Projects
MOD Barrack Blocks
As part of the MOD’s wider Project MoDEL works at RAF Northolt, Precast Concrete Structures Ltd have successfully completed the erection of 2 x junior ranks, ‘barrack blocks’ for Norwest Holst Ltd. The project, completed to programme and budget, provides single living accommodation for some 182 airmen and airwomen at this prestigious West London unit.
The development consists of two interlocking, ‘T’ shaped, 3 storey blocks with en-suite accommodation and communal lounge areas on each floor.
The high quality PCS wall panels and floor slabs were manufactured to permit direct decoration, thereby removing the need for following wet trades.
Although the project sits outside the realms of the MOD’s Project SLAM (Single Living Accommodation Modernisation) it has been erected to similar standards and dimensions and has the potential to set the standard for future accommodation requirements at RAF Northolt.
Precast Concrete Structures Ltd have an excellent appreciation of the MOD’s and Defence Estates accommodation needs and with security cleared operatives, are well placed to carry out similar accommodation work across the MOD Estate in the future.
Federation Headquarters in Precast
The Police Federation of England and Wales which represents 140,000 police officers, Sergeants, Inspectors and Chief Inspectors commissioned a new Headquarters building in Leatherhead, Surrey.
The £13m project, which is designed around a central atrium to maximise natural light, brought a number of different uses under one roof, providing the Federation head office, a training and development centre with meeting rooms and a 55 bedroom accommodation wing.
The PCS engineered solution used a number of different precast components including Beam and Column sections along with the typical PCS high quality twin wall elements which were suitable for direct decoration on both sides, obviating the need for plaster finishes.
Carver’s Warehouse
The listed Carvers Warehouse is the oldest surviving and only stone built warehouse remaining in Manchester City centre having been completed in 1804 and in recent times had been the home of a bathroom showroom.
Yorkshire based Town Centre Securities developed a restoration scheme to restore the warehouse as part of their £250m Piccadilly Basin development, retaining virtually all the original timber and cast iron structure, and converting it to office use.
Included with the restoration work was a contemporary extension. The design of this new build section is based on high quality precast concrete sections with exposed internal walls and soffits linking through a glass facade system to the historic warehouse.
Martin Stockley Associates, the Consulting Engineers and Principal Contractor for the development, have moved their offices into top two floors of the restored warehouse.
Project Hal, Broxbourne
News International, publishers of The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and News of the World, undertook a redevelopment of its printing facilities on 3 sites, Broxbourne, Liverpool and Glasgow. The largest of these sites was a new 27,250 square metre development at Broxbourne near the M25.
PCS was awarded the contract to construct a 4 hour fire wall to separate the paper store from the printing facilities. The wall was in excess of 245m long and 25m high formed from 200mm thick autoclaved concrete panels.
Carillion achieved a Gold Award under the Considerate Contractors Scheme for the development.
1400 Student Rooms, Brunel University
With growing student numbers Brunel University in Uxbridge decided to expand its en-suite student accommodation on its West London Central campus by 1,400 units.
The £56 million project was a design and build development with Norwest Holst. The primary structure of the buildings is precast concrete twin walls and floor units, which provide a rapid construction process and allow an early start for secondary trades. The Architect’s design consisted of 17 similar shaped, 5 storey buildings each with two wings around a central lift and stair core zone. Each building contains 80 to 100 rooms, each one fitted with a toilet-shower pod and access to shared kitchen facilities.
The project started on site in November 2006 with piling and foundations. The precast erection commenced in April 2007 with completion of all 17 blocks and two additional buildings by December 2007, four months ahead of the contract programme.
290 Apartments, Budenberg
Pioneering developer Urban Splash teamed up with one of the UK’s leading Architects, Foster and Partners to develop an environmentally sustainable, residential scheme on the banks of Bridgewater Canal in Altrincham, incorporating a number of innovative features.
The development is on a brownfield site which was the home of the Budenberg Gauge works between 1914 and 2002, a company which manufactured pressure gauges used for a variety of applications, including aircraft and steam locomotives. The two new buildings on site rise from 3 stories, adjacent to the existing buildings, up to 10 stories which cantilever out over the canal with a large private garden area between them.
The PCS involvement included high quality precast floor units forming the ceilings of the floors below along with stair and lift towers. In some areas the exposed soffits of the floor units are curved to provide feature ceilings.
The Hub, 5 Piccadilly Place
The Hub is a 10 storey ‘U’ shaped development, wrapped around a hard landscaped plaza, of 167 new apartments in the heart of a Manchester mixed use development area, by Argent Group in Manchester City centre.
The building structure is formed entirely from precast elements, which has led to each floor level being erected and clad within a 4 week period.
PCS was involved from a very early stage to develop the site using a wide range of precast sections:
Architectural sandwich cladding panels, Precast stairs, Twin wall, Solid wall, Hollow-core planks, Solid wall lift shafts.
Ramada Encore Hotel
The new £8m Ramada Encore Warrington, located on Birchwood Business Park, is a new hotel with a simple concept of being fresh, stylish vibrant and upbeat whilst offering comfortable contemporary accommodation.
This hotel located near Warrington town centre provides 103 ensuite bedrooms, and 2 meeting rooms over 4 stories, with all public areas and bedrooms being fully air-conditioned.
The structure was erected by PCs within 9 weeks using twin wall precast wall panels which were manufactured to provide a wall ready to accept minimal painting to achieve finishes with a great appearance.
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