which is free to attend and runs on 29 and 30 June.

The ‘Home Dwelle.ing’ micro-building will then be moved three miles away to a site in Rusholme to become a showroom for the building system and a centre for carbon literacy.

Frankland said: “Our system aims to encourage high quality sustainable living. The idea came about, as we wanted to create small dwellings that could easily be adapted for a range of uses.

We originally created ‘sheds for living’ and then re-branded them as dwelle.”

The fully working micro buildings aim to be zero carbon and meet Passivhaus standards. Frankland added: “We will erect the main structure of the building and fit it out over two days in the exhibition hall, then present it on the third day when the show opens. As well as showcasing the design, the components and materials used it will also launch as a centre for carbon literacy.

“We will then remove the roof section and lift the entire build on to a low loader and take it down the road to a new home

opposite Platt Fields in Rusholme.”

Eastlands Homes and Cooler Projects CIC will develop a programme to assist residents to understand how to reduce their energy and carbon footprint. They are currently modernising six of their towers to make them more energy efficient and want to empower their residents - as part of their move to meet their carbon reduction commitment.

‘Home Dwelle.ing’ will be the centre for this new initiative located adjacent to Platt and Worsley Courts in Rusholme, managed by Eastlands Homes.

Greenbuild Expo is the largest sustainable building and refurbishment event in the north of the UK. The conference is specifically targeted at those working in the volume housing and non-domestic building sector, including hotel and leisure venues, offices and larger companies, as the carbon reduction commitment becomes more integral to working life.

Speakers will include James Walker from B&Q, who will talk about the company’s pilot pay-as-you-save project, which aims to fund green housing refurbishment. Speakers from organisations such as BRE, Manchester City Council, Gateshead Housing and Procure Plus will also be leading seminars.

Focusing this year on sustainable refurbishment, Greenbuild Expo will examine such topics as the Code for Sustainable Homes and renewable energy.

For more information, visit www.dwelle.co.uk and http://www. greenbuildexpo.co.uk/North West ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Revamped hall to become a class act A new multi-million pound entertainment venue in Scunthorpe is set to draw in thousands of visitors once it is unveiled to the public this autumn.

North Lincolnshire Council’s iconic Baths Hall is close to completion having undergone a £14m revamp by contractor and local builder Clugston Construction.

Baths Hall will be completed in November and more than 70 staff will be employed. The venue is stated to be open to the public during that month.

The auditorium will be a multi-use area at ground floor level with flexible partitioning, to cater for 1,200 seated and 2,000 standing customers. There will also be additional balcony seating, conference and break-out facilities and cafe and bars.

Clugston Group chief executive, Stephen Martin, said: “As a Scunthorpe based company we were proud to be selected to rebuild such a landmark building.

“We are pleased North Lincolnshire Council has recognised the economic benefits that projects of this type can bring to a community.”

The Clugston Group is a privately owned, limited, group of businesses founded over 70 years ago, on Humberside, by LG Clugston, the father of the present chairman, John Clugston.

The group has expanded to become a well established organisation with a leading reputation in construction, civil engineering, logistics, property development and facilities management. The company employs over 500 people with

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operations across the UK. The original Baths Hall was closed in 2004 by the council, but was re-opened under lease before it was again closed in 2006.

In 2007, the local authority pledged to redevelop the venue and, since then, it has been re-constructed.

The selected operator of the site, internationally renowned entertainment company SMG International will move into the state-of-the-art building to fit out the auditorium with light and sound equipment.

SMG Europe is the largest operator of sports and entertainment venues in the United Kingdom and Europe, controlling over 75,000 seats in nine operational facilities.

The total area of the new venue will be around 5,700m2. This compares to the former Baths Hall that had a total floor area of around 4,900m2.

The public areas of the new venue will be on the ground and first floor, together with kitchen facilities and backstage areas.

Technical areas for lighting and sound equipment will be on the second and third floors.

The main auditorium, the highest part of the building, will be around 17 metres high. It is set back from the front and rear of the building by around 10 to 12 metres.

The new main auditorium will be positioned slightly to the right of the old auditorium and 1930’s frontage as viewed from Doncaster Road.

The building will consist of a steel frame clad with block work,

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N o r th E a s t & Yo r ks h i re glass and coloured wall panels. The roof will be metal sheeting.

The existing pool bases will be left in place and a new permanent floor will be built over it. But, unlike the old Baths Hall, the pool bases will be under storage areas and the toilets, not the main auditorium.

Energy generated on site from renewable sources will be used and a rainwater harvesting system is also being considered as part of the design.

In addition to standard considerations such as the use of sustainable materials, provision for sustainable waste management has also been incorporated into the design.

Nick Reed, Theatres Director SMG Europe, said: “The Baths Hall will be a wonderful building and it is set to position Scunthorpe as the region’s leading entertainment destination.

“The scale and flexibility of the Baths Hall will provide the town

with entertainment facilities unmatched in most cities.

“North Lincolnshire Council has shown great vision in developing the Baths Hall, clearly recognising the positive impact made by venues such as this on economic re-generation and an enhanced quality of life.

“At a time when the rest of the cultural sector in the UK is bracing itself for cuts and closures, this is a fantastic story for the region” SMG is no stranger to the stars having presented internationally acclaimed artists including Madonna, the Vienna Philharmonic, Peter Kay and Kasabian.

Expected to perform at the Baths Hall are the likes of Jamie Cullum, Jack Jones, The Saturdays, Kate Nash, The Streets, Dizzee Rascal and many more top performing acts. It will also become a centre for community events and conferences.

Community complex gets ‘The Full Monty’ A £1.3 million project to completely renovate a community complex in three Victorian buildings – made famous by the hugely popular film The Full Monty – has been completed, with the project being hailed as ‘a fantastic job well done’.

The complex in Burton Street, Sheffield, has been used since 1879 as school buildings until its closure in 1976 when it was used variously for a number of community uses, including a music school.

It was then taken over by the local Hillsborough community to stave off demolition and bought from Sheffield City Council in 2004 when it became the base for the Burton Street Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation.

Despite the facility being hugely popular, with more than 1,500 people a week using its facilities, its management board, headed by managing director Dave Clarson, saw the potential in 2008 to completely renovate the complex.

The Burton Street Foundation is a multifaceted social enterprise, consisting of services for adults and children with severe learning difficulties, 20 business units, a gymnasium, a boxing club, a base for the local youth offending service, beauty salon, hairdresser’s, sports hall accessible gym, café and function suite.

Main contractor Watfords of Wombwell Ltd and architect Burnell Briercliffe have delivered the project on budget. The design concept was to return the buildings to their Victorian appearance externally, but with a modern twist. To do this original window frames were double glazed and rainwater goods and roof details were replaced or restored.

Other improvements include the addition of extra insulation, the installation of a district heating system in one of the buildings which now serves the whole site, and the laying of underfloor trunking for IT and telephone cabling.

Further major external works include levelling accesses for wheelchair-bound clients and the creation of an external walkway that wraps around the building in such a way that it sits on the ground floor at the west and the first floor in the east end of the complex – but still provides level access. Doubling as a fire escape, the walkway is made of steel and glass.

In another of the buildings, the works include the creation of an internal corridor that acts as another fire escape, with a new access and entrance.

A number of former school yard areas falling into disrepair were enclosed with wood panel infill and re-created as business units and music studios.

The original coarse slate roof was also replaced with similar, in

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keeping with the Victorian building.

The interior has been completely refurbished with new toilets, and fire alarms, the former cellars have been turned into a café, and the whole complex has been completely redecorated.

Volunteers and a Community Service Team helped with the decoration.

Mr Clarson said: “We can’t believe how good the build has been. The management board and the community as a whole are delighted with the finished result.”

Dream homes take shape in holiday haven The ongoing construction of one of the UK’s most vibrant and prestigious holiday villages - The Bay at Filey - is progressing well in a project being carried out by the scheme’s Developers, Essential Vivendi.

Set in 150 acres of landscaped parkland, The Bay enjoys superb facilities including a luxury spa complex, tennis court, putting course, fishing, public house, gym, pharmacy and various beach activities, located on one of the most naturally beautiful stretches of the Yorkshire coast. In keeping with its location, The Bay Filey architects and designers have created a spacious development of wide boulevards and mews style culde-sacs, all thoughtfully laid out, with space in mind.

The current works, designed by Architects Robert Goodison Architectural Services, comprise the construction of attractive holiday cottages and beach houses which will be for private sale.

The holiday cottages are being constructed in a mixture of brick and coloured render finished elevations, with a pitched tiled roof, reflecting the local vernacular. In general, the holiday cottages under construction are two-storey and feature an open plan design with a living area on the ground floor and either two or three double bedrooms upstairs, with the majority of bedrooms being ensuite. Each property has a patio or terrace which is usually accessed through double doors from the living area.

The beach houses are built in cedral boarding, with pitched tiled roofing, with the majority being single storey (although some two storey homes are planned), two or three generally ensuite double bedrooms upstairs. All of the beach houses have

a decking area to the front and rear.

The aim of the development is to reproduce a local village street scene. In keeping with its location, The Bay Filey architects and designers have created a spacious development of wide boulevards and mews style cul-de-sacs, all thoughtfully laid out, with space in mind.

The breathtaking Yorkshire heritage coastline, North York Moors and historic city of York are among numerous attractions close by.

Construction has been ongoing for several years and is likely to continue for some years to come.

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“Superb design...quality construction... a success story right from the start” says Lembit Opik Speaking exclusively to Premier Construction, leading Liberal Democrat figure and media personality Lembit Opik, who, together with Ben Fogle recently opened the new Condover Hall Chidren’s Adventure Centre in Shrewsbury for JVS Travel Sport said: “The design of this facility is a role model for others to follow. There are three things that are really special about this scheme. Firstly it is a great venue giving a stately home a new lease of life. The building was in good condition to start with, but JVS have spent a fortune to tailor it to precisely what is needed for a learning experience.

“Secondly, JVS haven’t cut corners in terms of the quality of the construction. I had to compete with Ben Fogle on climbing a wall at the new facility, scrambling past tyres and metal framework - and it was obvious from the experience that not only did they have health and safety sorted, but the design

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was superb. This really is a top level project indicating that it is well worth making an investment in a development like this.

“Thirdly, the developers really had a clear focus of what they wanted right from the start - unlike with some developments where you can see that things have been added on as an afterthought. This scheme has been designed by experts who know exactly what they want from the educational experience and have designed it logically and coherently step by step from the beginning right through to the end - and have planned their budget effectively. To me, that is one of the most important elements of the whole scheme.

“When I was an MP I spent a lot of time on planning questions and I learned to tell the good developments from the bad. This development couldn’t have been better designed. It has made the most of the existing building and brought it from the past right into the

future, whilst spending the money wisely and not compromising on quality.”

He added that the new venue has been very well received. “Even at the opening, there were many young people showing great interest and enthusiasm. They were getting far more out of the venue than they would have even in a well-equipped school playground. They were learning teamwork and personal skills and the difference between being told what to do and taking on responsibility for themselves. This is the only way which we are going to get away from a ‘don’t do that’ culture to a ‘have a go at this’ culture in a safe way. They might get bruises and grazes - but that’s life - and this venue gives the opportunity to learn about life in a more realistic way. I am pretty sure that it is going to attract pretty much 100 per cent occupancy. It was obvious that this was a success story right from the start” he concluded.

Historic landmark becomes children’s adventure centre A Grade 1 former Midlands’ stately home is ready for a rush of children through its doors after it underwent a £6 million transformation to become a high-tech adventure centre.

Leading school trip provider JCA, part of the TUI Education group, has opened Condover Hall in the heart of Shropshire, enabling students to enjoy unique and exciting curriculum-led activities within the grounds of the impressive Elizabethan mansion.

The stately home, near Shrewsbury, has under gone a major transformation by Main Contractors Forbes and Whiteford, working with Architects G D Lodge and Partners.

The project has seen the grand architecture of the imposing Hall being kept, while the interior has been restored to its former glory, with sumptuous chandeliers, wood panelled rooms, fine plasterwork and magnificent fireplaces.

Providing a first-class venue for Learning Outside the Classroom, there is a varying range of activities for pupils in year four and above such as abseiling, archery, climbing, fencing and swimming.

The hall, which also boasts a dance studio, allows children to have a session testing their Harry Potter skills in a themed spell room! Sports teams and events can be hosted using the all weather sports pitches, indoor sports hall and swimming pool, and the hall is also offering specific netball coaching.

With an occupancy of up to 500 people, the flexible accommodation is situated in newly refurbished buildings throughout the estate grounds.

The construction project included the conversion of a courtyard building into a refectory, the conversion of existing classroom buildings to sleeping accommodation, and a programme of external works including the creation of outdoor games and activity areas, together with the demolition of an elevated walkway. Attractions such as state-of-the-art themed rooms in the main building with tantalising names including the Laser Room were also created.

The hall has numerous uses as a venue, for example for team events, as an outdoor education and adventure centre, for educational school trips or as a school/student team building.

English language course specialist EAC will host English language camps for juniors at the venue in July and August.

Joined by adventurer and TV presenter Ben Fogle, ambassador and Olympian sports personality Dame Kelly Holmes and TV star and political figure Lembit Opik, new owners JCA cut the ribbon at Condover Hall in front of local teachers and students.

Ben Fogle said: “There is no better way to engage children in education than learning outside the classroom so I am delighted to be involved in the launch of Condover Hall. I am looking forward to trying out the new state-of-the art high ropes and seeing what I will learn.”

Dame Kelly Holmes added: “Venues like Condover Hall can be very inspiring to both students and teachers and I am sure they will love attending here.”

Janie Burt, Managing Director, JCA added: “We have been inundated with advanced bookings for Condover Hall and look forward to showing teachers the venue in all its splendour.”

The hall is the flagship activity centre for JCA, part of Tui Travel PLC., the global leader in educational travel, and which also owns holiday firms Thomson and First Choice.

It was previously run as an education centre for young people with autism. The four-storey property was put on the market in 2009 because of mounting maintenance costs.

Condover Hall is steeped in history with earliest records describing the Saxon village of Condover as a rural manor, forming part of the estate of Roger De Montfort, Earl of

Shrewsbury.

It returned to the crown when his son, the 3rd Earl, rose against Henry I and was deprived of his honours in 1102.

Civil feuds gave Condover a chequered career in which it repeatedly returned to the crown, but in 1226 Henry III left the estate to his half-sister Joan who married Llewellyn Lorwerth. Subsequently it was confiscated and given back by the Crown, until 1238 when it was granted to Henry De Hastings.

Through the 16th century the house was again passed in and out of crown ownership until 1586 when Elizabeth I granted Condover Estate to Thomas Owen.

The mansion house, as of today, was built for Thomas Owen, purportedly by Walter Hancock, a distinguished Shropshire mason from Much Wenlock. The current house was not completed until 1598, the year of his death and possibly finally completed by his son, Sir Roger Owen.

The Hall remained in the hands of the Owen family for many years but was then sold to a cotton mill owner. In 1947, it was acquired by the National Institute for the Blind and opened the first school in Great Britain for blind children with disabilities.

The property was then bought by the previous owners who, after an extensive refurbishment programme, ran it as a school for the last 4 years.

Over the centuries many famous people have visited and enjoyed Condover Hall. These include Clive of India who rented the house during the early 1700s and the American writer Mark Twain who visited the house in 1873 and 1879. Two new teaching blocks were opened by the Duke of Westminster and the late Princess of Wales respectively.

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Spotlight falls on new community theatre The curtain will soon rise on a much-loved community theatre, which has undergone a £4 million makeover.

The Mitchell Memorial Youth Arts Centre, in Hanley, Stoke-onTrent has been completed on time and officially handed back to the centre’s trustees by contractor J & S Seddon.

The facility, recognised as the gateway to the city’s cultural quarter, includes refurbishment of the original building and the construction of two new single storey extensions. Project Architects were Archial Architects.

The project has included the creation of a new dance studio, workshops and a resurfaced stage, as well the construction of a glass-fronted cafe extension at the front of the Broad Street theatre, which is inspired by the design of Reginald Mitchell’s Spitfire.

This theme flows through the building, in the layout of the curved bar and ticket office. Three new changing rooms lead on to the stage with disabled access throughout the theatre for performers and audiences.

The dance studio has been created with a specialised rubber floor to accommodate all types of dance.

The auditorium has been fitted with under floor ventilation and the acoustics have been upgraded with the addition of absorption panels along the walls. The building’s toilet facilities have also been upgraded.

Extensive internal re-decoration has also been carried out and the original porthole doors from the front of the theatre have

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been saved and installed in the dance studio.

The works also included the creation of five office spaces available for rent by art-related companies in Cartwright House, which adjoins the theatre. Rent for these will support the work of the trust. There are also spaces within the theatre to hire for conferences or functions.

The project was completed on schedule and on budget.

Chairman of the Mitchell Memorial Youth Arts Centre trust Fred Hughes said: “This is a phenomenal piece of regeneration and I am convinced everyone in the city will embrace it.

“There’s a real connection between this building and the heritage of Stoke-on-Trent. This theatre is a symbol of our heritage, history and future.”

Councillor Hazel Lyth, the council’s cabinet member for culture, said: “We are transferring a fabulous theatre into the ownership and management of the community. It’s fantastic for us.

“It’s a massive job, costing millions of pounds. We’ve ripped out the whole inside of the theatre, putting in decent spaces to hold new workshops for dance and drama.

“Most importantly there’s going to be new seats, so people won’t get numb bums from sitting on those old hard ones.”

A gala opening performance is due to take place in the summer once the trust has moved all its belongings in. The centre has been Hanley’s top amateur dramatics venue for more than 50 years.

J & S Seddon started work on the refurbishment of the theatre

in October 2009. The original construction budget was £3.5 million, while the extension is expected to cost an additional £600,000. Stoke-on-Trent City Council has put £2.1 million to the refurbishment work, with £1.9 million coming from the government. The Coalfields Regeneration Trust has contributed around £280,000.

J & S Seddon is one of the UK’s premier construction and maintenance companies. It specialises in a broad range of services including design and build, new build, partnering, measured term contracting, planned and responsive maintenance and refurbishment.

The company works with clients including local authorities, health authorities and registered social landlords, as well as major industrial and commercial organisations and the Ministry of Defence.

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.

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

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: “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 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

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Midlands & East Anglia 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 this 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.”

AD plant to light up 8,000 homes by mid-summer 2011.

The plant was completed on schedule by the GTM-Ros Roca Consortium – comprising GTM (a joint venture between Imtech Process and Galliford Try) and Ross Roca Envirotech. They worked as an integrated team and are now assisting Biffa with the commissioning stage.

GTM carried out all the civil works, together with the process building design, construction and testing of the plant’s Digester tanks, Gas Booster, Flare Stack and Electrical, Controls and Instrumentation systems the later being delivered by Imtech’s in house electrical installation division.

The scope of their work included site clearance, piling and construction of the main plant building, which is structured around a steel frame with external elevations in metal cladding and a flat metal cladding roof.

Ross Roca designed the process plant and equipment and was responsible for the general mechanical installation.

The nine month process commissioning stage should see the plant gearing up to its full capacity by the end of the year.

The process of anaerobic digestion, which breaks down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen and produces methane rich biogas, will help create compost and generate over four megawatts of electricity, enough to power over 8000 homes.

The construction phase provided employment for almost 150 people, and when fully operational, 15 people will be employed

A £1 million anaerobic digestion (AD) facility installed at a major waste processing plant is expected to generate electricity for thousands of homes.

Biffa Waste Services has created the plant at the company’s waste management facility at Poplars Landfill site, in Cannock, Staffordshire.

The plant will treat 120,000 tonnes per annum of food waste from homes and businesses, such as supermarkets, restaurants and food manufacturers, within the West Midlands region, that is presently sent to landfill site.

Following planning permission in November 2009, the plant was constructed in 2010 and is expected to be fully operational

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at the plant.

The anaerobic digestion process utilizes naturally occurring micro-organisms already present in the waste to break it down in the absence of oxygen, producing a fibrous ‘digestate’ similar to compost and a methane rich ‘biogas’ used for the generation of renewable energy.

Presently around 80,000 tonnes of waste food is landfilled at Poplars, but the new facility will enable Biffa Waste to put this to better use.

The company already has an outdoor composting operation at Poplars for recycling green waste.

The AD facility will represent a more advanced method of handling waste food as it not only generates renewable energy and produces a quality soil improver, it will also have significant environmental benefits by diverting a large quantity of waste from landfill.

The plant includes a number of different elements including

a waste reception area, a waste pre-treatment area and administrative and control areas.

These will be housed in the process building, which is approximately 65m long, 45m wide and 10m tall. All waste handling operations will take place indoors.

Vehicles will enter the facility through rapid open/shut doors and unload in a waste reception area. Solid waste will be emptied into a reception bunker then pulped before grit and packaging is screened out.

The remaining material will enter a suspension tank before being pasteurized. The pasteurization process will heat the material to 70°C for at least one hour to meet the requirements of the Animal By-Products Regulations.

The waste will then be piped into one of four digester tanks in which anaerobic conditions are maintained to treat the waste.

Naturally occurring microbes already present in the waste will break the material down over 18 days, creating methane and carbon dioxide (biogas) and water.

The biogas will be collected and used to generate electricity within the four proposed gas engines located on the site.

The facility is located on the Northern part of the Poplars site on an existing area of hard standing which was being used for open composing and the handling of wood, construction and demolition waste.

These activities will be relocated to another area of the site, further away from residential properties.

The area chosen is also the last phase to be landfilled at the site, hence the plant can be retained almost for the whole life of the landfill.

Biffa Waste services’ Director of Environment & External Affairs David Savory said: “From the company’s perspective, this development is part of our move towards the development of a network of infrastructure that enables us to manage waste as a resource, maximising recycling and the generation of renewable energy, whilst reducing reliance on landfill.”

Silverstone gears up with new £27m Wing The home of the British Grand Prix has unveiled its latest addition with the opening of a striking new streamlined complex to be known as the Silverstone Wing at the Silverstone Motor Circuit in Towcester.

Silverstone’s new state-of-the-art pit, paddock and conference complex was formally opened by His Royal Highness the Duke of Kent, in a ceremony at the circuit. The Duke, who is also president-in-chief of circuit owner the British Racing Drivers’ Club, was joined by more than 800 guests, including the great and good of British motorsport, local dignitaries, motorsport governing bodies, BRDC members and media.

The launch of the Silverstone Wing heralds an exciting new era for British motor sport Silverstone Circuits Limited, and its owner the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC).

The new building, which represents the second stage of a multi-million pound investment in the self-styled ‘Home of British Motor Racing’, includes 41 garages, a race control building, podium and media centre, as well as hospitality and VIP spectator zones.

The project was overseen by contractor Buckingham Group Contracting Ltd; Mechanical and Electrical Contractors were NG Bailey and Company Ltd. With three large halls, a conference facility, business centre and a 100-seat auditorium, the Silverstone Wing has also been designed to accommodate conferences, product launches and experiential events, and will be the largest covered exhibition space between London and Birmingham. For Richard Phillips, managing director

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of Silverstone Circuits Limited, the launch represented an important stepping stone in the redevelopment of the venue.

“Building on last year’s successful Grand Prix track upgrade.

The new wing is another great milestone in Silverstone’s history and we must recognise and thank the BRDC for having the insight and vision to invest in to the future of the venue as we continue to expand and diversify the business,” he said.

“This building will not only be a wonderful base for our major race meetings, but has the flexibility to accommodate conferences, exhibitions, launches, banqueting functions

and experiential events. “Silverstone is now one of the best motorsport facilities in the world, and British motorsport has an iconic home that we can all be proud of.” The building, which is 390m long and 30m high, is situated at what used to be the back of the circuit, between Club Corner and Abbey, so that the latter, a fast right-hander, now becomes the first turn, followed

by Farm Curve, a sweeping left-hander.

Having secured a 17-year deal to host the British GP, the British Racing Drivers’ Club commissioned the construction, and the modular design makes it the perfect venue for any type of event from lectures and presentations, to exhibitions, weddings, banquets and conferences.

The official opening ceremony took guests on an evocative journey through the history of Silverstone, including appearances by many of the biggest names in the history of British motorsport.

Five of Britain’s six living F1 world champions – John Surtees, Sir Jackie Stewart, Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill and Jenson Button – were in attendance, along with fellow grand prix luminaries Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Frank Williams, Christian Horner, Ross Brawn, David Coulthard and Murray Walker. The worlds of MotoGP and World Superbikes, both of which race at the circuit, were also represented at the launch, with a host of Britain’s best riders - including Cal Crutchlow, Jonathan Rea and James Toseland showing their support for the stunning new facility.

BRDC president Damon Hill said: “This year’s grand prix and all the major international events will take place using the new facility.

“Silverstone has got a right to a permanent place on the calendar and so we hope this is a long-term thing that will make the circuit smart.”

The show element of the opening ceremony culminated with a focus on the present and future of Silverstone, which was represented by three current greats of world motor sport.

Britain’s most recent Formula One World Champion, Jenson Button, was joined on stage by nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi, before 2010 Formula 1 British Grand Prix winner Mark Webber brought things to a close by driving his Red Bull Racing Formula One car into The Wing before stopping in the middle of the room.

All of the drivers and riders paid tribute to the impressive new facility, which will host its first major motor sport event, the FIA GT1 World Championship, on 03-05 June.

J&T McCafferty Ltd Building & Civil Engineering Contractors J&T McCafferty specialise in all types of building and civil engineering groundwork projects, from deep drainage, installation of large under tanks/interceptors to car park, reco panel retaining walls, tensar retaining walls, block paving, finished concrete, and kerbing - basically anything to do with the ground and below.

The new building at Silverstone working on behalf of Buckingham Group contracting was a special job for J & T McCafferty as well as Buckingham’s, due to the prestige of the contract. J & T McCafferty also assisted Buckingham’s in the track alteration works, once again a very interesting but testing contact. J & T McCafferty enjoyed working on the project and would like to thank all who helped.

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Students embark on £30 million new learning curve Over 1,000 students in Coventry are looking forward to experiencing a real learning curve – with the opening of their new £30 million education academy complex.

The Sidney Stringer Academy, which is sponsored by City College and Coventry City Council, and supported by Coventry University and Jaguar Cars, is set to open soon.

Contractor Kier Moss began construction work on the new building last year and it is hoped staff and students will be able to move into their new premises later this year.

Principal Designate of the new academy, Wendy Tomes, said: “The new building is really starting to take shape and soon the work on the fit-out inside will start.

“Sidney Stringer Academy opens in the existing building, but it will be great to move into the new building as it will make a real difference to our students.”

Kier Moss divisional director, Gary Pearce, added: “Already work is proceeding at a pace to complete the building envelope and start our works on the inside of this magnificent academy building. It will be a building the people of Coventry can be rightly proud of.”

Covering 13,088sqm, the new academy building will provide general and specialist teaching areas, a library, dining facilities

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and a sixth form centre.

It will boast fantastic features such as a large auditorium with retractable seating, terracing to allow outdoor performances, an ecological area and a variety of gardens.

The main academy building will also be linked to a brand new sports centre housing a four-court sports hall, fitness suite and traversing wall.

The academy will also include an Enterprise and Innovation Centre situated on Primrose Hill Street opposite the school.

The centre will be used by students aged 14 to 19 years and will reflect a professional, modern, workplace environment including a business suite, design studios and conference facilities.

The new academy will cater for 1050 11-16 year old students and 300 post-16 year old students.

The architect Sheppard Robson has developed a ‘stepping stone’ solution for the Academy design that increases in scale from a two storey sports hall to a three storey building, stepping across the sloping site and integrating a storey level change seamlessly within the stepping classroom clusters.

The stepping stone approach has also created opportunities for a series of external spaces, between and around the two buildings.

The scheme breaks away from a traditional linear street to one that promotes a strong sequence of linked public spaces; paving the way for a number of future relationships within the wider ‘learning quarter’.

Louise Merrett, associate at Sheppard Robson and project leader for Sidney Stringer Academy, said: “This area was previously a thriving manufacturing base and the academy is in close proximity to a number of underprivileged residential communities within the Swanswell Regeneration area.

“We believe it will be a catalyst for further improvement; our design provides a building to be used by the local community and a public space on an urban site.”

Kier Moss consulted staff and pupils on the academy’s development and widely consulted neighbours.

The company said 36,500 wheel barrows of soil were excavated for generally levelling the site and digging, while the amount of concrete used for the foundations, retaining walls and ground floor slab to the main building would fill 4,900 baths to the overflow!

Hi Con A/S It is Hi-Cons vision to be the market leader in High Performance Concrete. We acknowledge the large unexplored potentials of concrete and constantly challenge the properties of concrete in structural, functional and aesthetical respects. Our High Performance Concrete type CRC® (Compact Reinforced Composite) and CRC® Jointcast is used for the spiral staircase at the Sidney Stringer Academy and is an excellent example of the many possibilities in High Performance Concretes.

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Young Persons Village will become the heartbeat of the community A £5 million scheme to create a world class YMCA Young Persons Village is taking root in Stoke-on-Trent which will become the heartbeat of the local community once completed.

Contractor J & S Seddon Ltd has the task of building the facility for young people with a refurbish-and-rebuild brief for the YMCA centre in Hanley. It is due for completion later this year.

The site is located on an infill former clay pit with up to 28 metres of made ground.

Additionally the site is in an area of coal mining activity and a mine shaft is located directly beneath one of the residential blocks.

The design is by architect Stride Treglown.

The project includes the construction of residential units, an activity centre and a host of other facilities based around the site’s existing nine-storey YMCA tower, which is to be retained and refurbished.

The two storey activity centre will include facilities for a variety of sports, plus a gym, a climbing wall, dance studio, three social enterprise rooms and a café. The external elevations are in bespoke metal cladding and glazing, incorporating aluminium framed windows to the main frontage and a flat roof. With its eco friendly lighting and heating systems, the building has been designed to achieve a BREEAM ‘excellent’ rating.

Another new specialist timber structured building will incorporate 36 self-contained modular German-made prefabricated flats. The elevations of the residential building will be in rendered cladding, and the building will have a flat roof.

A new extension together with the ground and first floors of the existing YMCA tower are being ustilised to form accommodation comprising a number of youth zones a health zone, an IT zone, a learning zone and reading and education zones.

The latest in eco friendly features are being introduced, including a bio mass heating system, green sedum roofs, and rain water harvesting, which will be used to flush toilets.

Low energy lighting is also being installed, and all excavated materials are being reused on site, with all timber coming from sustainable sources, External works include landscaping and the installation of new cycle sheds.

Currently the works are on track for scheduled completion.

Alan Nixon, managing director of Seddon, in Fenton, Stokeon-Trent, said: “The new Young Persons Village will transform the delivery of services for users in the city and create an environment that will represent the best facilities of their type in Europe.”

A spokesman from the North Staffs YMCA, said: “The Young Persons Village is a model project, based around specialist youth focused projects and services including sports, recreation, supported housing and training services.

“It will provide a supported environment specifically designed to meet the needs and aspirations of young people.”

Funding for the scheme follows a successful bid by Young Person’s Village (YPV) as part of the myplace programme.

Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire YMCA is working with Stoke-on-Trent City Council to create the new village which is intended to provide a safe place for advice, guidance and sports facilities, which will also be accessed by local clubs.

The centre will target some of the most vulnerable young people from North Staffordshire, including those excluded from school and ex-offenders. Around 30 per cent will be from households which fall into the 10 per cent most deprived in the UK. Myplace is funded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and supported by the Big Lottery Fund (BIG) with the aim of creating safe places across England for young people to go.

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John Taylor, BIG fund head of region for the West Midlands, said: “By opening up their sports facilities to local clubs, I’m sure the Young People’s Village will quickly become a hub for local young people and have a positive impact on the wider community.”

J & S Seddon Building is a construction and maintenance company, with headquarters in Stoke-on-Trent and regional offices across Britain.

J & S Seddon Building is a Seddon Group Limited company, one of Britain’s major privately owned construction companies, with an annual turnover in excess of £250 million, which employs 1,750 people.

Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

Drivers face changes on A46 project The latest stage of a multi-million project to transform parts of the A46 has been announced by the Highways Agency.

The Agency has advised road users of changes to the layout of the A46 as part of the ongoing Newark to Widmerpool improvement project.

Traffic will switch on to a 3.5 mile section of the new northbound carriageway allowing contractors to excavate what will become the new A46 southbound carriageway.

The Inholms Road at Flintham will then be closed for up to eight weeks to enable the eastern link road on to the A46 to be constructed.

During this time there will be a signed diversion route in place via Elston and Shelton.

Geoff Bethel, senior project manager for the Highways Agency said: “This is the fifth major traffic switch on the project and takes us another step closer to completing the scheme.

“We are pleased to report work is progressing well and we’d like to thank road users, residents and landowners for their continued patience during all the changes.”

It is the latest stage of the project by contractors led by Balfour Beatty.

It has seen a new railway bridge installed within 83.5 hours, as part of the Highways Agency’s A46 Newark to Widmerpool improvement in Nottinghamshire.

The new A46 needs to go under the existing railway line at Bingham, so the new bridge,

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designed by URS/Scott Wilson, was provided to take the railway over the road.

The 1300-tonne bridge was then jacked onto two hydraulic platforms, each one with 75 wheels, and raised up.

It was driven into position at a speed of around one mile an hour, lowered onto the six concrete columns and fixed into place. The railway line was re-opened shortly afterwards.

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An exciting project to bring to life the ‘Golden Age’ of Roman Britain is underway at Chedworth Roman Villa in Yanworth, Cheltenham, involving a programme of works to revitalise the historic site.

The villa, owned by The National Trust, is one of the largest Romano-British villas in the country and the second most visited domestic Roman site in the UK. It features a wide variety of in-situ features including exceptional mosaics, and is a site of international significance as a visitor attraction. Although, Chedworth receives 50,000 visitors a year, facilities for the public were in need of improvement and many of the key remains were not accessible.

Over the summer of 2010, an archaeologist uncovered a new splendid display of mosaics that have never before been seen by the public.

The fragile remains faced an uncertain future, with the site’s Victorian shelters failing to protect them against adverse environmental conditions.

The visitor facilities also failed to meet modern expectations with no permanent catering facility, outdated interpretation and an array of temporary structures including a canvas tea room and a small ‘shed’ for educational visits.

All of these failings are being addressed in the project which has been funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The development includes the construction of a new conservation shelter, a new education centre and the upgrading of the existing reception building, with these works being carried out by CS Williams Ltd of Taunton, Somerset.

Architects are Fielden Clegg Bradley Studios; Structural Engineers are Integrated Engineering Design; Mechanical and Electrical Engineers are E3 Consulting Engineers and Quantity Surveyors are Mildrew Howells & Company.

The new conservation shelter is being built on the original foundations of the west range of the villa, which contains the majority of the mosaics to provide a stable and controlled conservation environment ensuring that the archaeology can be preserved, while maintaining and improving the access.

A suspended walkway will take visitors through the entire wing, getting much closer to the mosaics, including the newly uncovered mosaics.

The new building is a single storey Glulam structure wrapped in a singly ply membrane and clad in a timber battened rainscreen skin. The structure incorporates aluminium curtain walling and sliding timber solar control screens with external elevations in timber battons, incorporating wooden framed windows, sliding aluminium framed screens at the entrance and a membrane roof, also covered in timber battons.

“We had to lay a huge amount of protection over the mosaics - much of which are built over a Roman hypocaust underfloor heating system. This involved the laying of around 200 mm of protection with a layer of plywood over that to protect the remains below. In addition we are not normally allowed to walk over the protected surface” said Cliff Watts, CS Williams Contracts Manager.

He added that the scheme is being carried out under a temporary roof until the final structure is in place, with dry trades being favoured wherever possible, together with the maximum amount of off-site prefabrication in order to avoid damage to any of the remains.

A new learning centre/interpretation building is also being constructed to provide a comfortable space for a class of 30 children, lifting the restrictions imposed by the existing facilities and allowing a wider, more inclusive range of activities to take place.

The education building prvides a full height education space and facilities and is constructed using roof trusses from the dismantled Victorian shelters, providing continuity with the site’s most recent past. The structure is clad in timber and slate with aluminium framed timber clad windows affording views across the wooded hillside in which it is firmly embedded.

Internally the building will comprise an open space auditorium and a plant room and is being built into the hillside with external

elevations in wood and wooden framed windows.

The roof trusses of the Victorian shelters’ frames was dismantled and is being re-used for the learning centre roof, providing continuity with the site’s more recent past.

The upgrading of the site’s existing reception building comprises refurbishment, reconfiguration of the original shop and reception area and the creation of a new tea room.

All of the works are being carried out with the villa remaining open to the public, with visitors being encouraged to come and see what is happening, with temporary exhibitions and guided tours explaining the work in progress.

The scheme is currently progressing well. “The client and design team are excellent to work with. On a scheme such as this it is important to ensure that the sub contractors are willing to go along with all the specialist demands of this type of project and also to be able to engage with the public who are observing the works underway” said Mr Watts.

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‘Not just decent but excellent’ - a blueprint success in housing stock improvement ‘Not just decent but excellent’ is the motto of a Poole Housing Partnership (PHP), who recently completed a rolling programme of housing improvements which not only met the Government’s Decent Homes Standard, but went way beyond these requirements by achieving additional improvements set by their own ‘Poole Housing standard.’

The Decent Homes standard requires every home to have reasonably modern facilities, be warm and weatherproof, whilst the Poole Standard sets additional criteria which were negotiated and agreed with residents, and continuously updated.

“We didn’t work to the Decent Homes Standard, we worked to the ‘Poole Homes Standard’ which was higher” said Mr Mike Harrison of PHP. He explained that whilst the Decent Homes Standard allows one or more elements of the requirements to be missed, the Poole Homes Standard requires all the elements to be carried out.

The highly successful improvement programme included a contract of kitchen and bathroom replacement delivered by Main Contractors Mitie Group.

Of the 4,600 properties under the management of PHP, over 2,800 kitchens and 3,500 bathrooms were replaced in the works carried out by Mitie.

The decision to award the contract to Mitie was originally based on a number of issues including the quality of service and products, its track-record of success on similar projects, and a competitive price.

The works were carried out in all types of housing - from tower blocks to bungalows and terraced and detached properties throughout the Poole borough.

As part of their remit, Mitie set up monthly ‘core group’ meetings between the residents, sub-contractors, themselves, and PHP to give all parties the opportunity to discuss key performance indicators and any other issues that had arisen in the implementation of the required standards.

The project was started deliberately slowly, in order to ensure that the quality was right and that all systems were in place. The rate of the installations was then gradually accelerated with their number increasing each week to a more rapid rate that could ensure that the project was completed on time.

“One of the things which we identified early on in this programme was that a lot of our plaster had blown, and re plastering was needed. So whilst the old plaster was removed, we rewired the kitchens, generally including installing new consumer units before re-plastering” said Mr Harrison.

On average, around 750 kitchens and 750 bathrooms per year were improved The required standard in all PHP’s properties was reached on 1st of January this year. “However this does not mean that the programme has ended - as we now have more homes reaching the stage where improvements are needed, so the programme is definitely ongoing” said Mr Harrison.

Mr Lee Elliott of Mitie Group puts the success of the project down to “True partnership working between the client and the contractors right through the scheme from the start back in 2005. In fact, this relationship was so strong that members of the Mitie team are still in contact with staff from PHP, with whom they forged personal friendships initiated during the life of the contract.

“Everybody involved wanted the scheme to be a success and worked together to achieve this” he said, adding: “We directly employed staff to deliver the job - over 75 per cent of which

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were local people, including six apprentices working on the scheme from start to finish, plus other apprentices at various stages of the project.”

Tenant liaison was also a major contributory factor in the success of the scheme he said, with Mitie carrying out this function through two staff working from their their office and a team of three tenant liaison officers on site to help ensure the smooth running of the project, working at all times with staff at PHP. He describes one of the most challenging aspects of the project as “Delivering the required year on year cost efficiencies required by PHP alongside the programme of work.” Despite this, Mitie achieved an overall saving of around £500,000 over the life of the project.

Mitie have been carrying out Decent Homes improvements throughout the country for the last 13 years and this was one of the strengths that won them the contract tender - together with competitive pricing.

“Both the kitchen and the bathroom contracts were secured on both a pricing and a quality submission” said Mr Elliott.

‘Root and branch’ restoration for famous gardens One of Falmouth’s former Victorian attractions is undergoing a major transformation which will bring it back to its former glory and back into the hearts and minds of locals and tourists.

The Gyllyngdune Gardens were a big hit in Victorian and Edwardian times, but recently have been neglected until a combined funding project sought to make the gardens bloom once again.

The £2.7million project, being overseen by Cornwall Council, is being bank rolled by funding from various organisations, including £1m from the Heritage Lottery, with extra finance from Play Builder, Cory Environmental Trust and Carrick Leisure.

The Main Contractor is Midas Construction, with the council’s project manager Jon Mitchell overseeing the scheme.

The project will see the restoration of a shell grotto and shell seat, the rebuilding of a summerhouse, and the re-planting of the upper and lower gardens in an historical context.

A strip of land has been bought from neighbouring Gyllyngdune Manor to facilitate a new entrance from Emslie Road which will have a new sloping path for disabled access.

Work has already been undertaken to repair the veranda around the Princess Pavilion and further works to this building will see a complete refurbishment of the café, an improved entrance foyer for the theatre and the creation of a new entrance from Melville Road.

The single storey building will be fitted with glazing to take advantage of the glorious views over the gardens.

The Heritage Lottery award will see the gardens restored to their former glory and fit for 21st century use. During the restoration, information boards will be on display and visitors will be able to study the progress of the work.

Mr Mitchell said: “The gardens were originally pleasure gardens of a manor house, but in 1906 they were handed to the local council to be used by the public. However, in recent years they have neglected.

“The central plan is to bring them back to their former glory so that they act as an added feature to the Princess Pavillions theatre and conference centre.

“They will help to form as an education tool for schools all year round and as a general attraction for the local public.

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S o u th We s t ”The site is anticipated to become a fantastic facility and residents are waiting for us to unveil the project so that they can once again make use of the much loved gardens.”

With the help of a grant from Play Builder, a play area has been developed on the site of a derelict municipal greenhouse in the upper gardens.

Local children from four Falmouth primary schools joined Cornwall Council’s design team to develop the story of Morgawr, the Falmouth Bay Sea Serpent who reputedly comes to the garden every 26th moon.

The story provides the link between the top garden, the rose garden and other features such as the stone arch, the grotto and the sea.

The design of this feature is a bulky, sinuous landform of this mythical sea dragon lying in its lair alongside the path. Most of the materials were locally sourced and fabricated by local crafts people.

The gardens have also benefitted from funding from a local Friends of the Gardens for planting on site, while former Victorian tunnels which were blocked off in the 1970s have been re-opened and restored.

The gardens are a relic of a much bigger estate built in the 1830s by William Wightwick for General Coope. The lower part of the garden was created in the quarry from which the stone for the house had been taken, and took the form of a grotto with shell-lined aedicules.

The upper part of the garden, to the west of the house, was a walled kitchen garden with steps leading to a flower garden in the south. General Coope’s son, the Rev William John Coope, added a chapel on the seafront and stairs and a tunnel so the sea front could be reached without crossing Invalids Walk, now the seafront road.

Keith Hosen, Midas Construction’s Project Manager said: “We have been very aware of the gardens’ historical significance and cherished role at the heart of the community in Falmouth and

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have truly enjoyed restoring this magnificent location. All of us at Midas are delighted to be associated with the project.”

Alitex Glasshouse at Gyllyngdune Gardens The original timber glasshouses in the gardens were demolished over 15 years ago. Alitex were delighted to have been chosen to build the replacement structures, following the original lean-to design.

All Alitex greenhouses are made of low maintenance powder coated aluminium, but are carefully designed to look like timber.

Reducing maintenance costs is a key consideration for public gardens, as is choosing a quality structure which comes with a lifetime guarantee.

£100 million estate regeneration powers ahead The Leadbitter Group is on site with the first phase of the regeneration of the North Town estate in Aldershot, a Neighbourhood Renewal project.

The North Town regeneration area is bordered by North Lane, Pegasus Avenue, Deadbrook Lane and Eastern Road, Aldershot.

The estate was built in the 1950s and the redevelopment scheme has been fostered by First Wessex, one of Hampshire’s largest providers of social housing, and Rushmore Borough Council.

Leadbitter Group beat the competition in a comprehensive tender process undertaken by First Wessex Housing Group which involved contractor interviews with the design and development team and representatives from the ‘My North Town Residents’ Consultative Group.

The overall scheme, with a value approaching £100 million, is phased to take place over the next seven years, and includes the replacement of approximately 500 homes in the area with an equal number of environmentally sustainable houses, flats, maisonettes and bungalows.

Leadbitter has secured the first phase of the urban redevelopment with a contract value of £13 million and a construction programme of over two years. The company

commenced design works at the end of 2010.

Phase One includes the provision of 159 dwellings, a mixture of houses and flats, and includes the redevelopment of Alma House, an existing extra care home. The homes will be offered on a mixed tenure basis with the majority available at affordable rent. There will also be a number of properties available in shared ownership with First Wessex, with six of the properties offered for open market sale.

Dave Cook, Regional Director of Leadbitter’s Southern Housing and Construction Division said: “We were proud to secure the first phase of this prestigious project. The scheme is a significant one and the design is focused on providing local residents with a greater choice of homes built to meet current environmental standards.

‘We have a tremendous opportunity to engage with the local community and to offer a number of employment opportunities.

We have had discussions with Aldershot College with a view to engaging with their students and offering trade apprenticeships, and we have recruited a dedicated community engagement coordinator to ensure that the work we do in North Town leaves a lasting legacy for the community.”

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Major new London hotel rises near Tower Bridge Boasting stunning views over London the Grange Tower Bridge Hotel is an approximately £70 million project now nearing completion. It is set to redefine luxury accommodation and conferencing facilities within the famous Tower Bridge district.

Its owner Grange Hotels have a collection of private luxury hotels superbly located in the heart of London. All Grange Hotels offer individual character and a wealth of history and local tradition, combined with contemporary luxury and outstanding value that only the very best independent hotels can provide.

The Grange Tower Bridge Hotel is situated within a close proximity to Tower Hill and Tower Gateway stations that will provide optimum accessibility to the Square Mile.

The Management Contract to construct the new hotel is being undertaken by Grange Hotels, themselves, using their own construction team and a number of sub contractors. Buchanan Associates are the Architects and Interior Designers for the project.

Described by the architects as “an interesting piece of urban design”, the new hotel is divided into three blocks of varying heights interlinked by glass bridges. The West block being 15 storeys high, the Centre Block 8 storey’s and the East Tower 11 storey’s. The blocks are constructed on top of a two story podium incorporating the hotel’s main entrance, reception and main restaurants. There are three further storeys beneath ground level, which will include accommodation such as a main conference hall, swimming pool, and gymnasium.

The hotel is being constructed on a rarely-found empty site which was largely flattened during the war. “Amazingly nobody

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had built on it” said Dean Buchanan, director of Buchanan Associates.

He added that two unusual elements of the scheme involved a search for unexploded bombs and an archaeological survey which unearthed a Roman graveyard containing ancient skeletons and artifacts. A particularly interesting find was a large Roman glass dish. All the finds were donated to the Museum of London.

“This has been an unusual project which has gone very well.

The greatest challenge was in carrying out the initial excavation” said Dean Buchanan.

The works commenced with a 10 meter excavation for the hotel’s basement levels, large horizontal props and contiguous piling around the perimeter of the excavation to stabilise the ground.

The podium and frames of the three blocks are constructed as a concrete frame. The excavations and the superstructure works were undertaken by John Reddington Ltd. The exterior of the building is clad in a combination of stretcher-bond brickwork, aluminium panels, glass and solar shading louvers. The facades are visually split with vertical brick piers and the main facades are articulated with silver coloured panelling and black glass. External glass-walled lift shafts are situated on the two end blocks and will offer panoramic views.

The flat asphalt roofs of the blocks accommodate building services including photovoltaic’s and solar thermal panels.

The development is also served by an aquifer borehole and a combined heat and power system.

The new hotel incorporates 370 contemporary guest bedrooms

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and suites with amenities including 32 inch flat screen digital TVs, individual climate control and king/queen sized beds, in addition to sumptuous Italian marble and granite bathrooms stocked with luxury toiletries.

There will also be a specialty restaurant with Eastern fusion menu, a continental diner serving breakfasts and lunches, and a sophisticated lounge bar offering the very best wines, spirits and in-house cocktails.

Another major feature is a stunning Spa and Health Club with pool, state-of-the-art gymnasium, and steam, sauna and aromatherapy suites.

Midgard Construction are carrying out the installation of the hotel’s 25 m long by 6.5 meters wide and 1.2 m deep swimming pool and associated facilities including a sauna, steam room, hot spa, jacuzzi and showers. The pool includes a feature “cave” at one end with clear glass mosaic tiles on the back wall to reflect the water. The “cave” will also incorporate four shower heads which will turn on and off at intervals, creating a waterfall effect at the cave entrance.

Works on this element of the project involve the formation of the pool and jacuzzi in shot concrete and the installation of services in a block and beam floor to either side of the pool.

A Barisol ceiling is also being installed over the pool, together with a LED lighting system to create a distinctive feature ceiling.

Other works include ceramic and mosaic tiling of the floors and walls.

The project was challenging for Midgard Construction in that the pool is located three floors below ground level and all building materials needed to be transported to the work site by hoist.

Further facilities will include a dedicated business centre and

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innovatively designed multi-purpose event suites. The purposebuilt Conference and Events Centre is two floors high and boasts plenty of daylight. Facilities include fully integrated AV technology, including optical connectivity, digital projectors, full-range speakers and HD plasma monitors.

An Executive Club lounge, a Business Centre, express checkout, adapted rooms with disabled/wheelchair access, female friendly services, concierge, and 24 hour room service add to the impressive list of luxurious facilities.

The construction is now almost complete with a phase 1 opening (comprising mainly the bedrooms, conference centre and restaurant) scheduled for June 2011. The overall project completion is anticipated in early autumn 2011.

Grange Hotels are a collection of private luxury hotels all superbly located in the heart of London. All Grange Hotels offer individual character and a wealth of history and local tradition, combined with contemporary luxury and outstanding value that only the very best independent hotels can provide. Grange Hotels are some of the best located properties in London, with elegant and beautifully designed bedrooms and suites and extensive restaurants and bars.

Meza9 Working for the first time with The Grange, Meza9 used stainless steel and glass to manufacture & install a 6 flight stainless steel staircase with illuminated glass treads and balustrade, solar panel platforms, a restaurant conservatory and three feature lift shafts on the Grange Hotel in Tower Bridge. From 3D CAD drawings to installation each project completed within budget over the last 18 months. Meza9’s extensive experience is providing surveys, bespoke designs, manufacture and project

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t through all domains. It was challenging, interesting and always focused on the client´s demand.

Dobler have met very skilled and cooperative business partners within the client’s organization as well as with the architects, the quantity surveyors and others.

Fire Protection Systems Ltd

management of large installations to blue-chip companies in the UK. We look forward to working with The Grange again and all the other contractors involved on and off site.

Dobler As the curtain wall subcontractor for this project, Dobler was responsible for the detailed design of the building’s 8,500 m² facade, including coordination, manufacture, delivery and installation of the facade components including project management.

The company’s scope of works included the manufacture, delivery and installation of the curtain wall components, the unitised curtain wall panels, aluminium rain screen, aluminium louvers and shop front cladding, as well as external doors.

The main materials used were thermally broken aluminium extrusions for the unitised panels, solar control insulated double glazed units, folded aluminium rain screen panels, copings and louvers.

The design of the project started in September 2008.

Installation commenced in August 2009 and was completed by end of 2010.

Dobler has been working with Grange Hotels Ltd. and Buchanan Associated Architects for five years now and during this period two projects have been completed. The cooperation between all parties was characterised by professionalism, based on partnership and trust.

The project was an excellent example of great teamwork

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One of Britain’s leading manufacturers and installers of fire-resistant ductwork, Fire Protection Ltd of Templefields, Essex, have supplied and installed a fire resistant ductwork system in the basement of the new hotel. The system will protect the occupants of the building in the event of a fire by venting smoke from the basement and kitchens, as well as by playing an essential role in maintaining the building compartmentation to prevent fire from spreading.

This is the second installation for Grange Hotels by Fire Protection Systems Ltd, who installed a similar system at the Grange Hotel in St Pauls.

The company have carried out numerous fire protection projects in hotels and on a number of other prestigious developments, including the Terminal 5, Canary Wharf and Swiss Re schemes, and have an impressive portfolio of clients.

Construction high-flyers in airport expansion Construction of a second, 120,000 sq ft, hangar is underway and progressing well at TAG Farnborough Airport, Europe’s leading business aviation airport which is looking to the future and the London 2012 Olympics.

With construction scheduled to complete for September 2011, the state-of-the-art three bay wave shaped hangar, is being built

by Inseen Construction and designed by 3D Reid. Associated high-end office space and workshop facilities border the hangar’s 100m span bays.

The new hangar complements existing buildings at the airport, including another three bay wave hangar. It will allow TAG Farnborough Airport to offer its customers even more aircraft hangarage space and additional facilities, including new office accommodation.

Commenting on the new development, TAG Farnborough Airport CEO Brandon O’Reilly said: “The new hangar will further enhance the airport’s dedicated business aviation product facilities and give our customers greater choice and flexibility.

The new building complements the existing hangar and terminal and underpins the success of TAG Farnborough Airport as Europe’s leading business aviation facility.”

The new hangar is due for completion in September 2011.

TAG Farnborough Airport is Europe’s leading all-business airport. It is a key gateway for prominent business decision makers flying to and from the UK. The airport is biennial host to the world’s leading airshow, the Farnborough International

Airshow. Farnborough is the birthplace of British aviation and is the home of the country’s first powered flight in 1908.

Under a recent planning decision, the airport is permitted to increase aircraft movements from 28,000 to 50,000 per year and these will be phased in through to 2019.

Brandon O’Reilly said: “This means that TAG Farnborough can meet more of the growing demand for business aviation which facilitates overseas trade, inward investment and generates local jobs.

“The airport is taking an industry leading stance on noise mitigation and climate change. It continues to engage with the Farnborough Aerodrome Consultative Committee and the local community to tackle important environmental issues”.

Within easy reach of London, TAG Farnborough Airport has direct motorway and rail connections. Helicopter shuttles from Battersea take 10 minutes to Farnborough. London Heathrow is also within easy reach.

TAG Farnborough Airport is part of TAG Aviation. The other companies within TAG Aviation include: TAG Aviation Europe, TAG Aviation Asia and TAG Aviation Services (UK). TAG Aviation is part-owned by the TAG Group which has a worldwide portfolio of enterprises including Formula One motor racing (McLaren Mercedes) and commercial real estate.

Farnborough Airport’s in-house construction department led by Simon Horsley, managed the construction of the TAG Farnborough Airport Terminal Building. The success of the ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t project, completed on time and below budget, led to the formation of Inseen Construction.

The Inseen Construction Ltd team consists of specialists within the aviation industry, supported by experienced professionals from commercial new build and refurbishment environments which the company believes offer a wide range of services to their clients from the majority of construction sectors.

The company has a proven track record of delivering high quality projects for the aviation industry. Recently they have specialised in the fast-emerging business aviation market, offering top-end solutions to match the culture of the industry.

Inseen Construction have established an enviable reputation within their client base, demonstrating competence, enhancing team working and providing the highest levels of customer service and satisfaction.

Their team of highly skilled, proactive and creative individuals offers immense commercial value to clients. The company’s morals and ethics are founded on the principle of team working, client service and the need to exceed expectations.

The company’s vision is to be a respected and trusted partner delivering highly skilled services to clients within construction and refurbishment services. They achieve this by supporting and enhancing their clients and customers projects with bespoke services to meet their needs, aspirations and goals.

The company’s values include: being professional and passionate about the construction industry, whilst being ethical, innovative and honest at all times; continuing to prioritise a focus on time, cost and quality of projects for clients from inception to completion and taking ownership of projects and ensuring that they embody the values of integrity and respect. The company also seeks to care for their project teams and the communities in which they operate and to provide safe and secure working environments and enhance the reputation of the construction industry.

Iconic new London landmark rises to become Britain’s tallest building The Shard in Southwark’s London Bridge Quarter soars skyward, pinpointing the location of this mixed use development being carried out as part of the area’s £22m regeneration programme.

The Sellar Property Group which is developing the scheme on behalf of LBQ Ltd, are working with architects Renzo Piano Building Workshop in collaboration with Adamson Associates and principal contractors Mace.

Renzo Piano, the architect, described the design as a ‘shard of crystal’, with sophisticated use of glazing and expressive facades of angled panes intended to reflect light and the changing patterns of the sky, so that the form of the building will change according to the weather and seasons.

When taken to the 244 metre level recently, Boris Johnson said, “If you want a symbol of how London is powering its way out of the global recession, the Shard is it, rising confidently up to the heavens. Once complete, this huge engineering feat will be the tallest building in Europe, and is destined to become as iconic a landmark on London’s cherished skyline as the Gherkin, St Paul’s or Big Ben”.

The variable size of the floor plates is ideal for a mixed use development. At the bottom the large deep floor plates are for offices, the middle floors incorporate an apartment hotel and the top floors comprise apartments. The building will incorporate 595,000 sq ft of office space, a collection of high quality restaurants and bars occupying three floors at the mid

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levels, a five star de-luxe Shangri-La hotel and spa, exclusive residences and a high level viewing gallery. Conceived like a small vertical town in which ten thousand people will work and more will commute to and from, the tower is a holistic response to the sustainable development of the European city.

The building will be 310 metres tall with a total floor area of 90,000 square metres and have 72 floors, plus 15 further radiator floors in the roof.

Each facet of the building forms a shard, a plane of glass gently inclined inwards, rising towards the top. The corners are open and the shards do not touch, allowing the building to ‘breathe’.

In turn the glass surface visually fragments as it rises, and the tower appears to dissolve into the sky.

The central core is now complete. April 2011 saw steady progress in construction and cladding had enveloped half the building’s exterior. Pouring of the concrete floors had reached level 50 and progress on the towers cladding had picked up pace once again with cladding reaching level 38.

Stephen Pycroft, chairman and CEO of Mace commented: “There is a lot of hard work to do, but the speed with which the Shard has risen out of the ground and the quality of the construction is testimony to the determination, innovation and team spirit of all those working on the project”.

Completion of the entire London Bridge Quarter development is anticipated during the first quarter of 2013.

Alimak Hek Scando 650 Hoist used at The Shard wins Access International’s IAPA 2011 Product of The Year Award 2011 is the third time the IAPA - International Awards for Powered Access – have been held and the judges were looking for best practise, excellence, innovation and professionalism in the award winners, with each jury consists of respected and acknowledged professionals from within the industry, ROMA PUBLICATIONS

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with the winners announced at the IPAF Summit on 14 April in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

With its product the Alimak Scando 650, Alimak Hek won the Product of the Year Award - Mast Climbing Work Platform/ Hoists, for a project specific hoist development at the prestigious London tower construction, Shard of Glass, constructed by Mace on behalf of Sellar Properties, where a pair of oversize and inclined hoists were provided via HTC Plant Ltd. The hoist supply, managed via Alimak Hek Ltd in the UK, included a hoist cage 2.5m wide by 4.45m long, climbing 200+m carrying

dedicated payloads up to 2500kg.

The judges said: “the winner was an engineering triumph – and definitely one of the largest masted passenger/goods hoists ever produced. The company used all its expertise to engineer a unique solution to transporting goods and personnel on an inclined building 200 m high.” Winning this award recognises the importance that Alimak HEK places on both its design and product flexibility, and shows that the company is in the forefront when it comes to engineering customer focused vertical access solutions.

Offshore works beginning on London Array project March 2011 sees the beginning of the turbine works on the London Array. The project, which will cost well over the initial investment of €2.2 billion, is still on track to provide power to the 2012 Olympics.

The project was born in 2001, when a series of environmental studies in the outer Thames Estuary confirmed the area is a suitable wind farm site. Two years later, the Crown Estate gave London Array Ltd a 50 year lease for the site and cable route to shore.

Planning consent for a 1GW offshore wind farm was granted in 2006, and permission was granted for the onshore works in 2007. Work on Phase 1 started in July 2009 when contractors began building the onshore substation at Cleve Hill in Kent.

Phase 1 Phase 1 of the project covers an offshore area of 100km2 – room enough for 175 wind turbines, two offshore substations and nearly 450km of offshore cabling, all of which generates 630MW of electricity through an onshore substation which channels enough power for around 480,000 homes a year or two thirds of the homes in Kent.

Phase 1 will cost €2.2 billion to build and install, and should be complete in 2012, when it will begin to provide estimated CO2 savings of 925,000 tonnes a year.

Offshore construction activities will be managed from a temporary construction base at the Port of Ramsgate. Work

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began on the base in summer 2010 and the construction team moved into the building in September 2010. Developers are expecting the base to remain until 2013, when Phase 1 construction is completed.

Array cables will connect the wind turbines to each other and to the offshore substations. They will each measure between 650m and 1,200m in length. For Phase 1, contractors will lay 209km of array cabling in total.

The export cables will run from the offshore substations to the onshore substation at Cleve Hill, where the power will be flowed into the national electricity network. The cables will be buried in trenches dug into the seabed using the special cable installation barge and plough, ‘Stemat Spirit’. As well as transporting electricity, the export cables will hold vital fibre optic wires that will be used to communicate remotely with the wind turbines.

Two of four huge transformers needed for the station have been transported to site in a huge yet precise logistical operation.

Each transformer is 8.5 metres long and 2.5 metres wide and weighs approximately 130 tonnes.

Construction on Cleve Hill’s main architectural feature, the North Wall, is nearly complete. The concrete base and 2.4m stem for the wall was completed in August 2010 and the 7m high concrete panels were installed during September and October Most of the steel fins (31 of 37) have now been installed; the last 6 fins will be installed once the electrical commissioning works have been completed towards the end of the summer 2011. The North Wall consists of 33 concrete panels and 37 aluminium fins

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placed in a 160m long line.

Work is beginning on the turbine element of Phase 1, with 177 piles – one for each of the 175 wind turbines and two more for the offshore substations. A purpose-built vessel, the ‘MPI Adventure’ will install the foundations in deep water. In shallower areas, contractors will use the ‘Sea Worker’ vessel.

These vessels have four extendable legs that lift the deck out

of the water to create a stable platform from which to hammer in the piles.

London Array Limited is a consortium of three world-leading renewable energy companies, DONG Energy, E.ON Group and Masdar who together with a team of expert sub-contractors are combining their experience and expertise to develop and build the world’s largest offshore wind farm.

Flagship facility will turn refuse into a rich resource Designed to turn refuse into a valuable resource and significantly reduce reliance on landfill, a flagship Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility is under construction at Brookhurst Wood, North Horsham in West Sussex.

The new facility will manage the county’s black bag rubbish in a much more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly way, turning it into a resource providing alternatives to fossil fuels using tried and tested mechanical biological treatment technology.

The project, for West Sussex County Council, is being delivered by Biffa West Sussex Ltd, who have signed a 25-year contract with the council to treat the county’s non-recycled black bag household rubbish at the new facility. M+W Group are the turnkey contractor for the engineering, procurement and construction elements of the project.

As the Wastes Disposal Authority, the County Council has a duty to arrange for the disposal of rubbish from residents homes and any commercial waste (municipal waste) collected and delivered to it by the district and borough councils of West Sussex, who are Waste Collection Authorities (WCAs). On 26th June 2010, Biffa and West Sussex County Council signed a 25-year contract to treat the county’s non-recycled black bag household rubbish at the Mechanical Biological Treatment facility at Brookhurst Wood.

David Savory, Biffa’s Environment and External Affairs Director, said: “Biffa is delighted to embark upon this 25-year partnership with West Sussex County Council to help achieve its ambition to be an innovator in recycling and resource management. When

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t operational in 2013, the new facility will divert up to 80% of West Sussex’s residual waste away from landfill and use it as a resource to produce renewable energy. “ Mechanical Biological Treatment is not a single technology, but rather a combination of sorting and treatment technologies. It represents a cost effective alternative to landfill by turning waste into a resource and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the treatment of West Sussex’s residual household waste.

Recyclable materials, such as metals, are extracted from mixed waste and the remaining shredded material is used to produce refuse derived fuel (mainly made up of paper and plastic), and for use in the process of anaerobic digestion, which uses an enclosed system to accelerate the natural breakdown of biodegradable organic materials such as kitchen and garden waste - then produces other valuable outputs including Biogas (a methane-rich fuel gas) and Digestate (a fine organic material similar to compost).

When operating at full capacity, the facility will produce up to 3.5 megawatts of renewable energy, enough to power around 7000 homes, equivalent to 80% of the households in North Horsham Parish.

The facility’s mechanical sorting plant will also produce a Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF). Subject to a joint exercise by Biffa and West Sussex County Council to find a long-term sustainable market for the RDF, it will either be sent to a third party outlet or used to fuel a thermal treatment facility that will produce energy in the form of electricity and heat.

The mechanical sorting plant will also extract any remaining metals from the waste for recycling, helping to boost West Sussex’s recycling rates.

The MBT facility is being built next to an existing Biffa landfill site and is located in an old clay pit below ground level, which means it will be concealed from the road above and will be screened by existing trees.

Biffa carried out a full Environmental Impact Assessment for the planning application of the Mechanical Biological Treatment

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facility. As part of this assessment ecologists carried out a thorough check for any protected species and found four healthy Great Crested Newts on the site.

Biffa were advised by ecologists that the area adjacent to the construction site was a perfect environment to relocate the newts and have created new ponds and hibernation areas for the resident newts that were successfully relocated.

Enabling works included clearing a manmade lagoon and levelling off the land. The fish that had accumulated in the manmade lagoon to the north of the site were professionally moved to the South lagoon also on site.

The project comprises the construction of four buildings including, a three storey office and visitor centre, a process building, a dryer building and a substation. A tank farm for anaerobic digestion tanks is also being constructed.

The office and visitor centre is being designed to achieve a BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) ‘excellent’ rating.

The office and visitors centre will be a stand-alone building incorporating a lift which will take visitors to an underground tunnel leading into the main facility, thereby safely avoiding the HGV vehicles entering the facility above ground. A viewing platform will enable visitors to view the process of sorting and separating waste and turning it into a valuable resource.

The process building is of steel frame construction with external elevations mainly in insulated cladding and a pitched insulated cladding roof.

Fire protection will include the installation of sprinklers, smoke detection cameras, water cannon and other measures throughout the facility The project includes landscaping to the perimeter of the facility, including hydro seeding and tree planting.

Currently the works are approximately two weeks ahead of programme and the facility is due to open in summer 2013 after a six month commissioning period.

A group of students from The College of Richard Collyer in Horsham visited the Brookhurst Wood site last November. The

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t students listened to presentations about how West Sussex’s waste is currently managed and how it will be treated in the future at the new Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility, followed by a tour to see progress of the construction.

It was the first group of students that had visited since the signing of the 25 year contract between West Sussex County Council and Biffa. The tutor thanked Biffa staff and said ‘I know it will help the students remember lots about waste treatment for their exams and beyond’.

Biffa is a leading nationwide integrated waste management business providing collection, treatment, recycling and technologically-driven energy generation services. Through the expertise of their people and investment in technology, the company promotes and delivers sustainable waste management solutions.

The company provides an essential service to satisfy the business needs of the commercial, industrial and public sector customers throughout the UK, and help them to meet their legal obligations and corporate responsibility commitments.

As a nation, the UK is producing more waste than ever before – and the UK’s traditional management route for waste; landfill, is running out fast. Add the impact of continually evolving and

more demanding environmental legislation from EU and UK governments, and the challenge is clear.

Biffa believes that changing the way we deal with our waste is no longer an option. It’s a necessity. The solution is a radical new approach to waste management: a revolutionary change in the way we think, the way we act and the way we handle every kind of waste.

While this sounds straightforward enough, it has massive implications on all sectors that generate waste. Delivering genuinely integrated waste management services to customers means investing in new IT led logistical systems, nationwide transfer capabilities, and new and emerging environmental technologies, says Biffa.

The company is developing their extensive UK-wide infrastructure to provide greater flexibility and customercentric solutions, bringing every customer the expertise and resources they need to maximise resource efficiency, meet future legislative requirements and achieve their corporate responsibilities and commitments.

Biffa’s goal, quite simply, is to keep Biffa at the forefront of a fast-changing environmental and resource efficiency agenda and to enable all of their customers to be a part of that journey.

Sewage works gets the full treatment in £140 million upgrade A £140 million upgrade and extension is underway at Mogden Sewage Treatment Works in Isleworth, West London to extend sewage treatment capacity by 50 per cent.

The project is being carried out for Thames Water by Black & Veatch. As principal contractor, Black & Veatch is responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction of the extended works.

Mogden Sewage Treatment Works was originally constructed in the 1930s and is one of Thames Water’s largest treatment works covering an area of 120 acres. The Mogden plant was built for the West Middlesex drainage district to replace 28 small sewage treatment works and over the years has been expanded, still within the original site boundaries.

The upgrades will enable Mogden to treat over 50 per cent more sewage, so it can cope with heavy rainfall and will ensure Mogden continues to meet effluent discharge consents set by the Environment Agency.

This will significantly reduce the amount of storm sewage that overflows into the tidal stretches of the River Thames when the site becomes overloaded during heavy rainfall. The improvements will also help Thames Water to meet tighter quality standards for the effluent they discharge.

The scheme includes upgrades and augmentation of the existing sludge plant and construction of a completely new effluent stream that includes a new covered inlet works, covered primary tanks and new aeration lanes. To make space for this, the western embankment, which is within the existing site boundary, was reshaped. The landscape to the west of the site will be enhanced once complete, benefiting local wildlife.

As well as significantly reducing sewage discharges, these improvements will help to reduce odour at the site, as the use of storm tanks will be reduced during heavy rain, and new and existing equipment will be covered over.

Longwood Engineering are manufacturing and installing six additional inlet screens and local control panels at Mogden

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Sewage Treatment Works west side.

The six inlet screens are Longwood Engineering escalators to screen the incoming flow to 6mm in two dimensions. Each screen is installed in an inlet channel 1880mm wide x 2950mm deep and designed to handle 1167L/S. The screens have been designed and manufactured to meet Thames Water’s and the project’s specifications, and are made in coated carbon steel and stainless steel.

The screen order to Longwood Engineering is in the region of half a million pounds, with the screens and control panels programmed for delivery in June 2011.

Longwood Engineering already have 12 escalator screens installed at Mogden (eight on the east side, and four on the west side), together with screenings handling equipment - which makes Mogden a flagship site for Longwood Engineering.

The Mogden Sewage Treatment Works upgrade project will increase flow to full treatment at the sewage works by 34 per cent from 790 to 1,064 million litres per day.

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t Flow control equipment specialists are major players in Mogden project IBS Engineered Products Ltd are responsible for the design, manufacture and installation of flow control equipment for the Mogden project.

The equipment - much of which is being made to bespoke sizes required for this particular project - includes over 70 penstocks, 40 stoplogs and 10 bellmouths, which will be used for both controlling and isolating the flow around the sewage works.

Ray Moulds, Business Development Manager for IBS comments “The Mogden project is very important for us as it gives us the opportunity to showcase the company and our products, which in turn will give us an ideal large scale reference site to help raise our profile in the UK water market”.

The Barnsley based company supplies flow control and flood protection products worldwide for applications including sewage treatment works and flood protection, as well as supplying to prestigious clients in the UK such as British Waterways, the Environment Agency, major utility contractors, private industrial companies and so on.

The company, which has had a presence in the UK for over 10 years, has worked on numerous prestigious projects including major flood protection schemes at Shrewsbury and Bewdley along the River Severn and large flood protection projects in Ireland.

Founded in 1994 in Germany, IBS has grown steadily and the group now employs over 180 designers, engineers, technicians and administrative staff with an annual turnover in excess of €14 million.

All IBS’s products are designed and manufactured in house and include penstocks, stoplogs, temporary demountable and demountable flood protection systems, spill barriers, flood gates and an innovative glass wall flood protection system.

£250 million upgrade for Tottenham Court Road Station A £250 million contract to upgrade Tottenham Court Road Tube Station is underway in a project being delivered by a joint venture between VINCI Construction UK and BAM Nuttall Ltd. The project is being carried out for London Underground as part of Transport for London (TfL).

The existing station is being enlarged to provide much greater capacity than at present, including a ticket hall almost six times the size of the existing one. New station entrances, modernisation of the existing station passageways and platforms and a new concourse with links to Tottenham Court Road station are being provided to reduce congestion. Additional escalators and five lifts will provide step free access throughout the station.

A new Crossrail Eastern ticket hall structure is also included in the scope of the contract (Crossrail is a new railway across London that will help cut journey times with high-frequency, high-capacity services). The redeveloped tube station will eventually connect with the new Crossrail station to form one integrated station.

Externally, improved facilities will be provided for pedestrians, cyclists, bus passengers and other road users, including a new piazza outside Centre Point as part of the contract.

Significant enabling works commenced 2007 and included the realignment of utilities and demolition to create the space to build the station. VINCI BAM Nuttall JV commenced with the main construction in 2010.

The new plaza at the entrance to the tube station is scheduled to open in 2013. The first new station entrance is due to open

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in 2015 and the redeveloped tube station is scheduled for completion in 2016.

Tottenham Court Road station, which originally opened in 1900, is currently used by 150,000 passengers each day and that number is expected to rise to over 200,000 when Crossrail services commence in 2018.

BAM Nuttall is focused on providing the highest professional standards in the civil engineering market, with emphasis on building strong, honest and long lasting relationships with satisfied customers.

The company has established an unrivalled reputation for delivering complex and challenging civil engineering projects that have played a significant role in shaping the infrastructure of modern Britain.

Vinci Construction UK is a national construction and facilities company and is part of VinciI, - a world leader in concessions and construction.

At local level the company’s regional teams operate throughout the UK, offering a fully-integrated service – from inception, ground investigation and remediation, through to project completion and beyond to the delivery of operational solutions.

Olympia Test & Crane Olympia Test & Crane supplied an overhead travelling crane at the site. The company was chosen from a shortlist due to the experience which they have in bespoke crane systems, enabling them to provide the client with exactly what was required, over and above the major crane suppliers in this field.

The work includes an ongoing maintenance agreement with Olympia carrying out regular service checks as well as any ad hoc breakdown visits.

Since completing the project at TCR, Olympia have also provided bespoke crane solutions to such companies as Dornack International in Essex, Valen Fittings in Aldridge in the Midlands, AG Precision Engineering in Lancashire and Central Networks, Birmingham. The company has completed the manufacture of two cranes for smaller independent companies in Nottingham and Aberdeen.

More recently, the largest order in the company’s history has been secured, with the supply and refurbishment of 8 cranes for European Steelcraft Ltd. Currently located in Derby, the company is developing a brand new site in Brownhills with Olympia given the task of providing all of their crane solutions.

An order has also been secured for the supply of a crane to Africa’s sole bus manufacturing plant, in Nairobi, Kenya. This will also include the provision of two fabricators to oversee the modification and installation of the crane on site.

Looking to the future, the company is in the final stage of negotiation with a major UK train manufacturer for the provision of two brand new cranes and installation.

Third Space gets active in the Marylebone Hotel A new £2m health and spa zone has been created to enable guests at London’s Marylebone Hotel to enjoy the full benefits of an ultra-modern state-of-the-art gym experience.

The project to create the new facility was carried out by SK Contracts Ltd, who have been commended for having done “a very good job.”

Independent health club operator Third Space has chosen the hotel, owned by The Doyle Collection, for its second enterprise, and is renting out a 15,000sq m (1,400sq m) space.

Designed by Goldstein Ween Architects and Colcutt & Hamp, Third Space occupies four floors of a seven-storey 1930s building located next to the Piccadilly Theatre, with part of the club also situated below an original courtyard.

Facilities include an 18 metre ozone-treated swimming pool and Third Space’s first full service spa.

The gym has been equipped with Technogym equipment and also includes a free weights studio and Powerplate Zone as well as a group exercise room offering combat, dance, Pilates and yoga.

The club also houses a two-storey training concept called ‘Retro Gym’, a concept that fuses modern functional techniques with traditional equipment including ‘old-school favourites’ such as climbing ropes, beams and bars.

The spa@ThirdSpace offers sauna and steamroom and a treatment menu supplied by French company Payot.

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include a number of new sites in the capital.

Set within the newly refurbished Marylebone Hotel in the heart of the Marylebone village, the new club will serve hotel guests, local residents and businesses.

“There is significant demand for innovative, premium health club facilities in a number of London’s affluent areas where the market is underserved,” says The Third Space chief executive Eric Dunmore.

“We were delighted to have this opportunity to work with the Doyle Hotel Group, owners of The Marylebone Hotel, to create such a fantastic facility in Marylebone.”

In addition to three gyms - resistance, cardiovascular and freeweights - and changing space for men and women, Third Space accommodates a 20m swimming pool, a threestorey climbing wall, a hypoxic chamber providing a low oxygen environment for high altitude training, a competition sized boxing ring, pilates studio, padded martial arts dojo and spa with pools, sauna and steam rooms.

Other facilities include a juice bar and a health centre with GP, sports medicine and complementary health services. The club has internal access to an organic grocery store and beautician and hairdressing services.

Entering on the ground floor, visitors to the Third Space will encounter a relaxing seating area on the left. Behind the reception is a void to the basement floor which forms part of the revolutionary Retro Gym. Moving past reception, visitors enter the state-of-the-art pin loaded weight machine area, fully fitted out with brand new Matrix equipment. A wide open staircase leads to the CV floor which will boast a wide range of equipment from Technogym

and Matrix. The spin area in the far left corner houses brand new Keiser bikes.

Moving down the main staircase, visitors enter the basement floor featuring both male and female changing rooms, each with its own sauna. Each changing room also has its own entry to the pool, via stairs next to the sauna. Between the two changing rooms, is a dedicated free weights studio with a lifting platform, power rack, dumbbells and plate loaded equipment.

On the right side of the main is a specially designed Retro Gym, spacious studio and gym floor. This gym floor has cables, lighter dumbbells, a stretch area and Powerplate Zone. The studio timetable offers many classes.

Level 2 of the development can be accessed via male and

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t female changing rooms or by the main staircase. This level houses the 18 metre ozone treated swimming pool, steam room and luxurious Spa. Spa@thethirdspace is a first for the brand and will showcase the exclusive Payot product range. The Spa boasts three treatment rooms, a manicure/pedicure area and a Xen-tan spray tan booth.

The Third Space sought to create a club with a distinctive feel. Having identified a site with excellent access but strong design challenges, they appointed a lead architect to overview the project and take responsibility for the layout and main circulation areas.

Mr Kenny Sykes of Project Architects Goldstein Ween Architects said: “SK Contracts did a very good job. The project was well received at a recent opening party which went well and everyone was pleased with the new facilities.”

sophisticated finish. The freestanding and wall mounted Tara Logic basin taps from Dornbracht in contemporary platinum were integrated to offer longevity and ergonomically considered design, whilst the Axor rain showerhead was selected to replicate the cascading effects created by waterfalls or rainfall.

C.P Hart’s design service is backed up by a network of inhouse specialists who are dedicated to ensuring every project is completed in line with its refurbishment programme. The design consultant will produce a plan, visuals and product list to meet the brief; each client is given a one-to-one contact at the specification stage and assigned a project manager to provide full support during the site phase and beyond. The in-house technical team are on hand to provide installation advice and the testing team will trial and check each product to ensure its meets C.P. Hart’s high quality standards.

CP Hart Leading bathroom retailer C.P. Hart demonstrated its design expertise and bespoke service proposition through a refurbishment commission for The Third Space at Marylebone Health Club, Pool and Spa. C.P. Hart drew upon its extensive portfolio of cutting edge concepts, materials and accessories to source high end bathroom solutions to meet the design brief and site specification. The result is an impressive space which showcases the very best in bathroom aesthetics and intelligent functionality.

The Third Space project features sleek corian sanitaryware which has been complemented by C.P. Hart’s contemporary Artelinea furniture. The design team also incorporated statement pieces from renowned manufacturers such as Dornbracht, Grohe, Axor and Alessi and inclusive design solutions from Alape and Starck. C.P. Hart’s iconic Starck range was utilised throughout the Third Space project, with architecturally formed cylindrical washbasins, WCs and urinals providing a

Clapham Junction gets a new image in £3 million makeover A major £6 million project is underway to transform Clapham Junction’s road network and enhance the look and feel of the town centre in a scheme geared to reducing traffic jams, cutting accidents by up to a third and improving the environment for pedestrians and cyclists, using high quality materials.

The project is being carried out for Wandsworth Council by the council’s own in-house construction team.

“The scheme was prompted from a traffic management point of view as there were quite a few accidents at the main junction.

The road system needed reviewing to respond to the changing demands placed on it, particularly as far more pedestrians and buses are now accessing the town centre and railway station.

The project went to an external consultancy to formulate the detailed traffic and public realm design and then came back to the council for implementation” said Mr Sam Emmett of Wandsworth Council.

The first phase of work, now nearing completion, involves changes to the Lavender Hill/Falcon Lane junction which will enable traffic to bypass the main crossroads at the bottom of St. John’s Hill; making provision for the introduction of a new right turn into Falcon Lane from Lavender Hill and introducing a banned right turn from Lavender Hill onto Falcon Road. ”This will reduce the traffic flow through the main junction with the new right turn dispersing the traffic through a non-residential

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area which has a much smaller footfall” said Mr Emmett.

A taxi rank is being moved from its previous position to a site further along St John’s Hill; a pedestrian crossing outside the very busy railway station is being widened to give pedestrians more space and cycle lanes are being introduced along Lavender Hill in both directions between the junctions with Falcon Lane and Falcon Road to improve cyclists’ safety.

Further works are geared to improving conditions for pedestrians and providing a clear and barrier-free streetscape through the reduction of guard railings, the re-location of signal heads onto new bespoke lamp columns and the revamp of signage.

New public spaces are being introduced and street lighting is being upgraded to provide energy efficient white light rather than yellow light and zones are being created for street furniture, taxi ranks and bus stops along the road.

Durable materials are being used for the new benches and bus shelters, and large sections of the pavements are being repaved with bespoke granite slabs. In addition, carriageways are being resurfaced, more trees are being planted and cycle parking is being provided away from the congested pavements.

The second phase of work is due to commence in the current financial year and is expected to continue seamlessly from phase one. This phase will include redevelopment of the main crossroads junction, introducing a new diagonal crossing enabling pedestrians to cross the road more safely and removing one of the traffic lanes and creating a large paved public realm area complete with new trees in its place.

Phase three, scheduled to commence in 2012, comprises the reconstruction of all the footways and carriageways on St John’s Road - the main shopping road in Clapham Junction.

“Currently the project is going very well, we have had a lot of positive feedback from the public and councillors and everybody seems to be happy with the standard of work and the good finish being achieved” said Mr Emmet

New £23 million home for hundreds of students A major £23.5m project to create modern, hi-tech living accommodation for hundreds of students in London is progressing well.

Based on a 32 hectare site, Victoria Hall in Wembley, is a striking new building under construction next to the College of North West London.

Being delivered by main contractor Mace Living on behalf of client Victoria Hall Wembley Limited, the detailed design of the building is by O’Connell East Architects, with the concept design having been carried out by CZWG. The Structural Engineers are Peter Dann and Mechanical Consultants are Chapman Bathurst.

The building is split into three wings, around a central spiralshaped 19 storey tower.

Mace has adopted a modular system for the construction of the wings to accelerate completion of the development, which offers views towards Wembley Stadium and is in close proximity to Wembley Park Tube station as well as the Jubilee and Metropolitan lines.

The central tower building is of traditional construction with a reinforced concrete floor slab and frame, clad in rainscreen cladding, with a feature monopitch single ply membrane roof which visually falls away as the building gains in height.

The three wings, of varying height also feature monopitch roofing.

The development contains 435 student rooms with en-suite facilities. Students can choose from a deluxe flat or studio.

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Lo n d o n & S o u th E a s t with shared kitchen and living areas, and self-contained studio flats with en-suite bathrooms, kitchenettes and living areas. Facilities include direct dial telephones and high speed broadband.

The cluster accommodation includes a communal kitchen, complete with hob, cooker, microwave, fridge freezer and kitchen utensils as standard. Each communal area also benefits from having a comfortable lounge and dining space fully fitted with its own satellite TV. The development also incorporates Biomass boilers within a central plant room.

Other facilities include a double-height entrance, a launderette, management offices and extensive bicycle parking. Two landscaped amenity areas - one for gatherings and one for a quiet garden - provide ample space for residents to enjoy the outdoors.

There will also be modern door entry and intercom systems to ensure student safety, further enhanced by a complex network of CCTV cameras. A team of caretakers will be present 24 hours a day, 7 days a week throughout the year.

Mace, its client Victoria Hall Wembley Limited, and various sub-contractors, celebrated a topping out ceremony to mark the completion of the central tower’s concrete frame and the erection of fully fitted modular accommodation units, manufactured offsite.

Simon Underwood, director for Mace, presented Victoria Hall Wembley Limited, with a commemorative silver trowel to close the ceremony.

Simon said: “The achievement of these significant milestones on the project, on time, on budget and with a great safety record, is credit to the entire team and gives us increasing confidence for the overall project delivery.”

Currently the lower floors have been completed and construction is progressing upwards. The project is on track for completion in August this year.

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Futureform The Victoria Hall project at Wembley is one of the tallest Modular Buildings ever constructed with modules going to 17 storeys high on the West Wing of the development over looking the Stadium next door. It has been constructed using the innovative Futureform Building System.

Futureform have been working with Main Contractor Mace on this fast-track project which only started foundation work on site in July 2010. The first modules went into production at the Futureform Wellingborough Assembly Plant in August 2010 and started arriving on site at the end of September.

The Futureform modules designed for this project are exceptionally large, being around 16mts long and 3.8mts wide.

Internally they generally consist of two fully fitted out bedrooms with en-suite shower room at each end with a twin corridor in the middle section. At the end of each “Wing” of the building there is a fully fitted out living room with superb fitted kitchen facilities. This meant that during erection, up to 16 rooms were placed each day.

Futureform Design & Build can provide a complete turnkey design & build service or they can also supply modules on a “supply only” or a “supply, deliver & erect” basis. They also provide full technical support to Clients and Architects throughout the design and construction phases along with full after sales services, including maintenance, management & technical helpdesk.

Other projects that Futureform has recently been involved with have included the Ideal Home Show Villages for 2010 and 2011 and the Prince’s House for the Prince’s Foundation.

This surely is the Future Form of Construction!

New dance HQ takes shape in leaps and bounds An £8million project to create a new headquarters building for Rambert Dance Company, the national company for contemporary dance, on London’s South Bank.

The new building will replace Rambert’s previous West London premises which were not fit for purpose.

The project is being carried out for Ramber Trust Ltd. Main Contractors for the scheme are ISG. Architects are Allies & Morrison.

The project for the UK’s oldest dance company includes the construction of a six-storey concrete frame structure with single-storey basement level on a narrow infill site behind the Royal National Theatre building.

Facilities within the new building will include three double height high-specification dance studios, the largest of which incorporates retractable seating for 50 people and has an adjacent sound studio, a range of treatment rooms, as well as administrative offices.

The Rambert Dance Company archive, dating back to 1926, will be housed in a specially designed facility and also features a community outreach centre. The building will also include a storage area for stage scenery and props, accessible via a large rear loading area.

The project was commenced at the end of May 2011, with

completion scheduled for the end of 2012.

Rambert is one of the the most distinctive and the most creative dance companies in Britain today.

Founded by Marie Rambert in 1926, the company has sustained her pioneering commitment to choreography and developing dancers as artists, leading the way for over 80 years.

The vision of this energetic Polish woman ensured that dance as an artform took root and blossomed in this country, and Rambert’s influence now extends across the world.

Marie Rambert was heavily influenced by her work with Diaghilev, Stravinsky and the Ballet Russes. She stressed the value of collaboration between choreographer, composer and artist and we continue in that tradition, routinely commissioning composers and artists alongside new choreography.

Today, the company thrives on its unique ability to share with audiences the widest range of repertoire: works from their rich heritage as the UK’s oldest dance company; new works and re-stagings by choreographers from all over the world, including those who may be less well-known in the UK, and landmark dance from the 20th century. Bold, risk-taking, agile and beautiful, our dancers combine rigorous technique and artistry with an extraordinary ability to challenge and entertain.

The new premises will transform Rambert’s working practices and realise its full potential for the next 80 years and beyond.

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Decent Homes delivered two months ahead of schedule More than 8,000 council homes in Luton have undergone facelift as part of a five-year project which has been delivered two months ahead of schedule.

Luton Borough Council undertook a huge scheme to transform most of the 8,200 homes within its housing stock, ranging from flats to bungalows, maisonettes and houses.

The project, largely delivered by the local authority’s own Direct Labour Organisation (DLO), saw homes undergo rewiring, new boiler fitted and gas central heating upgraded, with many homes also having replacement kitchens or bathrooms installed, Other improvements carried out included re-roofing, chimney refurbishments, new fascias and soffits fitted and new windows and doors installed.

Over all, the improvements included around 2,000 new kitchens, 1,200 bathrooms, 2,200 boilers, 2,200 electrical rewires, 2,300 doors and windows as well as multiple chimney refurbishments and re-roofing.

A typical kitchen refurbishment included new kitchen units and worktops, floor and wall tiles and re-design, where possible into new, more customer friendly layout. Bathroom refurbishments comprised the installation of all new bathroom fittings including bath, wash hand basin and toilet, with new taps and fittings (with thermostatic shower mixers set where possible), as well as wall tiling. Bathroom suites were in white to allow any problem units to be replaced quickly and efficiently.

Lonsdale Painting did all of the painting and decorating on the decent homes scheme, following on as the bathrooms and kitchens were replaced in each property.

Rewiring included the installation of new new sockets and light fittings throughout the property. New consumer units were also fitted to bring all installations up to modern day standards. In some properties, it was necessary to install mini trunking to receive the new wiring. Where doors were in old and poor condition, they were replaced with high performance composite doors (PVCu faced), with multi-point locking as standard. Boilers in old and poor condition were replaced, with surveys taking place before replacement to establish which make and type of new boiler was suitable for each property.

Where necessary new radiators and pipe work were installed, although in some instances this was not required.

Works to chimneys ranged from either a complete rebuild, or re-pointing works. The scheme began in 2005 and was scheduled to finish in December 2010, but was actually completed in October 2010.

Abdul Kahir, of the council’s Building and Technical Services unit, said that liaison officers were appointed to act as central contact points between the authority and residents to keep everyone fully updated on each phase of the project.

Parts of the contract were also handled by Connaught and the Breyer Group, but mainly by the council’s DLO. Mr Kahir said: “We have sought customer feedback at every stage of the project and we have achieved in excess of 95 per

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cent satisfaction among residents.

“We have delivered homes that are fit to live in the 21st century.

It has been a very successful project and one delivered two months ahead of schedule.”

Speaking at the completion of the programme, Cllr Waheed Akbar, Portfolio Holder for Housing, said: “This is a fantastic achievement. At the start of the programme back in 2001 around 1,262 homes fell short of the target; this figure is now zero.”

He added: “I’m very proud of the work that has gone into improving the living standards of our tenants. Decent homes are critical to the health and wellbeing of those living in them so we are very happy to have achieved this feat ahead of schedule.”

Council tenant of the last home to undergo improvement in the scheme Mr James McCarney said: “The installation of my new kitchen as well as previous work to fit a new heating system and windows has given me so much more pride in my flat. It has inspired me now to redecorate the rest of my home.”

Tenant praise for contractors who saved Decent Homes scheme A highly successful Decent Homes council housing refurbishment scheme was kept on course after sub contractors already working on the project took over as main contractors, after the original main contractors went into liquidation.

R Bensons Property Maintenance Ltd stepped into the breach on the Arun District Council Decent Homes project, steering the scheme to a successful completion after Connaught Construction, originally appointed as main contractors, went into administration.

Working as Main Contractors for the project from 2007 to September 2010, R Bensons Property Maintenance, who had already been working as sub contractors on the scheme for two years, undertook refurbishments to 1,200 properties after they took over the reins of the scheme. Their work was highly commended by tenants, with numerous letters praising the work carried out and tenant satisfaction surveys regularly achieving scores of over 95 per cent.

The works included kitchen and bathroom replacements, with the works to bathrooms including the strip out of the original bathrooms and the installation of new sanitary ware, fixtures, fittings, flooring and tiling. This element of the scheme also included special works for disabled tenants including the installation of special aids as well as carrying out other adaptations to suit individual requirements.

Works to kitchens included replastering, the installation of new kitchen units, new flooring, tiling, electrics and complete redecoration, with some homes having their gas supply upgraded and new boilers installed.

All the works were carried out in close consultation with tenants through resident liaison officers from the company, and works to each property were completed within a 15 day period.

Established in 1991, R Bensons Property Maintenance Ltd is a privately owned multi-trade contractor operating throughout the South East and Greater London areas.

With an annual turnover of around ÂŁ13 million, the company specialise in social housing and responsive maintenance projects. They also carry out general refurbishment, commercial fit out, and traditional construction projects in many sectors, including schools, retail and Ministry of Defence projects.

With a current labour force of over 100, along with the addition of specialist contractors, the company is well equipped and resourced to carry out a wide range of developments.

Employing a very structured approach, the company allocate full site and project management for every project undertaken, calculating resource requirements against the programmed

major elements and targeted deadlines to ensure maximum efficiency and productivity.

The majority of their current work stream is as a sub-contractor, but they also have experience of operating in a main contractor’s role, providing services directly to the end client.

The company value their employees and clients alike and have worked with them in achieving accreditation to various awards within the construction industry, with the recent addition of an Investors In People Award for 2010.

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Iconic London landmark in £100m transformation The historic Café Royal hotel, in London’s Regent Street is set to be in pole position for the 2012 Olympic Games, with a mammoth upgrade by renowned contractor Mace Group.

Mace Group has been awarded the construction management contract for the redevelopment of Quadrant 1, the former Café Royal block, by client Alrov. Home to the National Sporting Club for many years, as well as being a venue for banquets and conferences, the Café has been leased on a 125-year basis by the Crown Estate to Alrov, which specialises in developing landmark buildings and has a number of properties in Israel and Europe.

Quadrant 1 is located at the lower end of Regent Street, adjacent to Piccadilly and is formed from three existing buildings formally known as Café Royal, Oddeninos Hotel and County Mark building.

The Café Royal scheme will result in the creation of a five star boutique hotel comprising 160 luxury bedrooms, spa facilities, health club with pool, business centre and prime Regent Street retail space at ground level. The new hotel will also include a spa, gym and restaurant, expected to be presided over by one of London’s leading chefs.

The scope of the works includes total demolition to the Oddeninos Hotel building with further works including a façade support system, removal of the top two floors and part demolition to the Café Royal building to create additional floor plates and the formation of new core and riser distribution.

Extensive mini-piling and foundation strengthening was completed to support the new structure.

Steel construction and concrete floors replace the central building forming a new core, light well and common floor plates for the hotel bedrooms.

Spa facilities will be located within the basement and will require extensive modifications, which must protect the special areas of interest within the Café Royal and County Mark building.

There will be five extensive fit out packages following the base build construction to include the 160 guest rooms, spa and leisure facilities, public and back of house areas.

The project will carefully renovate the listed interiors of the Café Royal including the marble Entrance Hall, the Grill Room and the Domino Room.

The project will also reinstate an interpretation of the original Ten Room as a new double height foyer on Air Street, which until recently had been obscured. Five other historic rooms will be converted to large VIP Suites, including one beneath the copper dome at the apex of Piccadilly Circus and Glasshouse Street, with views of Big Ben and St James’s Park.

David Chipperfield Architects, who designed the new luxury 5 star hotel commented: “We are tremendously excited to work on this project, providing a new luxury hotel for London on such a significant site with a remarkable past. Our project aims to ensure that the existing building’s Louis XVI interiors sit comfortably within the framework of an entirely new, state of the art hotel.”

Akirov, Managing Director of Alrov’s luxury hotel business, said: “We look forward to delivering a world class hotel in this exciting location, in time for the 2012 London Olympics.

“Café Royal occupies a unique place in London’s history, culture and heritage. Alrov has a proud history of developing projects, within landmark buildings around the world, which respect and build on the cultural heritage of the site.”

The scheme at the Café Royal, where Oscar Wilde and Aubrey Beardsley were once regulars in the Grill Room, is expected

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to be completed in time for the 2012 Olympics and would be ideally placed to capitalise on the huge demand for rooms in central London.

It could also act as a suitably prestigious base for bodies such as the International Olympic Committee.

The Café Royal, currently in the hands of the Stanwood Hotel group, was established in the 1860s by Daniel Thevenon, a bankrupt French wine merchant who fled his home country to try his hand in London.

By the 1890s it had become one of the centres of fashionable London, and frequented by such figures as Wilde, as well as the artist James McNeill Whistler and Max Beerbohm, the caricaturist.

The café was frequented by Edward VIII and George VI in the early part of the 20th century.

Since 1951, it has been home to the National Sporting Club, which stages boxing matches and other events, usually attended by a host of sporting stars and celebrities.

The Café Royal will be the centrepiece of the Quadrant development which is designed to revitalise and open up the southern end of Regent Street and create a 44,000 square foot public space.

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Call our news team on 01706 719972

Demand sparks expansion of popular school Geared to providing extra pupil places in order to cope with increased demand, is a project to expand Somerhill Junior School in Somerhill Road, Brighton.

The project is being carried out for Brighton & Hove Council by Main Contractors Westridge Construction, with the council also acting as architects for the scheme.

The works include the extension and refurbishment of the school, as well as internal remodeling.

The project will provide a new secure reception area and a remodeled administration area, including a new head teacher’s office, an administration/bursar’s office and a community meeting space. The works will also provide additional and remodeled circulation space, a refurbished staff room, a modified kitchen, improved changing facilities and new disabled access to the first floor via a platform lift.

Further works include the construction of a

first floor extension to provide four new classrooms, a shared activity space, two group rooms and toilets.

External works include hard and soft landscaping and the upgrading of access to the school.

The project is part of a larger scheme designed to accommodate larger numbers of children growing up in Hove over recent years. In another contract, Davigdor Infant School, which shares the site with Somerhill School, is also being expanded in a similar project.

Speaking of the project to expand both Somerhill Junior and Davigdor Infant School, Brighton & Hove City Council Cabinet Member for Children & Young People Vanessa Brown said: “The numbers of children growing up in the city has increased significantly and this has

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put pressure on many schools. This expansion aims to help ease that pressure and ensure that more local children go to their local schools.”

“We want to ensure children attend school with pre-school friends, parents don’t have to travel long distances and extended services offered by schools are tailored to meet the needs of the whole community.”

Project puts new heart into local community A £4.5 million project is to offer a wealth of opportunity for residents on a troubled housing estate in Fulham, London.

The Fulham Central Children’s and Community Centre includes a 20-place children’s centre, with a crèche, large and small community halls, a meeting room, a kitchen, storage areas and toilets.

The two-storey building, in Shottendane Road, has been designed by Living Architects and is being built by Lengard Ltd on behalf of Hammersmith and Fulham Council.

Living Architects’ Marian Biernat said the building will meet high eco-friendly standards, with the roof incorporating solar panels and a sedum roofing section.

The centre will replace an ageing temporary building with a

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ground floor children’s centre for under-fives and a first floor community centre for dance sessions, youth clubs, events, meetings and games.

It will be open to all residents and is expected to be completed in the summer.

There is also an external play area, soft landscaping and a small car park, and cycle storage space.

Mr Biernat said: “The contractors have done a very good job and everybody is happy. The new build has provoked a lot of positive comment from within the community. Regular meetings have been held with residents to keep them updated with the development as it unfolds.

“We hope it will make a difference to the area and everyone is anticipating its completion, which should be about August.”

The estate has been blighted by antisocial behaviour in recent years and was the scene of the fatal shooting of 28-year-old resident Anthony Otton in June last year.

Lucy Ivimy, the council’s housing leader, said: “I am delighted work has started on this centre.

“It offers something really important which people living in the centre of Fulham simply don’t have at the moment, and I am sure that residents will support it and make it their own.”

A residents’ steering group has been set up, and people living on the estate will have the chance to help decorate the building by working with an artist on a giant mural.

The decision to include a children’s centre alongside the longplanned community centre was made partly on the basis that funding from central government would otherwise be lost.

It will have baby-changing facilities and room for 20 under-fives and 17 adults, and will host drop-in play programmes, family and child minder support, parenting courses, job advice and health programmes.

The building is being funded by Hammersmith & Fulham Council and the Department of Communities & Local Government.

Lengard Ltd has grown sustainably since 1964 and continues to grow in this tough economic climate.

Lengard has a strong financial base with low staff turnover and dedicated staff, which explains why clients form relationships with the company over decades.

Lengard’s reputation for delivering quality is renowned on projects including new build, refurbishment, remodelling, design and build, and mechanical and electrical installations.

Project team praised for ‘premier league’ performance on stadium contract The project team responsible for the construction Brighton & Hove Albion’s new £92 million stadium at Falmer in Brighton, have won resounding praise from the club.

The club were delighted that the building contract works on their new home at the American Express Community Stadium (Amex) were completed on time by Main Contractors Buckingham Group. Project Architects were KSS. This was despite the fact that the club has added a number of client enhancements during the course of the construction contract, plus some poor weather in the winter both in 2010 and earlier this year.

Albion Chief Executive Martin Perry and Construction Director Derek Chapman have praised this excellent achievement.

Perry said, “The reason we chose the Buckingham Group at

tender stage was because we knew from their track record that they would be able to manage this complex project, and they would also achieve the high-class finish we wanted at the Amex.

“They have not disappointed; they have done superb job and given us a first-class stadium, which I believe is unrivalled in the UK and one the club and fans can rightly be extremely proud to call home.”

Derek Chapman added, “I have worked in the construction sector all my life, but as a passionate Albion fan I have never been involved in a job which has given me so much satisfaction or excitement as the Amex.

“Buckinghams have made that process very enjoyable, so I thank them and their subcontractors for all their hard work over the past two and half years.”Their work is of the highest standard.”

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The stadium has been designed to interact with the surrounding natural landscape on the edge of the Sussex Downs. The impressive curved arch roof reflects the shape of the rolling countryside and is clad in clear pale blue polycarbonate sheeting.

The 22,500 capacity stadium has been designed to be capable of expanding its capacity to 30,000 and includes nine distinct hospitality areas.

Seating is within two and three tier stands.. The five-floor west stand includes accommodation for the players and press, hospitality suites and a general concourse for spectators.

The north stand includes a club shop, general spectator concourse, a coffee shop, the club museum and offices. The east stand incorporates hospitality suites and a supporters bar and the south stand accommodates all the home and away fans.

For the most part the stadium is constructed in in-situ concrete, pre-cast concrete and structural steel, with the external faces being acoustically sealed, with a structural silicone double glazed powder coated aluminium curtain walling system on the west, north and east stands.

Associated infrastructure works on the contract included the construction of a new pedestrian footbridge from Falmer railway station, as well as the construction of a new slip road off the A27 for drivers accessing the stadium and the excavation of 180,000cubic metres of chalk from the stadium site itself - all of which has been sustainably re-used in the surrounding farmland with significantly enhanced soil quality as part of the proposal.

Andy Simons, Project Director at KSS said “The new stadium is fantastic for the club who have just been promoted. It’s been such a long process to reach this stage - we have been working on this with the club for almost 12 years. Tthe club, led by Martin Perry, Chief Executive, remained resolutely optimistic and passionate about it as have we through the various enquiries and planning issues. The result is just phenomenal” The Director for Buckingham Group in charge of the project, Kevin Underwood, added, “It has been a real pleasure for us to work on this project which is of very high quality.”

“Everyone of our team has been fired up to deliver this on time and we are delighted with the way they have pulled together to deliver a fantastic stadium. After all they have been through, Brighton fans deserve it and we are delighted to have been part of it.”

Work on the new Falmer Stadium design started ten years ago. Planning consent was finally secured in July 2007 after

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two public planning Inquiries. Works commenced on site in December 2008 with completion in May 2011.

BHAFC Club Chairman Dick Knight said: “The club found itself homeless in 1997 after the previous owner sold the Goldstone Ground for retail development. It’s been a long haul but we are truly delighted that the dream of building the Community Stadium is now a reality.”

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Showcasing excellence in extra care Showcasing excellence in the provision of modern living accommodation for the over 60s, contracts to construct four new extra care housing schemes in Wales were won by K & C Construction.

The vision behind the developments is to provide independent living together with community facilities and support where needed.

The projects, at Penucheldre, Ruthin Llys Y Coed and Cysgod Y Coleg, are being carried out under a framework agreement with the Undod Consortium of five housing associations providing affordable homes throughout Wales. The consortium members include: Cymdeithas Tai Clwyd; Cymdeithas Tai Eryri; MidWales Housing Association; North Wales Housing Association and First Choice Housing Association.

At Penucheldre in Holyhead, a development of 54 one- and two-bedroom flats and a host of communal facilities is under construction in an £8 million project for Cymdeithas Tai Eryri.

The project also includes the upgrading of accommodation within a nearby 25-flat block of sheltered housing also owned by the association.

Accommodation includes 35 two-bedroom and 19 onebedroom spacious flats with a combined kitchen/lounge, ensuite level access shower, and a balcony or patio area.

Communal facilities will be located in a central hub within the new building and will include: a restaurant; lounge; tenants’ cafe/bar; fitness room; two hobby rooms; a laundry; a hair salon; a therapy/treatment room and assisted bathing rooms.

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Other communal accommodation includes informal sitting areas; two guest rooms for tenants’ relatives and friends, and a buggy storage/charging room.

The building is being constructed with external elevations in blockwork incorporating large areas of aluminium framed glazing and composite wooden and aluminium framed windows, with a pitched roof. The works will include the installation of a 30kw photovoltaic array and a rainwater harvesting system.

External works on the contract include the expansion of an existing car park and landscaping of the whole site, including around the association’s other 25 flat block nearby, with the intention being to create a ‘campus’ linked by footpaths.

The extra care development is due for completion in summer 2012.

A second £2.5 million care home development by K & C Construction will see 21 one- and two-bedroom apartments and communal facilities being created at the current Awelon Residential and Day Centre in Ruthin. The project is being carried out for Cymdeithas Tai Clwyd, Awelon will continue to function as a residential home, but with the current communal area (dining room) being refurbished and opened up to the extra care housing tenants, making joint communal facilities which will include a hairdressers and treatment room, restaurant and communal lounges with a coffee station for both the extra care home and Awelon residents and day care.

The new facilities will be up and running by summer 2011.

The third development, which commenced recently at Cygod Y Coleg in Bala, will provide 33 bedrooms over two storeys for Cymdeithas Tai Clwyd and will be ready in June 2011.

The development is arranged around a central courtyard garden and is of timber frame construction with external elevations in a combination of stone, render and brick with aluminium framed windows and a pitched slate roof.

Communal facilities will include a lounge, dining room activity rooms, a hairdressers and a buggy store.

External facilities include a car park and communal landscaped gardens including raised flowerbeds designed for use by those residents who want to do some gardening.

Currently the foundations have just been completed and the project is due to be finished in 12 months time.

The project at Llys Y Coed, Plas L Llan for North Wales Housing Association comprised the construction of a 53 bedroom three storey extra care development which has just been handed over. The scheme won K&C Construction the LABC Building Excellence Awards for the North Wales Region in the Best Social/Affordable Housing Development category.

The project involved the comprehensive refurbishment of a former nursing home, together with the construction of a timber framed new build element constructed to BREEAM ‘Excellent’ standard. Both elements are connected by a link corridor.

The refurbishment involved the complete stripping out of the building to shell state and total renewal of the interior, including the installation of new internal partitions, building services, new floors, new windows and complete internal re-decoration.

Communal facilities within the new development include a restaurant; hobbies room, lounges; a hair salon; a laundry room; a guest suite; a scooter store; assisted bathrooms and a pamper bathroom. Eco friendly features include a biomass boiler and solar panels.

External works comprised the creation of landscaped gardens and car parking.

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State-of-the-art crematorium will be the first in the Vale The impressive, state-of-the-art new Vale of Glamorgan Crematorium and Memorial Park, now under construction in Barry, is due to open near Wenvoe Castle in September 2011.

The first crematorium in the Vale, it is being constructed to be in keeping with the local area.

The project is being carried out by Britannia Construction for Clients Memoria Ltd. “The crematorium is completely invisible from the main road and has probably the longest drive in the UK said Mr Howard Hodgson of Memoria Ltd. The scheme includes the construction of a chapel which will seat 76. However, it will be possible to increase this to 96 if required or even to seat 200 inside, including within the foyer, if the occasion so demands. Moreover, the crematorium will be able to accommodate over 400 by piping the service outside to those standing under the porte-cochere.

Inside the building will be equipped with a hearing loop, Wesley music system, organ, public address system, two flat screen TVs for eulogy photographs/DVDs and a webcam for internet viewing. On the left side of the chapel, there will be a large full length picture window that will look out over the peaceful and beautifully kept grounds.

The decor will be colour co-ordinated and tasteful throughout - respectful but not depressing. The foyer, like the chapel, will be light and airy. There will be internal ladies, gentlemen’s and disabled people’s toilets. A policy of ‘no steps’ design has been followed to make use easier for the old or infirm. The route followed by people attending services has been designed so that mourners do not come into contact with persons not attending their service.

The crematory itself will comply with the latest Mercury Abatement regulations and will incorporate a large size 42 inch cremator (as opposed to the average 18 inches), capable of cremating larger individuals.

Service slots will be 45 minutes, rather than the usual half hour, and can be extended upon request. Moreover, services can be booked outside normal hours and at weekends. In addition, the grounds will be open to the public all year round.

The chapel is a single storey building finished in light render with feature flying buttresses in Welsh slate and incorporating large picture windows with views over the gardens.

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External works include the creation of a purpose built (and expertly drained) landscaped memorial garden with footpaths, set in the most tranquil part of the park. In addition, the site will also include a section of flat stone traditional burial at the upper end and another section for natural burial beyond the chapel and memorial garden.

There will also be one large ornamental pool with an art fountain and a further three natural ponds. Other works comprise the creation of a car park for 100 vehicles - without having to use the drive as a parking area.

According to Memoria Ltd: “We expect this exceptional site to become a truly serene memorial park, certainly beyond comparison in Wales and probably even throughout the UK.” Memoria Limited has a mission to provide exceptional standards of service and facility to the bereaved families that use its crematoria and gardens of remembrance. This is because it is not only commercially sensible to do so but also because it is an essential act of human decency towards people who have just lost a much loved member of their family or friend.

New front door to Cardiff city’s greatest assets Recently, hefty cuts in government funding left many arts organisations and educational establishments facing an uncertain future, but the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama is looking stronger than ever as it puts the finishing touches to its Capital Development Project.

Designed by BFLS architects, the unobtrusive glass and wooden cladding houses three individual structures, unified by the exterior walls and roof. These three buildings comprise a four-hundred and fifty-seat concert hall, a one-hundred and fifty-seat theatre and a block of smaller rehearsal studios, all finished to world-class standard. This is a major step forward for the RWCMD who, until now, did not even have their own on-site concert hall. Now there is no looking-back for the Cardiff conservatoire as Principle Hilary Boulding is confident that, with the new facilities in place, the institution will only attract increasing numbers of exceptionally gifted artists from across the UK, Europe and from around the globe.

Besides completing the facilities at the RWCMD, it is hoped that this development will function as a new front door to Cardiff city’s greatest assets.

While the College is excited about what fresh talent may arrive, from afar, on their brand new doorstep, this is also a development that the conservatoire describes as ‘a landmark civic building’, intended to have a major positive impact on the surrounding city.

Cardiff has a proud cultural history, and continues to thrive on creativity, especially through its media industry. Situated close to the heart of the city in the beautiful green landscape which includes Bute Park (which is currently undergoing its own £5.6m restoration project) and Cardiff Castle, where the Royal Welsh College was first founded, the new face of the conservatoire will indeed form a significant landmark on the A470, which leads into the city centre.

This accessible and attractive location is an ideal launch-pad

for promoting the arts to the local community. The building design invites the general public into an airy atrium, within the outer walls which surround the three individual new facilities.

This open space is specifically intended for public use and will house a coffee shop and gallery areas for displaying work of costume-design students.

The RWCMD is also planning to use the new build as a springboard to begin more active outreach to the community.

Cardiff’s businesses will surely be hoping that the development will not only boost the reputation of the Bute Park as a tourist attraction, but that as the arts are promoted through the project, fresh talent will be appearing and eager to stay in the city, feeding the creative industries.

The Capital Development Project could be summed up as a construction grounded in sustainability, complementing the city in multiple ways. Designed with a consciousness that it forms part of a green space, it is intended to blend in with the landscape, but an important aspect of the project was the drive to produce a development with ‘green credentials’ of its own.

In recent years the City Council has aimed to promote more sustainable development, setting targets to see several civic buildings renovated or built new achieve BREEAM ‘good’ status. One step ahead, the RWCMD’s project is built to BREEAM ‘excellent’ standards, with every effort made to make the various structures as energy-efficient to run as possible.

Particular attention has been paid to ventilating and heating the vast spaces, especially the atrium area and concert hall.

The atrium is naturally ventilated, but, along with the block of rehearsal rooms, has been built with under floor heating. More problematic is the concert hall, which has been built almost 100% air-tight. The ventilation system processes the heat which will be generated by the audience when the concert hall is full, circulating air from the atrium and using thermal wheels to even out air temperatures throughout the development.

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Construction high fliers “doing a great job” on runway extension Set to have a massive impact on the whole of the North East, the £10 million extension of Aberdeen Airport’s main runway is underway, with the contractors reported to be “doing a great job” The extension will allow airlines based at Aberdeen to fly nonstop to destinations across the Mediterranean, North Africa and

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North America, and allow the airport to accommodate a new generation of cleaner, quieter aircraft, such as the Boeing 787 and the Boeing 747 jumbo jet.

Work on the 124 metre concrete extension to the north end of the runway and associated taxiways started in March 2011 and it is set to be complete late in 2011 or early 2012. Main

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Contractors for the project are Ferrovial.

“The contractors are doing a great job” said Carol Benzie of Aberdeen Airport.

The Airport’s Managing Director Derek Provan said “It is impossible to overstate the impact that this could have on the whole of the North-east. It opens up new destinations at the same time as allowing our existing carriers to work more efficiently. At a time when aviation has struggled under the weight of a difficult year, this is an incredibly welcome project. It demonstrates a commitment to the whole region by BAA, investing exclusively private funds into such an important project.

“Our thanks go out to the local community, business organisations and political leaders whose backing show how vital this project is to the continued prosperity of the airport and its expansion, and as a result reflects the importance of the project to the whole of the North-east.

The project involves work on the foundations and extension itself, work to redirect taxiways, and importantly the relocation of navigational equipment and landing lights. The new extension also has to comply with strict regulations governing the level of gradients which aircraft are allowed to land on - a challenge as the ground is not completely flat and has had to be levelled.

All of this while ensuring the airport can continue to provide

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vital out-of-hours emergency services, thus create little or no negative impact to the business.

The airport is being closed between 10 pm until 5.45 am in order to allow the project to progress and much of the works is being carried out between these hours so that the airport operation can continue as normal (although special concessions are being made for Royal Mail and air ambulance flights, when all work must stop and the contractors must withdraw completely from the runway).

In addition, every effort is being made to work alongside local residents to minimise disruption. The contractors carrying out the project are the same team who were involved with the runway resurfacing work in 2009, which ran on time on budget and with minimal disruption.

Declan Davis of Ferrovial said: We carried out a runway rehabilitation project at Aberdeen Airport in 2009 which also included night time possession working and have gained a lot of valuable experience from this. In the current project we are able to build on this previous experience of both the work and the environment - and the good working relationship which we previously established with the client and the local community.

This is a major development for the client and they want the scheme completed as soon as possible, so we are doing all we can to achieve this and at the same time make the process as

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easy as possible for the airport. Having a very good working relationship between the client and the contractors makes it easier to achieve this with minimal disruption.”

He added that the company is using local sub contractors and suppliers wherever possible.

The work is on programme and has now reached a new phase involving mostly night time working which will continue until the end of the contract, said Mr Davis. “One of the most challenging aspects of the project is in the logistics of managing all the interfaces involved, including liaising with utility owners, accommodating flights, relocating navigational equipment and making sure that all the contractors involved in the project understand what is required of them at all times in order to ensure minimal impact on the operation of the airport.”

Bob Collier, Chief Executive of Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce said: “An extension to the runway is one of the key elements of an improved transport infrastructure which is so essential to the continuing economic growth and development of our region” “The implications and benefits go far beyond the laying down of a few extra metres of tarmac. Our global energy industry has long said increasing the runway capacity and improving our connectivity to the rest of the world is vital if we want to continue to anchor the sector in Scotland, because it opens

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up opportunities to introduce new routes which are necessary for future development. It will also significantly improve opportunities for growing the tourism industry in this area by making us more accessible to potential visitors from around the world.

“The airport’s commitment to continuing significant financial investment in the North-east also sends out a strong message to other private sector investors that this region continues to provide huge potential in terms of business opportunity.”

Currently the critical work of laying the concrete and relocating the navigational systems is underway, with this element of the project requiring strict adherence to the schedule.

The project is a major part of an ambitious £60 million development scheme to transform Aberdeen Airport into a global gateway for the north-east of Scotland.

Aberdeen Airport serves just under three million passengers a year with flights to over 40 destinations by more than 20 airlines.

It is also one of the world’s busiest commercial heliports, transporting around 500,000 helicopter passengers in support of the North Sea oil and gas industry.

It’s owned by BAA, which also owns Heathrow, Stansted, Southampton, Glasgow and Edinburgh airports. The airport operates 24 hours, 365 days a year.

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S c otl a n d Opened in 1934, the airport has four runways including one main runway and three helicopter runways and five terminals (a main passenger terminal, plus three for North Sea helicopter operations and one primarily for oil company charter flights).

20 airlines operate from the airport, travelling to 40 destinations.

Ferrovial is the world’s leading private investor in transportation infrastructures, with a workforce of appoximately 70,000 employees and operations in more than 15 countries.

The company manages key assets such as Canada’s 407ETR highway and London’s Heathrow Airport. It also provides municipal services to more than 800 cities and towns in Spain and to the millions who use the Madrid metro system, and the hundreds of kilometers of streets and highways where Amey performs maintenance services in the United Kingdom.

Ferrovial is listed in the Madrid Stock Exchange and is included in the prestigious Dow Jones Sustainability, FTSE4Good and Ethibel indices.

Groundforce provides support at Abeerden Airport Groundforce, one of the UK’s leading structural support and rental specialist has supplied a range of its shoring equipment to support drainage infrastructure works on the Aberdeen airport runway extension project.

The equipment supplied by Groundforce to main contractor Ferrovial Agroman included Drag boxes, Standard Trenchboxes, Manholes boxes and Trench sheets, and was supplied via the company’s Coatbridge depot.

Ed Hodges, sub agent for Ferrovial Agroman said. “Having used Groundforce many times in the past their provision continues to remain at a very high standard. Their dedicated hire management team together with their technical division has been able to provide advise to meet specific site requirements and solutions in a timely fashion. Even when Groundforce has been asked to meet site requirements within a short time frame they been able to provide a service that exceeds expectations.”

Groundforce offers total solutions to the construction industry

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dealing in shoring, formwork, piling, pipe stoppers, air pressure testing and pump hire and sale. With 20 years of experience, Groundforce has an enviable portfolio of products and services.

Groudforce has been a supplier of equipment to leading construction projects that include the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, Limerick Tunnel, Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 and Wembley Stadium.

For further information on Groundforce products and services visit www.groundforce.co.uk

Construction News

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A Scottish ‘first’ for Waitrose Waitrose’s first new-build store in Scotland opened its doors to the public in Newton Mearns on 12 May, 2011.

The project was carried out by Main Contractors Marshall Construction.

Waitrose Newton Mearns is the retailer’s fourth and largest store in Scotland and construction of the 36,000 sq ft building, which has a sales area of 25,000sq ft and a 180 space car park, represents an expansion

by Waitrose in Scotland as part of a UK-wide growth strategy by the supermarket.

More than 200 new jobs will be created at Waitrose Newton Mearns. All new employees will become Partners (as all Waitrose employees are known) in the John Lewis Partnership.

Waitrose’s local and regional sourcing team have met with a wide range of local producers, tasting products from around Scotland to

complement the 300 or so Scottish lines already introduced to the stores in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Tracey Marshall, local and regional product manager for Waitrose, said: “We have found some innovative companies in Glasgow and the West of Scotland that epitomise the qualities we look for in new suppliers: delicious tasting products that are made using the highest quality ingredients.

“We already have many long-established suppliers in Scotland, such as our beef farmers, and are proud to work with fantastic companies who supply Waitrose UK-wide, such as Gigha Island Halibut and West Brewery.”

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The store forms the second phase of the new Greenlaw Neighbourhood Centre, a £30 million mixed-use development in the heart of Newton Mearns.

Award-winning brewery unveils new bottling plant Expansion plans for the award-winning Cairngorm Brewery have finally been realised, with the construction of a new bottling plant and several jobs.

The brewery’s new plant will create a saving of £200,000 a year as it puts an end to the transferring of more than 20,000 litres of beer by tanker to a Stockport-based bottling plant, only for the newly bottled beer to be returned back to its Highland HQ. Cairngorm Brewery brews traditional ales with a fresh new edge, by using well established brewing methods, the finest malted and roast barley, hops and crystal clear mountain water.

The company commissioned Allan Munro Construction to build the £1.5 million plant on the Dalfaber Industrial Estate, situated in the village of Aviemore within the Cairngorms National Park.

Family-run Allan Munro Construction has been building quality homes since 2000 and is also based in Aviemore, and has undergone structured expansion in recent years, developing an enviable portfolio of projects.

Cairngorm Brewery managing director Samantha Faircliff is delighted at the prospect of the new plant and with how far the

company, which now has a turnover of over £1 million, has come in such a short space of time.

She said: “Rising demand has outstripped the capacity of our small scale two-head bottle filling machine so we had to send the beer south to be bottled in the quantities we require.

“We were also running out of space and have had to move our offices into a Portacabin so we’ve really outgrown our premises.”

Ms Faircliff added: “The new building will give us all the storage space we need for our raw materials, the empty bottles and also the finished stock so we can have it sitting in the warehouse.

“There will also be plenty of room for new offices as well as the tanks, filtering systems and obviously the bottling plant which will do 2,500 bottles per hour.”

Funding for the expansion came from the business itself, brewery chairman Martin Reilly through Laidlaw International as well as £250,000 from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), which includes £100,000 from the European Regional Development Fund.

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S c otl a n d Cairngorm Brewery, which employs 18 people, was awarded a nationwide contract by Tesco around four years ago and also supplies Sainsburys in Scotland.

The expansion plan means the firm has now been able to place an order for over one million bottles to help them quench the thirst of beer drinkers both close to home and in England.

The brewery’s Black Gold was UK supreme champion in 2009 out of an entry 450 breweries across the nation and the company’s Tradewinds is also a multi-award winner.

“We are really lucky that most of the staff is local and they have been the key ingredient in our success,” said Ms Faircliff.

She added: “As well as securing and expanding our workforce, we want to use this progression to build on our commitment to sustainable development.

“We are working with the Energy Savings Trust and with Cairngorm National Park Authority to minimise energy use and waste products from our business.

“We really appreciate the assistance that HIE’s account management model provides.

“It enables the agency to understand the specific requirements we have to grow, and provides advice and expertise which it

would otherwise be difficult for us to source over and above our operational activities.”

HIE account manager Rhona Fraser, who works with the Inner Moray Firth area team, said they had high hopes for the brewery.

She explained: “Cairngorm Brewery is an excellent example of a small, innovative business which is looking to identify cost savings, reinvest in expansion and seek new markets for a high quality product.

“HIE is working with the company to introduce new overseas customers. The improvement that a new bottling plant can provide will be a significant asset in broadening their order book.”

The brewery’s traditional Scottish recipes such as Stag and Wild Cat are well established, giving a consistent quality product. Alongside these they have added new contemporary brews like Trade Winds and White Lady.

The new bottling plant is incorporated into a five-year plan for the site with a new brewery and malt store, the removal of the old brewery building and shop, and construction of a first floor visitor area, including viewing areas, catering and a new shop.

Designed to address traffic congestion, the A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch Bypass is a new 5 km single carriageway trunk road being built in a £31.5 million scheme on the main A96 route between Aberdeen and Inverness.

works in this regard was significant and most of these diversions were undertaken early in the programme in advance of the new road works.

The new bypass route is generally separated from the existing road, ‘offline’ over most of its length, to the south of Mosstodloch and to the north of Fochabers. This allows a significant part of the construction works to progress with minimal disruption to the adjoining road traffic and both local communities’ business and social activities.

The bypass follows a route to the south of Mosstodloch, from a new roundabout at Cowfords to the west of the settlement, through Banacoul Wood, crossing the existing Rothes Road, and alongside the old railway whereupon it joins the existing A96 via a new roundabout at Coul Brae east of the town.

After crossing the existing New Fochabers Bridge over the River Spey, on the line of the existing A96, the new bypass follows a route to the north of Fochabers from a new roundabout at Spey Bay Road. From this new roundabout, the bypass routes through the southern extent of the Gordon Castle Estate and links to the A98 road at a further new roundabout to the east of Fochabers; from which it continues to join the existing A96 alignment north east of the caravan park.

The benefits of a trunk road bypass of Fochabers have long been recognised, with Orders made in both the 1950’s and 1970’s, both for a bypass route north of the town.

Preliminary studies for the current scheme were commenced in 1994, identifying a preferred route by 1996. Near the end of 1999 a roads review confirmed the scheme should proceed on this preferred route.

Road scheme will help drivers steer clear of congestion In addition to the construction of the road, the project includes: the construction of roundabouts to provide local access to both towns, the Baxters factory and the A98 road to Fraserburgh; the improvement of pedestrian and cycle links including the construction of a number of underpasses to provide safe crossing points for school pupils travelling from Mosstodloch to the primary and high schools in Fochabers; improved overtaking opportunities in both directions of travel, and the installation of CCTV cameras near Inchberry Road, which will be linked to the local police control room.

The project is being carried out for Transport Scotland by Main Contractors Morrison Construction.

The scheme will address the existing congestion that occurs on this stretch of the A96 by providing overtaking opportunities in both directions and separating the through trunk road traffic from the local traffic and pedestrians accessing the two towns.

This will provide environmental improvements to the High Street of Fochabers, reducing noise, traffic congestion and community severance, while improving air quality in this locale.

Other benefits include improved overtaking opportunities, improved journey times and reliability and improved safety.

The contract commenced on 23 October 2009, with formal start of siteworks on 2 February 2010, with the Minister for Transport Infrastructure and Climate Change, Stewart Stevenson, cutting the first turf. He said: “The A96 Fochabers and Mosstodloch road scheme is another example of our continuing investment in Scotland’s transport infrastructure. This is an essential route in Scotland’s trunk road network, and I’m delighted to personally kick off construction on this vital project.

“When complete, the stretch of new road will improve transport links along the length of this route, help tackle congestion in and around Fochabers and Mosstodloch, as well as bring economic benefits for businesses and communities right across the north.

“The Scottish Government is working tirelessly to deliver improvements across Scotland’s trunk road network and the construction of this section of the main artery between Aberdeen and Inverness, underlines this.”

The scheme has required the diversion of utility apparatus, including telecoms, power and water supplies. The scope of

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McCormacks McCormacks are part of the Forsyth Group which is based in Rothes. They have over 30 years of experience and are specialists in Scaffolding and Safety Netting.

McCormacks are committed to offering a top quality comprehensive scaffolding service whilst embracing leading edge innovations to offer the best safety and access systems at competitive prices. They have carried out work for a wide spectrum of companies in Scotland including Morrison Construction, Robertsons, Caledonian Property, Chivas, Whyte & Mackay, Wm Grant & Sons & Norbord.

The hire and installation of a McCormacks Safety Netting System at the working level will prevent a fall likely to cause injury whilst offering both Collective and Passive Protection.

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S c otl a n d Construction News

Call our news team on 01706 719972

Contractors commended as new school nears completion Earning ‘great praise’ for the contractors and others, the countdown to completion of the new £10 million Carnegie Primary School in Dunfermline, Fife, has started and the excitement amongst pupils, parents and staff is building as the school takes shape and the final phases of construction are put into place.

Located on a 2.6-hectare site south of Carnegie College, the new school is being constructed for Fife Council by Main Contractors Morgan Sindall.

The school is set to be one of the most environmentally-friendly in Scotland. It is designed featuring ‘fingers’ leading out from the main blocks creating child-friendly playing and learning spaces with security and familiarity as the theme.

The project includes the creation of community facilities for the general public.

Sports facilities include a grass playing field and smaller games court.

There will also be a sensory garden, a

wildflower ‘meadow’ area, an ‘eco’ garden, tree planting, a dining terrace for staff and pupils, lockable cycle racks and landscaping.

Cllr Douglas Chapman, SNP Chair of Fife’s Education Committee said “Carnegie Primary is bang on budget and despite the horrific winter we have had, the school is also bang on schedule to allow keys to be handed over to Fife Council in early July.

“With not long to go until completion, great praise needs to go to the contractors, Morgan Sindall, and our Fife Council team for keeping up a cracking pace and to the school’s Head Teacher, staff and parents for the support they have given during this building phase.

“We are anticipating that around 225 children will start at Carnegie in August, with around another 80 in the nursery. Work is already underway in the school to ensure that

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a smooth transition will take place for every child and that many of the parent’s questions are answered before the historic first term starts.

“A school with the name ‘Carnegie’ is always going to aspire to the highest level and everything I am seeing around this new school, from the school’s leadership, to the enthusiasm of the children and to the quality of the building, makes me confident that this is a school that will more than live up to its name.”

Scottish Water project edges closer to completion Scottish Water’s £34m Dunoon Waste Water Improvements scheme is fast coming to completion, with further recent improvements currently being made to the infrastructure.

The scheme aimed at improving the waste water infrastructure in Dunoon and to protect the natural environment in the coastal waters of the Firth of Clyde, saw the addition of a gravity sewer being laid in the town.

Contractors GMJV, working for Scottish Water, recently restarted work on laying a pipeline across the entrance to the Western Ferries terminal.

GMJV is currently working to deliver improvements to pipework, associated structures and outfalls from Sandhaven through to Bullwood Quarry. Black & Veatch is constructing the new treatment works at Bullwood.

In order to progress with this particular section of the project, Scottish Water, in its constant liaison with local residents and road users, introduced traffic management measures around the Western Ferries terminal.

Part of an area used for car parking at the terminal was temporarily closed to allow contractors working for Scottish Water to continue with their work. It will result in the near completion of the new gravity sewer being laid.

Mr Rick Griffin, Scottish Water’s project manager, said: “This is a key element of the works and we have liaised closely with the local authority and Western Ferries to ensure we can progress with it while minimising any disruption in the area.”

The scheme will remove a large number of untreated sewage discharges which currently flow into the Holy Loch and the Clyde and will provide biological (secondary) treatment at a modern treatment facility.

One of GMJV Contractors certainly went the extra mile during

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one day’s work last year, when his quick thinking might have saved the life of a canoeist who got into difficulty in the Firth of Clyde.

David Torrance, who was working for GMJV, contractors on the Dunoon sewerage scheme, was finishing work at the town’s West Bay shortly after 4pm when he noticed something in the water about 200 metres from the shore.

He initially thought it was a seal, but then realised it was a person and heard very faint cries for help. David quickly called 999, and got through to HM Coastguard.

Clyde Coastguard called out the Dunoon Coastguard Rescue team and dispatched the police launch Rhona to locate and identify the object.

The Royal Navy Rescue Helicopter R177, which was in the air on exercise, was sent to assist. The police launch, after arriving

on scene, was able to confirm that the reported object was a man who had been canoeing.

It is understood that he capsized his craft and fell in the water.

He was winched into the helicopter and taken to the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow, after spending an hour in the Clyde.

Scottish Water is the sole provider of water and waste water services to an area of 79,000 square kilometres (over 30,000 square miles), a third of the area of Britain. And Scotland has a longer coastline - over 11,000 kilometres (over 6,800 miles) with a small and relatively dispersed population which requires a large number of small water and waste water treatment works.

Scottish Water is the fourth largest water and waste water services provider in the UK and at £1 billion it is in Scotland’s list of top 20 businesses by turnover.

Construction News

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One of UK’s largest flood defence systems nears completion ONE of the UK’s biggest flood defence systems – aimed at preventing flood misery for thousands of people in Glasgow – has moved a significant step closer to completion, following the installation of the world’s largest Hydro-Brake flow control devices.

Scotland’s largest flood prevention scheme on White Cart Water, a tributary to the River Clyde, involves a £50m scheme, being carried out for Glasgow City Council, to remove the threat of flooding to homes to 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. The project will also enable a range of environmental improvements along the White Cart Water corridor.

It has already seen the installation of the world’s largest ever Hydro-Brake® Flow Control device. During peak storms, the HydroBrake® flow controls will hold back the White Cart Water and its tributaries the Earn Water and Kittoch Water causing the storage areas to fill.

The scheme sees the formation of three flood storage reservoirs upstream of the city that are capable of temporarily holding back the

millions of gallons of floodwater generated by extreme rainfall.

Contract 1 of the first phase of the project involves the construction of three floodwater storage areas and is being carried out by Carillion.

Work started in February 2008.

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.

The Blackhouse and Kirkland Bridge storage areas were substantially completed in the autumn of 2010. The Kittoch Bridge storage is nearing completion, with completion soon.

The boundary of the construction site associated with the Kittoch Bridge flood storage areas has been delineated with stock proof fencing.

Contract 2 comprises the construction of

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approximately 4.5km of flood defence walls and embankments along sections of the White Cart Water and Auldhouse Burn together with the raising of two footbridges and the construction of six underground pumping stations.

Work, which is being carried out by VolkerStevin, is due for completion in autumn 2011.

Cathcart, Battlefield and other communities along the banks of the White Cart have first-hand experience of the problems flooding can bring. The river has burst its banks more than 20 times in the past 100 years, forcing thousands of residents to flee their homes.

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Regeneration gives new impetus to area A Greenock thoroughfare is set to be transformed as part of a major project to redevelop the town centre amid a £180M investment.

Work has already progressed on West Blackhall Street to give shop fronts, pavements and road surfaces a new lease of life.

Regeneration Convener Councillor Jim Clocherty said: “This is a key part of our regeneration programme for Greenock town centre.

“West Blackhall Street is one of the first streets thousands of cruise ship passengers see when they arrive in Greenock and we want to make it as accessible and attractive as possible. We are proud of our town and want visitors to enjoy their experience so much they come back for more.”

Inverclyde Council, Riverside Inverclyde and their partners successfully applied for £1.32 million from the Scottish Government’s Town Centre Regeneration Fund.

The total scheme which is underway for Greenock Town Centre is £1,985,000 with additional match funding being provided by Riverside Inverclyde and Inverclyde Council.

Plans have already been approved to refurbish existing shop fronts on Cathcart Street and work is already underway to create an event space and to upgrade the quality of the landscaping

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on either side of the junction of Cathcart Street with Rue End Street.

In West Blackhall Street paving slabs will be re-laid, tarmac repaired, chewing gum removed and railings re-painted. Work will also be carried out to improve shop fronts; clean stone work and remove vegetation from gutters.

Councillor Clocherty added: “Developing the town centre will

make it a more positive place and a quality environment for business and the local community.”

It all forms part of the £180m James Watt Dock development.

Riverside Inverclyde and Peel are behind one of the largestever individual regeneration projects yet seen in Scotland, with Greenock’s iconic Grade “A” listed Sugar Warehouse at its heart.

The redevelopment sees the creation of state-of-the-art commercial, marina and leisure facilities set alongside modern residential and retail space.

Over a ten year period, the redevelopment of the 107-acre dock will see the creation of some 1,700 jobs; build in excess of

750 residential units; provide in excess of £10m-worth of social housing; establish 45,000 sq ft of retail space; create 145,600 sq ft of commercial space; enhance some 480 metres of waterfront and develop a 400+ berth marina Speaking on behalf of Peel, Euan Jamieson said: “The James Watt Dock site is a huge opportunity, both from the point of view of location and potential, and it is important for the regeneration of Inverclyde.

“It is also a major challenge, with historic issues of low demand and infrastructure, and has resisted development for over two decades.”

Flood scheme will protect 200 Inverness homes The third £1.2 million phase of a project geared to protecting around 200 homes from flooding in the Lochardil and Culduthel districts of Inverness is underway in a project which is making good progress on programme in a project being carried out by Global Construction.

The scheme is being undertaken for the Highland Council, with AECOM providing detailed design.

The overall South West Inverness Flood Relief scheme involves the construction of a channel to collect water from the burns on the south side of Inverness and transfer it (east to west) into Holm Burn and onto the River Ness. The scheme is approximately 4km long with 2-3km of newly constructed flood relief channel. The design will provide capacity for a 1 in 200 year flood event.

The scheme is split intro a number of phases. Phases 1&2, now complete, involved works between the River Ness and Culduthel Channel, whilst the remainder comprises the upstream length from Culduthel Channel to Ault na Skiah taking in Lochardil Burn, Slackbuie Channel and Slackbuie Spring and also the replacement of Holm Burn Bridge.

Phase 3 comprises the construction of a 600m long channel commencing at Culduthel Channel and terminating Lochardil Burn. The channel is a combination of culverted sections and open channel and includes the installation of 200 metres of 4m by 1.8m precast concrete box culvert sections manufactured

by Solway Precast. This element of the works involves bulk excavation and the laying of a concrete surface onto which the concrete box culvert sections are laid and then jacked together.

The 400m of open cut sections being constructed in this phase require the excavation of a large ditch lined with geocomposite clay liner, with fill material laid over and topsoiled and seeded.

Phase 3 also includes a section of box culverted channel construction above the Fairway Golf Course a section technically included in Phase 4, but being carried out in the current phase due to the need of a local housing developer to access their site.

Completion of Phase 3 is expected by the end of June 2011.

Phase 4 will commence at Lochardil Burn and end at Ault na Skiah, taking in Lochardil Burn, Slackbuie Channel and Slackbuie Spring. The channel is a combination of culverted sections and open channel.

Andy Yarde, Regional Director at AECOM said: “This is a highly complex scheme with many challenges including working within residential and recreational areas, coping with fluctuations in water levels and protecting the environment.

“As the new flood relief channel flows through residential areas, public safety and safe access for operation and maintenance of the scheme are paramount. AECOM has a significant track record in delivering flood schemes of this type and looks forward to working with The Highland Council’.

Provost Jimmy Gray, Chairman of the Council’s Inverness City Committee, said: “I am delighted that the Council is making

such good progress on this important scheme which will provide flood protection for many houses on the south side of Inverness.

It is important that the Council takes account of the impact of climate change by investing in flood mitigation measures such as this to ensure that cost effective measures are in place to deal with exceptional weather flood events as and when they may arise in the future.”

The total cost of the Scheme is about £10 million and has been funded by The Highland Council.

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Wind farm nears completion THE £32 million Glenkerie Wind Farm, near Biggar, in southern Scotland, is set to power up this autumn as the construction phase move into its final stages.

The Glenkerie Wind Farm is being constructed by the Infinis group which is the UK’s leading purely renewable energy company producing approximately 10% of the UK’s renewable power.

Infinis is a Terra Firma company, whose other renewable energy interests are Rete Rinnovabile (solar) in Italy and Everpower (onshore wind) in the United States.

Infinis appointed SgurrEnergy, leading independent engineering consultancy to provide Technical Advisor services throughout the construction phase.

Services include on site supervision of all aspects of construction; technical support covering mechanical, electrical, civil, geotechnical and hydrological aspects and health and safety and environmental management The project recently secured financing from Lloyds and BNP Paribas in the form of a project debt facility of up to £32 million ($48 million).

This marks a significant achievement, as the credit crisis has made it difficult for developers, especially smaller ones, to arrange funding for new renewable energy projects.

Alasdair Miller, SgurrEnergy’s Engineering Group Manager, said: “Being selected for this project demonstrates the wealth of SgurrEnergy’s construction supervision capabilities. Delivery of such projects reinforces our position at the forefront of technical advisor expertise worldwide.”

The project is expected to become operational in 2011 and will comprise 11 wind turbines and have a capacity of up to 22 MW. Perth-based I & H Brown Limited is the contractor. The

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construction was divided into two phases, to suit environmental restrictions on working near the Kingledore Burn, which is a tributary of the River Tweed. I & H Brown Limited will also carry out the grid connection contract.

Eight kilometers of new access roads needed to access the farm from the A701 require three new bridges. I & H Brown Limited undertakes sub-contracting, civil engineering projects, open cast mining, landfill operations, land reclamation and environmental improvement work.

Ian Munro, I & H Brown’s Divisional Director of civil engineering, said the remoteness of the site had created significant yet surmountable challenges.

He said: “It’s always difficult having a single point of access to a site, but wind farms tend to be remote sites by nature and we are used to that.

“The access we created, including three bridges over watercourses which allow deliveries of up to 1,000t per day, has been enough to keep the project moving forward.”

One of Scotland’s largest regeneration projects creates new quarter One of Scotland’s largest regeneration projects, Collegelands is an exciting new quarter taking shape to the east of Glasgow city centre and comprising more than 1,100,000 square feet of commercial and residential development.

The development is reclaiming the former College Goods Railway Yard, a huge area of derelict land at High Street / Duke Street in the city centre that has lain vacant for more than 25 years. It will create Glasgow’s first new city centre district for several decades.

Dawn Group in partnership with Glasgow City Council have produced a masterplan for the regeneration of the former railway siding into a vibrant, new commercial, leisure and residential district.

The project consists of over a million square feet of space: containing a mix of offices, a hotel, multi-storey car park, student accommodation, residential units and retail.

Phase 1 which is fully funded by Standard Life Investments and is nearing completion comprises the construction of: 102,000 sqft office space for Glasgow City Council; a 1,170 space Multi-storey car park; 640-bed student residences and a 200 Bed Ramada hotel. Completion of this phase is anticipated in autumn 2011.

This project will be a tremendous boost to Glasgow city centre and more importantly comes at a time when the financial climate dictates many developments will not progress beyond the planning stage. Collegelands with its proximity to the motorway network, a major Railway Station; linking Glasgow with Edinburgh once the Airdrie to Bathgate line is complete, and one of the city’s main bus arterial routes is ideally placed as a city centre commercial district.

The site will generate a major boost to the Glasgow economy including: 2,950 gross additional jobs once the site is fully developed £110 million per annum to the economy and 1,100 construction jobs over the build period.

Alan Macdonald, chairman of the Dawn Group, said: “Collegelands will create a gateway from central Glasgow to the East End which is seeing dramatic changes thanks to the developments surrounding the 2014 Games and revitalise a site that has lain derelict for over 25 years.

“As the largest new-start regeneration project currently in the UK, the sheer scale of Collegelands makes it a significant development. However, the real impact of the 1.1m sq ft site will be to the local, and indeed wider, Scottish economy as it creates employment and drives growth.”

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Empowering Ireland The installation of an electrical power transmission system to handle 25 per cent of Ireland’s generation capacity has recently been completed in the Cork Harbour area of the south west of Ireland.

The energy transmission system development consisted of underground cable, subsea cable and overhead line.

The three year project was geared to ensuring the supply of energy generated from two new power plants built in the Aghada area to the National Grid. The connection of these two power plants will contribute to meeting Ireland’s electricity needs for the coming years.

The project is designed to support economic growth and development in the Cork area; ensure a security of supply for the future; support industry in Cork when competing for business and inward investment and ensure that bulk high quality power is available for the Munster region The new power transmission system was developed by state owned Eirgrid PLC - the Independent Electricity Transmission System Operator (TSO) in Ireland and the Market Operator in

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the wholesale electricity trading system. The detailed design and on site construction was managed by ESB Networks, the Transmission Asset Owner (TAO) and the works were carried out by a number of international contractors.

Eirgrid’s role is to deliver quality connection, transmission and market services to generators, suppliers and customers, utilising the high voltage electricity system, and to put in place the grid infrastructure required to support the development of Ireland’s economy.

The project was carried out in three stages: The first stage, completed in July 2009, involved connection of the two new privately built and operated power stations to the National Grid. Approximately 6km of new 220kV Cross Linked Polyethylene (XLPE) cable was installed in two phases, 1km to a new 431MW ESB Power Generation combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant at Aghada and 4.8km to a new 445MW Bord Gais Eireann (BGE) CCGT plant in Whitegate. Both of these plants were connected to an existing 220kV substation in the Aghada area.

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I re l a n d Completed in August 2010, the second stage involved completion of the Aghada – Raffeen circuit, which involved installing an underground cable from Cow Cross on Great Island to Cuskinny Bay. Over 7km of this circuit had already been installed as overhead line and the remainder of the circuit runs underground from an existing transmission station at Cowcross to an area close to Cuskinny Bay on the Great Island and then continues undersea across the East Channel to a cable entry point within the ESB Power Generation site at Aghada. As EirGrid’s Lead Consultant for this grid connection, Mott MacDonald carried out a feasibility assessment and outline design for the new connection and subsequently applied for and obtained a foreshore licence for the new submarine cable installation. Initial survey work on the subsea crossing was carried out by Irish Hydrodata and Fugro Alluvial with Nexans of Norway manufacturing and installing the subsea cable. The 220kV XLPE subsea cable was the first of its type installed in Ireland and only the third ever installed in Europe at such a high voltage.

In the third stage of the project, which is on schedule to be completed in August 2011, a second transmission circuit was installed across the main channel of Cork Harbour from the new BGE plant at Glanagow to Raffeen.

The Glanagow to Raffeen circuit was constructed underground from a new substation within the BGE compound in Whitegate as far as the existing Raffeen 220kV station adjacent to Carrigaline. The cable enters the sea within the Conoco Phillips Whitegate oil refinery compound and crosses the main channel of the harbour to a sea entry point close to the entrance to the old Irish Steel site, south of Spike Island.

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On land, the cable installation process involved installing the cable ducts and joint bays under the public roads, after which a separate team pulled and jointed the sections of cable.

The installation of the submarine cable involved the floating the cable out across the harbour from a special cable laying ship or barge. A winch was used to pull it ashore at the landfalls and once the cable was secured, the floats were removed and the cable laid on the sea bed. Following this process, the cable was jetted into the seabed by a special remote controlled vehicle.

The subsea cable was manufactured by NKT Kabel of Germany and installed by JD Contractor of Denmark.

All land cable works were installed by local contractors under the supervision of ESB Networks and ESB International engineers and all substation works were carried out by NIE Powerteam and local ESB Networks crews.

EirGrid Project Manager Brian Mullins commented “Though the programme and scope of the project was challenging, especially with new subsea technology being utilised, it is testament to all who contributed to the project that all facets were completed on time and to specification. The performance of both the designers in ESBI, the project management on site by ESB Networks and the installation by the contractors on site was seamless and ensured both new power plants were connected on schedule thus securing the supply of bulk electricity to the Irish National Grid in timely manner” The project is expected to be completed by August 2011 at which time approximately 1.2GW of electricity will be available for export from the Aghada area of Cork Harbour.

European wind farm giant focuses on Ireland With a yearly project volume of around 100 million Euros, ABO Wind AG is one of Europe’s most successful developers of wind energy projects.

The company plan and build wind farms both domestically and internationally, and has a staff of 160 professionals located in Germany, Spain, France, Argentina, Belgium, Ireland, Great Britain and Bulgaria. Expansion into other European countries is scheduled.

ABO Wind initiates wind farm projects, acquires site locations, organises all technical and business planning, arranges international bank financing and delivers turnkey wind farms.

Up until now, ABO Wind has connected more than 270 wind turbines to power grids with a total capacity of 400 megawatts (as of 2nd quarter 2011), ABO Wind has been working with its Irish partner since 2006 to develop wind farms in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Their office is in Killiney, Co. Dublin, Republic of Ireland.

The company’s main area of operation is the planning and construction of turnkey wind farms. This ranges from the procurement of construction sites to initial operations and includes the complete planning of technical and business operations. In Ireland, they are mainly interested in procuring project rights for developed sites.

ABO Wind was the only foreign project developer to succeed in making financing possible for Irish wind farms in 2009, under the difficult conditions of the financial crisis.

Due to the market position that has now been reached, good business is also anticipated in the Republic of Ireland during the coming years, which offers many opportunities, due to its attractive remuneration for feeding electricity into the grid and large space potential, and it will be one of ABO Wind’s most important markets in the long term.

As part of its geographically diversified investment portfolio, the team aims to acquire additional assets of wind generation capacity in Ireland over the course of its investment period.

“We are securing a deep pipeline of projects with a number of developers and owners to enable us achieve our target investment size in Ireland,” says Francesco Cacciabue, chief financial officer and investment director. “We target both operational wind farms and wind farms under construction Recent, current and forthcoming wind farm projects for Abo Wind in Ireland include those at Gortahile in County Laois, Glenough in County Tipperary and Gibbet Hill in County Wexford.

The civil works for the Gortahile and Glenough projects have been carried out by main contractors Denis Moriarty whereas the electrical works were carried out by Kirby Group, who have been highly praised for their work by Abo Wind.

The construction of the EUR 42 million project at Gortahile - a 20 megawatt wind farm providing enough electricity to meet the annual needs of over 11,200 households - has now been completed and connected.

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I re l a n d portfolio that we intend to build in Ireland,” says Joost Bergsma, chief executive of the fund managed by BNP Paribas Clean Energy Partners, which has acquired 100% of Gortahile Windfarm. “Ireland is a very attractive renewables market for financial investors because of its strong wind regime, its robust REFIT support policy, and its commitment to achieving its 2020 renewable energy target.”

Abo Wind installed eight Nordex N90 turbines with a hub height of 80 metres, in the Gortahile project which included the construction of internal site roads, crane hard standings and turbine foundations. Other works included the laying of underground cabling to connect each of the turbines to the 20/38 kV site substation, the laying of further underground cabling to connect the site substation to another substation in Carlow and the widening of a public road required in order to be able to deliver the turbines. “We were very pleased with the work of the contractors - the work went smoothly and was finished on time” said Ute Schulmeister of Abo Wind.

Wind conditions at the location are excellent – at the hub height of the turbine, the wind blows with an average speed of more than 8 metres per second. This offers the guarantee of high energy yields (approx. 76 gigawatt hours per year) and very good profitability. The electricity production from wind power is possible at this location, at prices which are only minimally above those for conventional power plants – and it is well known that the external costs, such as for climate damage, are not taken into account.

At the Glenough Wind Farm project, which is still on site, 13 Nordex N90 turbines have been installed, internal site roads, crane hard standings, turbine foundations, a 20/38 kV site substation and a 38/110 kV substation at Cauteen (to serve this and other wind farms) have been constructed, and site cabling has been laid, together with 19km of off-site underground cabling. In addition, most of a public road which had collapsed is having rebuilt to provide access for lorry deliveries to the site. Currently the turbines have been erected, the Cauteen sub-station is under construction and the rebuilding of the road is underway.

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This was a particularly challenging project as a planning stipulation stated that the contractors were not allowed to carry out any works in the summertime or in the bird breeding season. This meant that the wind farm had to be constructed during last winter, in difficult weather conditions requiring the frequent clearing of ice and snow from the site roads. “Despite the challenges Denis Moriarty have done very well and have still done a brilliant job -” said Ute Schulmeister.

This wind farm at Glenough, with an investment value of EUR 71 million, will remain in the ownership of the Group of companies and after commissioning will be operated by the subsidiary, Eurowind, which is building up a European wind power portfolio.

Six Nordex N90 Turbines are to be installed at Gibbet Hill, in a project due to commence in summer or autumn 2011. After initial concerns by the local community as to the aesthetics and safety of turbines on their hillsides, planning permission was approved. Currently a site investigation of the ground conditions is underway. The works involved are very similar to those at the Gortahaile and Glenough Wind Farms.

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Heritage

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Heritage

Ensuring a bright future for the past English Heritage exists to protect and promote England’s spectacular historic environment and ensure that its past is researched and understood.

English Heritage is the government’s statutory adviser on the historic environment. Officially known as the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England, English Heritage is an executive non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

The powers and responsibilities of English Heritage are set out in the National Heritage Act (1983) and today they report to Parliament through the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

Although sponsored by DCMS, English Heritage works with a range of government departments, notably CLG and Defra, to help realise the potential of the historic environment.

English Heritage is funded in part by the government, and is also part funded from revenue earned from their historic properties and other services.

English Heritage works in partnership with central government departments, local authorities, voluntary bodies and the private

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sector to conserve and enhance the historic environment, broaden public access to the heritage and increase people’s understanding of the past.

The organisation meets these responsibilities by: acting as a national and international champion for the heritage; giving grants for the conservation of historic buildings, monuments and landscapes; maintaining registers of England’s most significant historic buildings, monuments and landscapes; and advising on the preservation of the historic environment.

English Heritage also encourages broader public involvement with the heritage, promotes heritage-related education and research, cares for Stonehenge and over 400 other historic properties on behalf of the nation, maintains the National Monuments Record as the public archive of the heritage and generates income for the benefit of the historic environment.

English Heritage is currently running a five-year investment programme for its properties. Based on an audit of all the organisation’s properties, £30m is being targeted at those sites with the most commercial potential, in order to make as many sites as possible self-financing.

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Heritage

In the construction sector, English Heritage has joined forces with ConstructionSkills to call for concerted action across the construction industry, the built heritage sector, educational establishments, careers organisations, funding bodies and government departments to tackle the continued shortage of heritage building skills.

English Heritage has also published research demonstrating the shortage of craft skills across the country and a Skills Action Plan which they are now implementing. This includes raising the profile of vocational training and the built heritage construction sector and attracting more young people to pursue careers within it.

The plan is also geared towards encouraging the use of suitably skilled and qualified people, and developing qualifications to ensure that traditional building knowledge and skills can be attained from GCSE to Master Craft level.

Find out more at www.english-heritage.org.uk

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Conserving England’s green ‘thinking spaces’ Caring for England’s historic gardens and designed landscapes, The Association of Gardens Trusts (AGT) consists of 35 County Gardens Trusts (CGTs) from all over England, and is affiliated to the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust.

As a national charity, the association’s focus is on promoting the enjoyment of gardens and parks to the general public.

The association learns about garden heritage and designed landscapes, engages in conservation, planning and garden research, and encourages gardens in schools.

“Our England is a garden that is full of stately views, of borders, beds and shrubberies and lawns and avenues, with statues on the terraces and peacocks strutting by but the Glory of the Garden lies in more than meets the eye.”

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Heritage any to convey the purpose of the Association of Gardens Trusts (AGT). The vision and strength of this unifying organisation comes together to conserve the country’s ‘thinking’ spaces.

The AGT is a national charity, underpinned by volunteers, working to prevent further loss or corrosion of specially designed green living spaces that imbue a sense of our past while we survey the present.

But the association feels that there has to be more than nurture and enjoyment - we have to think about the future. This far too crowded island is under ever-increasing pressure from building development and motorways.

Hence, since being founded in 1993, the AGT has been working closely in association with 10 branches of the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust, and in partnership and cross-fertilisation with a range of like-minded garden heritage groups, especially English Heritage, the National Trust, the Garden History Society, and the Garden Museum, but also Green Space, Historic Houses Association, CABE, NADFAS, the Heritage Alliance (formerly Heritage Link) and the Woodland Trust.

Old landscapes and gardens are spaces with a special sense of place and narratives of the taste and ambitions of individuals, reflecting layers of family history, often over centuries.

Gardens offer more than aesthetic pleasure, adding to the visually enjoyable and often scented experience by engaging the mind with a much-rewarding fourth dimension: understanding the context of a garden, landscape or park.

AGT President, Gilly Drummond is fond of pointing out: “Gardens are tellers of tales; the skills of the designer allow the tale to be heard.” If you are interested to learn about the design development of gardens, she says, you may then begin to read them like a book, even if some of the pages are missing.

Recently, as a trustee for the Chiswick House and Park Trust seeking planning permission for a huge £12 million regeneration project, Gilly transported a group of Hounslow councillors by coach down to the outskirts of Swindon to view

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progress on the Lydiard Park project, to appreciate with their own eyes just what could be achieved.

Consequently, those councillors who visited Lydiard supported the Chiswick bid, including restoration of the walled garden. Those who had not taken the trip were noticeably ‘less enthusiastic’.

The AGT works to ‘make a difference’ in conservation: by organising friendly, enlightening annual conferences for county gardens trusts delegates to learn about and explore the wealthy mix of gardens and parks, and their designers, in diverse areas of the country; by emphasizing special events by suggesting issues and recommending speakers for major conferences, regional workshops and study days; by informing and advising county gardens trust committees and members with website, papers and e-newsletters, by forwarding planning applications and, lastly by arranging insurance cover with modest premiums.

The AGT responds to government initiatives, sometimes questions and challenges planning issues, but, perhaps above all, is committed to encouraging schemes to pass on valuable gardening skills and knowledge in schools and adult education and enable teachers and planners with local research. Hence the AGT supported the first phase of the unique online Parks and Gardens database www.parksandgardens.ac.uk and is now working towards expansion in a second development phase.

Encouraged that the County Gardens Trust movement has now come of age, the AGT team is determined to continue to support this valuable, pleasantly open, grassroots network.

Rather like the vine and its fruit-bearing branches, the AGT is only as good and as responsive as its committed volunteers.

The ongoing work of these impassioned county gardens trust members goes largely unsung like seeds sewn on the Solent wind carried to evergreen landscapes and gardens from Cornwall to Northumberland.

What’s The Point?

2009 - the major players in the Heritage Sector of the construction industry challenged contractors to sign up for an initiative which would spell the end of unqualified, inappropriately skilled contractors working on national heritage sites.

2010 - the members of the Lead Contractors Association (LCA) rose to that challenge and more than 300 signed up (at a cost) to be recognised as Heritage Skills Specialist Leadworkers and receive the newly conceived CSCS card, believing the major client base involved would be approving exclusive use of this carded workforce on heritage projects.

April 2011 - we are still waiting for a commitment to this quality standard initiative from the sector’s major client group – English Heritage.

Whilst all the right supportive noises have been made at various senior levels within EH, what has been the biggest push in recent times for meaningful recognition of the heritage specialist is in danger of failing because of prevarication by the organisation that stands to benefit the most.

The problems at English Heritage have been widely documented, with the national economic crisis requiring drastic cut backs in the public funding of EH budgets, threatening widespread redundancies at all levels.

Of course this is a painful and difficult time for many organisations and businesses, including English Heritage, but also including all those contractors, suppliers and manufacturers involved in UK construction.

The National Heritage Training Group has been supported by ConstructionSkills, UNITE the Union and the NHTG member craft organisations in rapidly developing the Heritage Skills CSCS card initiative.

Once again, specialist leadwork has been at the fore as the craft which has succeeded in rapidly achieving the required “critical mass” of qualified cardholders registered for heritage work and is now being used as a test case in challenging English Heritage to make their own commitment to quality standards.

The NHTG, flanked by UNITE and the Lead Contractors Association is seeking urgent talks with EH at the highest levels to persuade them to ACT NOW to announce a change in procurement policy to exclusively use Heritage Skills Specialist Leadwork CSCS cardholders on English Heritage projects and thereby: • •

• •

•

•

Recognise the overall commitment of the craft sector to maintaining quality standards Recognise the specific commitment of the specialist leadwork sector in rapidly achieving a critical mass of registered contractors Send a message to all craft trades that supporting this initiative will be a worthwhile and justified commitment Remove the threat of untrained, unqualified, inexperienced and insufficiently knowledgeable tradesmen from vulnerable heritage projects Prioritise historically correct working practices and long term value for money over short term, cut price expediency Protect and preserve today’s heritage for future generations

The ground is therefore already being prepared for those that did not register for the Heritage Skills card during the “grandfather rights” window which closed in September 2010, yet may have skilled and experienced craftsmen who will be prevented from working on heritage sites.

In conjunction with the Lead Sheet Association, the LCA are pressing Construction Skills to recognise an Experienced Worker Practical Assessment (EWPA) route to gaining a nationally recognised Level 3 qualification in Heritage Skills which would then enable contractors to apply for their Heritage Skills CSCS card.

As well as providing the EWPA assessment venue, Nigel Johnston at the LSA is also exploring the potential for providing an on site facility for the “Health & Safety – Working at Heights” test, thus providing a more convenient single venue to process applicants and minimise the time lost from site.

The standards of the leadwork sector – our years of policing, quality control, comprehensive reference literature and technical support – are the envy of every other roofing trade, but it comes at a long term price, both financially and in terms of commitment.

There is a very real danger that if this craft skills initiative stalls, we risk the prospect of our built heritage being vandalised and iconic buildings such as the dome at St Pauls being covered in a lead sheet look-alike in the future because all the traditional lead craftsmen have disappeared.

There is also the danger that when English Heritage and others next seek support from contractors for future important “initiatives” they risk being met with a simple response.

“What’s the point?”

Despite our frustrations, the LCA believe EH will eventually do the right thing, perhaps simply because any alternative course will put the integrity of the entire heritage sector at risk.

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Apprentices needed as construction sector faces potential retirement time bomb Due to an ageing workforce and a limited injection of new blood, the construction industry now faces a potential retirement time bomb, says Mark Farrar, Chief Executive of CITB-ConstructionSkills, the Sector Skills Council and Industry Training Board for the construction industry.

“When you look at the age profile demographics across the whole construction industry, there is a tendency towards older employees - certainly a significant number are coming up to retirement age in the next five to 10 years. Coming through behind them are fewer people - due to the recession in the early 1990s where the industry lost many people who never returned.

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“Statistics indicate that in the next 10 years there will be around half a million fewer 16 - 24 year olds in the country as a whole, and this at a time where firms may start to fight hard for good quality young people in the shape of apprentices or undergraduates coming into their sectors. So the construction industry does have a fight on its hands to make sure that it accesses good quality people - and from a smaller pool of talent.

“The sectors ageing workforce will need replacing and hence one of our main focuses is on promoting the entry of new talent into the industry and trying to assist the industry is driving young people to us for training.”

To this end, CITB-ConstructionSkills have organised a series

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A s s o c i ati o n s of events which have successfully driven a 47% increase in take-up of apprenticeships.

Sixty-five more savvy employers signed up to get their hands on the UK’s best young talent following these events run as part of the CITB-ConstructionSkills’ Positive Image campaign.

With over 200 employers now committed to offering apprenticeships in areas ranging from carpentry to craft masonry, CITB-ConstructionSkills, is calling on companies to follow suit and invest in the skills today that will drive future growth.

CITB-ConstructionSkills ran a programme of employer breakfast meetings, construction challenges, careers events, and one-to-ones with its staff and staff from the National Construction College (NCC) as part of National Apprenticeship Week (NAW). The events brought employers face-to-face with over 600 young people interested in the sector.

Well over a quarter of the employers who attended an event have committed to take on apprenticeships, creating an initial 70 vacancies, for which there have already been 360 applications – giving employers the opportunity to pick the best candidates and take advantage of the wealth of young people the Positive Image campaign has attracted to the sector.

Martyn Price, from CMC Ltd, one of the employers attending the event, said: “I am delighted to be associated with National Apprenticeship Week to support the benefits that apprentices can bring to any business. The pledge demonstrates our ongoing commitment which in turn we anticipate will continue to benefit our business for many future years. The Positive Image campaign’s drive to recruit the brightest and best talent is really paying off”.

Tony Wren, Managing Director of Innovation On-Site Limited, said: “Innovation On-Site wholeheartedly supports National Apprentice Week. The training and development of our workforce is paramount to the foundations of our company. By encouraging our apprentices to grow we develop and retain a

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high calibre workforce which underpins our longevity.”

Mark Farrar added: “These events helped show employers the wealth of keen young people who are eager to work in the construction sector. We were delighted to see so many firms sign up to offer apprenticeships. However, there is an opportunity for many more employers to get involved and leave a lasting legacy for the construction industry. It’s only by investing in the workforce of tomorrow that we will survive.”

The CITB-ConstructionSkills Positive Image campaign works with employers and federations to attract enthusiastic new recruits to construction to help deliver the right skills both locally and nationally. CITB-ConstructionSkills is the Sector Skills Council (SSC) and Industry Training Board (ITB) for the construction industry.

Established as an SSC in 2003, the organisation works in partnership with CIC and CITB Northern Ireland, to support construction businesses and deliver a safe, professional and fully qualified UK construction workforce.

CITB-ConstructionSkills works closely with construction employers to deliver training, implement industry-led skills solutions, secure appropriate funding, produce labour market data, and develop standards and qualifications that meet the changing needs of employers. Every day CITBConstructionSkills delivers support to construction employers through a network of expert advisors working across Great Britain.

CITB-ConstructionSkills is a well-run and high performing Sector Skills Council, supporting a sector which is central to the UK economy, generating over 8% of GDP and a turnover of more than £210bn a year. The organisation is helping construction employers during the downturn and working to maintain skills so the industry can respond when the upturn begins.

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Winners of the Roofing Awards 2011 announced The roofing industry came together on the 20th May to celebrate and recognise outstanding industry achievements at The Roofing Awards Annual Congress Lunch. This is the sixth year of the awards and over 500 people descended on the Hilton Metropole in Brighton to celebrate the very best across the roofing spectrum.

The Roofing Awards, formerly the NFRC Awards, are designed to recognise and reward outstanding performance amongst competent roofing companies and manufacturers The awards this year saw NFRC collaborate with the Liquid Roofing and Waterproofing Association (LRWA), the Flat Roofing Alliance (FRA), the Roofing Tile Alliance (RTA), the Lead Contractors Association (LCA), The Green Roof Centre and Groundwork Sheffield and the Single Ply Roofing Association (SPRA).

The Excellence in Roofing Awards recognises and rewards outstanding roofing projects in all the major roofing disciplines.

The demonstration of quality workmanship, technical difficulties encountered, problem solving, environmental qualities and aesthetics were the areas looked at by the judges when they selected the following winners. The accolades and prizes on the day, including the IFD World Championship for Young Roofers competitors, were presented by former GMTV presenter Penny Smith.

Industrial Roofing & Cladding Roof Sheeting – KGM Roofing, Pudsey Bus Station, Leeds Vertical Cladding – Longworth, Garston Health Centre, Liverpool

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Flat Roofing

Reinforced Bituminous Membrane – Central Roofing & Building Services working with IKO Plc, Leicester Royal Infirmary Single Ply – Advanced Roofing Ltd working with Renolit, Scunthorpe Leisure Academy Liquid Applied Waterproofing – Central Roofing & Building Services working with Liquid Plastics, BAE Portsmouth

Pitched Roofing Roof Slating – Greenough & Sons Roofing Contractors Ltd, Windmill conversion/restoration Roof Tiling – Clarke Roofing Southern Ltd, Sussex Cottage, East Sussex

Specialist Roofing Fully Supported Metal – O’Brien Roofing & Leadwork Ltd, Chideock Manor Church, Dorset Heritage Roofing – Karl Terry Roofing Contractors Ltd, Laddingford House, Kent

Sustainable Green Roofs – Blackdown Greenroofs working with Lakesmere Ltd, West Ham Bus Garage, London Sustainable Roofs – Wensley Roofing Ltd working with John Brash, Hamsterley Mill, Tyne & Wear Also being presented with an accolade was the highest scoring companies from the Safety in Roofing Awards: Clarke Roofing Southern Ltd for slating and tiling; Gray & Jarrett Ltd for flat roofing; and Border Steelwork Structures Ltd for industrial roofing and cladding. A high number of gold, silver and bronze awards were presented to members at the regional annual general meetings earlier on this year.

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