Dulux Trade Paint Expert, part of AkzoNobel, secured four accolades at the Painting and Decorating Association’s 30th annual awards ceremony, following nominations for 11 projects across seven categories. The company took home the prize in the commercial sector after working on a high school in Neston, Cheshire, where its products
Trafford Centre in Manchester will receive a £75 million upgrade from VINCI Construction UK, which will deliver a new glass-domed roof and redesigned interiors for the shopping complex’s Barton Square.The project is part of a plan to expand and refresh that area of the centre, as well as add new
London’s canals have seen in the last forty years a great resurgence, but, at the same time, they have also been used for leisure and alternative living more than their originally intended purpose. The ongoing housing crisis has made many property owners view setting up a home in a floating
Dulux Trade Paint Expert, part of AkzoNobel, secured four accolades at the Painting and Decorating Association’s 30th annual awards ceremony, following nominations for 11 projects across seven categories. The company took home the prize in the commercial sector after working on a high school in Neston, Cheshire, where its products transformed the school. Moreover, the global paints and coating manufacturer was awarded for its role in the reinvigoration of St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church in Oldham, Greater Manchester, with its products having been specified by Bernard Watson and his team to carefully and sensitively redecorate the church, which dates back to the 1800s. The third accolade was won in the Residential category, in which Dulux Trade was specified by the Caring Homes Group for the redecoration of a social housing project in Cheltenham. The firm transformed a space using colour beyond aesthetics, allowing Ian Williams Ltd to create an environment that will enhance the lives of residents, with the right colour palettes, design and tonal differences to meet the needs of those who live in and use the space. The fourth and final win was offered for its work on the American Embassy in London, which has moved to Nine Elms, where the stunning piece of architecture now overlooks the River Thames. After partnering with Wokingham’s AC Beck Contracts Ltd on the new build project, the award was presented to the project partners in the New Build category. “Putting colour into people’s lives goes far beyond what is in our paint tins. For all of us at Dulux Trade, it’s about enriching and improving lives through enhanced environments, and partnering with our valued Contractor customer to achieve these outcomes. Being recognised in this way alongside our contractor customers is testament to the work that the entire team does day in, day out,” said John Kourtoulos, Sales Director, across contractor and specifier markets at AkzoNobel, who was there to collect the awards.
Trafford Centre in Manchester will receive a £75 million upgrade from VINCI Construction UK, which will deliver a new glass-domed roof and redesigned interiors for the shopping complex’s Barton Square.The project is part of a plan to expand and refresh that area of the centre, as well as add new brands, with Primark signed as an anchor tenant. “intu Trafford Centre is already one of the best places to shop in the UK and is known around the world for its unique design and architecture,” said John Robert, VINCI Construction UK regional director. “The work we are carrying out at Barton Square will create a fantastic new area befitting this architecturally-rich building. The quality of the materials and design will create a space that shoppers will be able to enjoy for many years to come,” he continued. Construction work on the Barton Square project will start later this year, with the completion date due in early 2020. “There’s nowhere else quite like intu Trafford Centre and we’re now investing £75 million to deliver a new space with a real ‘wow factor’ that will bring more brands and unique experiences to make our shoppers smile,” said Colin Flinn, regional managing director at intu. “Many of the things that make intu Trafford Centre so special will be extended into the Barton Square area of centre, allowing us to attract quality new brands and provide even more for people to shop, eat, play and do. We’re bringing a Primark store to intu Trafford Centre and will be announcing a number of other new retail and leisure operators soon,” Colin added. Two other intu sites are already under construction – the 400,000 sq ft extension of intu Watford, opening this autumn, and the £72 million development at intu Lakeside in Essex.
London’s canals have seen in the last forty years a great resurgence, but, at the same time, they have also been used for leisure and alternative living more than their originally intended purpose. The ongoing housing crisis has made many property owners view setting up a home in a floating boat a viable option. Ex-industrial areas are continuously being developed and barges are being overlooked as a viable way to transport away construction waste and bring in materials. Two examples of this situation are two large canal-side development projects that could easily incorporate the waterways into their efforts – Enfield Meridian Water Development and Old Oak Park Royal Development Corporation. As HGVs are causing a vastly disproportionate amount of cyclist road deaths, getting freight off the roads would be safer, would reduce traffic and their environmental impact, with water transport only using around a quarter of the energy of an equivalent road journey. A brief glimmer of hope was seen when Stratford was identified as the site for the 2012 Olympics. The area around the proposed park is riddled with canals and backwaters, perfect for heavy freight. Despite promising noises and the building of a new lock at Three Mills, which opened up a route to processing plants along the Thames Estuary, this option was not engaged with in any meaningful way. The long hoped-for revival of waterways freight never happened and with the privatisation of the canals, it seems even further away. Moreover, the Canal and River Trust (CRT), the charity that now managed England and Wales’s canals, does little to encourage waterborne freight. A concerted EU effort has seen a great resurgence in freight borne on inland waterways in mainland Europe, but unfortunately nothing comparable is happening on this side of the Channel. However, this is not due to a lack of options, as the UK has the infrastructure in place already. It is just a matter of using it.
