Hundreds more households will soon enjoy more affordable, reliable, and lower carbon heating with three tower blocks set to become the latest to connect to the city’s flagship Leeds PIPES district heating network. 259 council properties in Lovell Park Heights, Lovell Park Grange, and Lovell Park Towers will be set
Anglo American and STRABAG UK are delighted to announce that the tunnel at the Woodsmith project near Whitby, in the north-east of England, recently reached 25.8km in length. This breaks the current record for the world’s longest single tunnel boring machine drive. STRABAG UK is working on behalf of Anglo
CICV calls for urgent reform as the sector struggles with payment delays and financial strain. Despite government and industry past efforts to address financial challenges in the Scottish construction sector, the Construction Industry Collective Voice (CICV) has found construction businesses continue to struggle with late payments, payment reductions, and unresolved
Brothers Sandy and James Easdale, joint owners of the Easdale Investment Group have now acquired a further industrial unit in Renfrew. Previously owned by Peel Waters Limited, the property development arm of Peel Group, the site at Meadowside Street in Renfrew is located as part of the Neil Street Industrial
SOCIAL impact developers Capital&Centric are set to lead on a vision to turn a sprawling brownfield site in Wolverhampton into a creative new neighbourhood. A report – to be considered by City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet next week – recommends Capital&Centric are appointed as part of a pre-development agreement for
Scotts Timber Engineering and MiTek UK & Ireland have announced a partnership to offer highly detailed 3D modelling and automated design features for housebuilders. MiTek PAMIR is a specialised roof-truss and Posi-Joist 3D modelling and design software system, which is a powerful and versatile fully integrated CAD, layout and engineering
The highly sustainable “BREEAM Outstanding” certified development sets new standards for more environmentally and ecologically-friendly logistics, putting Rhenus at the forefront of the industry. Glencar, a leading UK construction company that was recently ranked amongst Europe’s fastest growing businesses, recently announced that it has completed construction of the final warehouse
Berkeley Group – one of the largest home builders in the UK – has reaffirmed its support for the newly updated Consumer Code for Home Builders (‘the Code’) as part of its continued focus on customer satisfaction. This ongoing commitment will see thousands of home buyers benefit from additional protection
The Grade II listed former Post Office building in Lowestoft, has won a prestigious accolade at the East Suffolk Council’s Quality of Place Awards 2023, winning first place in the Conservation category. The awards recognise and encourage an interest in the quality of the built and natural environment of the
Panics come and panics go in the pragmatic world of engineering. It is part of the job to identify potentially intractable problems – and then bend the collective mind to creating a practical solution to them. That is why the current disquiet over RAAC in a number of public buildings
Hundreds more households will soon enjoy more affordable, reliable, and lower carbon heating with three tower blocks set to become the latest to connect to the city’s flagship Leeds PIPES district heating network. 259 council properties in Lovell Park Heights, Lovell Park Grange, and Lovell Park Towers will be set up to receive heat from the network within the next six months. Private leaseholders of properties in the Little London tower blocks will also be able to benefit from the network if they opt to connect their homes to the system. Households that are benefiting from the upgrade can expect to see the cost of heating their home reduce using Leeds PIPES, compared to their existing heating systems, and will also enjoy better reliability and control. Meanwhile, Leeds Conservatoire (formerly Leeds College of Music) has become the thirteenth non-residential customer to have signed a contract to connect. The new connections are expected to reduce the city’s annual carbon footprint by 279 tonnes, supporting efforts to end the city’s contribution to climate change by transitioning to ‘net zero’ emissions. By using heat and energy recovered from non-recyclable waste at the Recycling and Energy Recovery Facility (RERF) to provide warmth and hot water to buildings in the city, the Leeds PIPES district heating project is helping businesses and residents to move away from costly fossil-fuel powered heating systems. The council estimates that the network, delivered in partnership with Vital Energi, is helping existing customers to collectively save nearly half a million pounds (£490,000) in reduced energy costs this year alone. The £62 million network continues to expand and is regularly connecting to new buildings. Leonardo & Thoresby student accommodation buildings and St James’s Hospital are the latest buildings to have begun taking heat from the scheme. Leeds City Council is currently in discussions with dozens of potential customers. Buildings and developments located near the underground pipes can choose to connect at any time and can register their interest on the Leeds PIPES website. Last year, the network of insulated underground pipes supplied 22,029 megawatt-hours of heating in total and helped reduce the city’s carbon footprint by 3,975 tonnes. Councillor Mohammed Rafique, Executive Member for Climate, Energy, Environment & Green Space and Councillor Jessica Lennox, Executive Member for Housing, said: “We are both delighted that hundreds more residents will soon be paying significantly less to heat their homes thanks to this latest expansion of the Leeds PIPES network. “Residents in the Lovell Park estate will join the thousands of council tenants and hundreds of private sector renters already benefiting. “Too many families in our city struggle to pay their energy bills—in part because the UK’s homes are some of the least efficient and most reliant on costly fossil fuel gas in Europe. “Whether it’s by connecting homes to affordable low carbon heating like Leeds PIPES, or investing in energy-saving measures like insulation, this council is committed to helping households by making our homes greener and fit for the future.” Mike Cooke, Vital Energi’s Managing Director (North and Scotland), said: “Leeds PIPES continues to be the UK’s landmark heat network and we’re delighted to announce these new connections, which means more people will benefit from low-carbon, cheaper heat to businesses and residents, making a real difference in their day-to-day lives. “We look forward to welcoming another 259 homes and Leeds Conservatoire to the fastest growing heat network and will work closely with the council to ensure they have the best possible customer experience.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Anglo American and STRABAG UK are delighted to announce that the tunnel at the Woodsmith project near Whitby, in the north-east of England, recently reached 25.8km in length. This breaks the current record for the world’s longest single tunnel boring machine drive. STRABAG UK is working on behalf of Anglo American to construct the world’s longest conveyor tunnel for a permanent mineral transport system (MTS) which will transport tens of millions of tonnes of polyhalite from under the North York Moors National Park. Polyhalite is a naturally occurring mineral which will then be crushed and granulated to create POLY4 – a unique multi-nutrient fertiliser which is suitable for organic use. It will be used in worldwide fertiliser programmes to help boost crop yields, plant strength and improve soil structure. World-leading tunnelling specialists, STRABAG, have been boring under the North York Moors National Park since June 2019 using a single (Hard Rock) Herrenknecht tunnel boring machine (TBM) to build the 37km tunnel with an internal diameter of 4.9 metres. The TBM was named Stella-Rose by a local primary school pupil, with Stella, meaning star in Latin, and Rose, after the famous local landmark Roseberry Topping. The former record was set by a water conveyance tunnel project in the Middle East which was also built using a Herrenknecht tunnel boring machine. Once completed, Anglo American and STRABAG will have set a new world record and are expecting this to be confirmed by Guinness World Records. STRABAG UK directly employ 450 staff on the project, 75% of which are local to Teesside, and has also prioritised the use of local construction partners and suppliers, creating many more jobs for the region. Managing Director for STRABAG UK, Simon Wild, said: “We are extremely proud of the team at the Woodsmith project for reaching this incredible milestone and safely passing the current world record set for a single bored tunnel drive. This is another example of our growing presence in the north- east of England and the UK, demonstrating our industry leading expertise.” Andrew Johnson, Woodsmith Project Director, added: “We are delighted to achieve such an incredible milestone in the UK as part of our pioneering project. It is a demonstration of the fruits of teamwork with our partners. We are now focused on looking forward and setting a new world record every day. The Woodsmith tunnel is a fundamental part of our commitment to create a sustainable mine with minimal environmental impact.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
CICV calls for urgent reform as the sector struggles with payment delays and financial strain. Despite government and industry past efforts to address financial challenges in the Scottish construction sector, the Construction Industry Collective Voice (CICV) has found construction businesses continue to struggle with late payments, payment reductions, and unresolved disputes, highlighting the significant gap between purported initiatives and actual improvements in payment practices. Key findings from the research, conducted through the CICV’s 28 member organisations in November, revealed: Commenting on the findings, Ian Honeyman, Co-Chair of CICV’s Procurement, Quality and Pipeline Group, articulates the gravity of the situation: “These findings underscore the severe impact that delayed payments, or even worse, non-payments, have on the viability of businesses, compounded by the strain from reduced credit facilities and retained funds. “Despite well-publicised commitments from government and industry to address unfair and damaging payment practices in the UK and Scottish construction sectors, aimed at improving cash flow along the supply chain, we continue to observe poor behaviour in this area. “Without substantial changes in these practices, attaining a financially stable and sustainable construction sector remains challenging.” In response, Len Bunton, Co-Chair of CICV’s Procurement, Quality and Pipeline Group, has called for a radical overhaul of payment practices in Scotland’s construction sector. He asserts, “Given that existing legislation or initiatives such as the Prompt Payment Codes have not resolved these persistent issues, it is clear that we require more robust practical measures. “The current state of affairs is unsustainable and demands immediate action.” Looking ahead, both Ian and Len stressed CICV’s determination to address these challenges: “We are committed to directing CICV’s efforts on providing targeted, practical guidance and advice to tackle the pressing payment issues, aiming to improve cash flow and foster sustainable practices in the construction sector. “This approach will demonstrate CICV’s determination to transform sector issues into opportunities for positive change, underscoring its commitment to enhancing the overall health of Scotland’s construction sector.” Download the full payment practices survey results. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Brothers Sandy and James Easdale, joint owners of the Easdale Investment Group have now acquired a further industrial unit in Renfrew. Previously owned by Peel Waters Limited, the property development arm of Peel Group, the site at Meadowside Street in Renfrew is located as part of the Neil Street Industrial Estate. The property is currently let to aviation repair firm, Aeropair Limited and was purchased through the Easdales’ Dalglen Investments vehicle for an undisclosed sum. Alan Stewart at Breck Property Consultants helped to broker the deal. This deal comes hard on the heels of their recent purchase of Kingston Industrial Estate, a 19-unit property located at Kingston Dock in Port Glasgow, adjacent to the A8 and Gallagher Retail Park. This new site is located between other Easdale owned sites at Neil Street Industrial Estate, which is located adjacent to the Renfrew Ferry and home to Clyde Metal Recycling, also owned by the Easdale family. Property firm Bowman Rebecchi is supporting the overall letting and management of the Easdales’ Dalglen Investments portfolio. James Easdale said: “We are pleased to be able to conclude the deal for this further asset and consolidate our other areas of ownership at Renfrew. This acquisition further supports our previous strategic investments across the UK and brings a superb tenant and property into our broader portfolio.” “We are in a good position to add to our portfolio and continue to consider several new opportunities throughout the United Kingdom. We’d like to thank Peel Waters Ltd for their support during the negotiations and we continue to develop a good working relationship together.” Brian Lavalette, Property Director at Glasgow Waters, said: “We have been delighted to work in partnership with Dalglen Investments in the sale of this property which will further strengthen and enhance their property portfolio in the area. We thank Dalglen for the swift and professional manner the transaction was undertaken.“ Dalglen’s property investment operations are behind several housing projects, including the Spango Valley site in Greenock, the former Tullis Russell paper factory in Glenrothes, and a waterside housing development at Dumbarton, creating over 3,000 new homes within the next decade throughout Scotland. Earlier this month, approval was also granted by Inverclyde Council for the Easdale Investment Group to create 47 new homes at the site of the former Tate & Lyle factory in Greenock as part of a new £15 million development. The current property and construction developments being led by the Easdale family in the UK are estimated at £800 million. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
SOCIAL impact developers Capital&Centric are set to lead on a vision to turn a sprawling brownfield site in Wolverhampton into a creative new neighbourhood. A report – to be considered by City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet next week – recommends Capital&Centric are appointed as part of a pre-development agreement for the former Sainsbury’s supermarket site, to bring the neighbourhood forward. The first step will be to develop a masterplan for the 5-acre St George’s site, with early ideas for a melting pot of homes, community spaces and green streets, with the Grade II listed church repurposed as a community centrepiece. Shops, workspaces and café bars would complete the line-up, adding a vibrant new quarter to Wolverhampton’s city centre, with links to the £61million City Learning Quarter set to open in 2025. If appointed, the developers will work up a detailed vision as to how the strategic site could become a destination district for the people of Wolverhampton, with the potential for over 400 homes. The next stage would then be to consult the community prior to the submission of a planning application. Established in Manchester, Capital&Centric have gone on to deliver on award-winning regeneration projects across the UK, from homes and workspaces, to hotels and leisure destinations. They’ve earned an enviable reputation for their offbeat design, with many of their projects featuring a striking blend of restoration of historic buildings alongside contemporary new builds. Having delivered standout neighbourhoods in Manchester city centre – including Kampus and Piccadilly East – they’re now ploughing on with transformational mixed use communities in spots including Stockport, Sheffield, Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme. Everything they do is geared toward delivering social impact through regeneration, whether creating communities of independent businesses, creating skilled new jobs or inspiring young people into careers in regeneration through the not-for-profit ‘Regeneration Brainery’ they established. John Moffat, Joint Managing Director at Capital&Centric, said: “St George’s is a worthy headliner among the line-up of major opportunities in Wolverhampton and fits perfectly with what we’re about … delivering eclectic neighbourhoods that mix the old and new. It has bags of potential and we’re already brimming with ideas of how we could deliver new city centre homes alongside community hangout spaces and loads of much-needed greenery. We can’t wait to write the next chapter for the stunning St George’s church, creating a new centrepiece around which the community will revolve.” St George’s was one of a trio of development opportunities featured in the Wolverhampton Investment Prospectus, launched by the Council at MIPIM earlier this year. The prospectus was aimed at bringing the private and public sector together to unlock growth in the city, delivering more homes, jobs and investment. City of Wolverhampton Council Leader, Councillor Stephen Simkins, said: “Ambitious plans and investment as part of a wider strategy are driving the regeneration of our city centre, The Halls Wolverhampton, our award-winning £150million transport interchange and Grade-A office developments are testament to that. “The St George’s opportunity sits at the heart of this, well connected to commercial and leisure hubs, which is a priority as we transform our city centre to generate jobs, homes and growth. “If the recommendations are approved by Cabinet it will enable the council to develop an outline business case that will establish this site as a new gateway into the city centre. “St George’s can provide an inclusive, safe and sustainable new quarter that will generate new opportunities and jobs, bring underutilised assets back into community use and, importantly, deliver much needed new homes in Wolverhampton city centre, which will bring wider social and economic benefits.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Scotts Timber Engineering and MiTek UK & Ireland have announced a partnership to offer highly detailed 3D modelling and automated design features for housebuilders. MiTek PAMIR is a specialised roof-truss and Posi-Joist 3D modelling and design software system, which is a powerful and versatile fully integrated CAD, layout and engineering package with full EC5 engineering to the latest design codes. These advanced capabilities translate into numerous advantages for Scotts Timber Engineering’s customers, including higher quality drawings and quicker turnaround times when detailing and amending drawings. James Scott, managing director, Scotts Timber Engineering says: “One of the key strengths of MiTek’s PAMIR design platform is its seamless integration with third-party information systems such as PDF, AutoCAD, and Revit. This compatibility enables Scotts Timber Engineering to import and export information and details from architects or engineers quickly and easily, streamlining our workflow.” MiTek’s PAMIR design software allows the design team at Scotts to create accurate designs more efficiently, resulting in a faster turnaround time for customers. As a result, quote stage designs are more accurate, which reduces the amount of work required to bring preliminary designs up to construction quality. The transition to MiTek PAMIR involved a comprehensive review and restructuring of Scotts Timber Engineering’s operations. By reevaluating each process, the company was able to identify areas for improvement and build a more efficient workflow. Billy Richardson, head of sales, Scotts Timber Engineering says: “It is clear that MiTek is investing and developing in its systems beyond its competition, and we wanted to be a part of that. PAMIR has made complicated designs more accurate and streamlined our entire design process. We can now respond more efficiently to client feedback without the need to start from scratch.” Tim Garner, Commercial Director of MiTek UK and Ireland says: “MiTek are delighted to be working in partnership with Scotts Timber Engineering, and it’s great that Scotts are already seeing the many benefits of our software and service. Our design software PAMIR unlocks unparalleled efficiencies, allowing designers to work with speed, accuracy, flexibility and quality. We continue to invest heavily in our suite of software, and we’re very excited to bring timber frame detailing into our PAMIR platform in response to the growing adoption of MMC by homebuilders. We look forward to a long and successful partnership with Scotts.” About Scotts Timber Engineering: Scotts Timber Engineering works with major volume housebuilders, specialist luxury homebuilders and other developers across the country. From its manufacturing centres in Thrapston (Northamptonshire) and Redditch (Worcestershire), it designs, manufactures and supplies timber engineered roof trusses, spandrel panels, metal web joists, porches and canopies, as well as car barns and carports. It is part of the prestigious Scotts of Thrapston Group which was established over 100 years ago. The company has a strong reputation for high-quality, PEFC-certified specialist timber products and, as a long-standing member of the Trussed Rafter Association, Scotts maintains high technical and quality assurance standards and a commitment to best practices and the TRA’s code of conduct. About MiTek:fing systems. MiTek’s structural floor joist system – Posi-Joist – has become the go-to product in the industry for housebuilders looking to create high quality homes. Thanks to its open metal web system, housebuilders can make great strides in offsite construction and respond to the demands of the Future Homes Standard. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
The highly sustainable “BREEAM Outstanding” certified development sets new standards for more environmentally and ecologically-friendly logistics, putting Rhenus at the forefront of the industry. Glencar, a leading UK construction company that was recently ranked amongst Europe’s fastest growing businesses, recently announced that it has completed construction of the final warehouse of 771,000 sq ft for leading pan-European and industrial development company Baytree Logistics Developments and its customer global logistics provider Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK at its new 64-acre, 1 million sq ft logistics campus at a site in Nuneaton in the West Midlands. Baytree Nuneaton, known as the ‘Rhenus Campus’, comprises of two warehouses of 210,000 and 771,00 sq ft on 64 acres and sets new benchmarks in environmental and social responsibility within the logistics sector. The scheme, developed by Baytree, was designed by award winning architectural practice Chetwoods and has been developed to achieve significant reductions in whole life carbon, designed with reference to the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) Framework Definition for Net Zero Carbon Buildings, ensuring that Rhenus can reduce their own carbon emissions but also potentially support its customers with reducing theirs. Renewable energy will be generated on-site, with solar panels. Included on the site is a three-storey 30,000 sq ft office headquarters with a structure constructed entirely from CLT and Glulam. This is pioneering because it’s one of the first cases in the UK of timber being used in the build of a large-scale structure within an industrial and logistics setting by a logistics developer. When compared to conventional materials, procuring timber structural elements can deliver significant embodied carbon savings, especially as timber also sequesters carbon in its creation. The value of timber is demonstrated by the estimate that there are around 1,000 metric tons of sequestered carbon in the timber frame of the office at Nuneaton – the equivalent of enough embodied carbon to power a 20w lightbulb for 21,853 years or to drive around the world approximately 208 times. The development also incorporates MUGA sports pitches, allotments, edible planting, wildflower grasslands, extensive networks of footpaths to encourage cardiovascular exercise and external break out areas for staff wellbeing. The site, which is bounded by the Coventry Canal, features landscaping with extensive native tree planting, and other works aimed at generating biodiversity such as log piles, locations for apiaries, bat and bird boxes, as well as an extensive balancing pond overlooked by a projecting terrace for staff relaxation. Internally the facilities will benefit from the latest in robotics, AI and warehouse management systems to provide flexible solutions and control of the supply chain. When fully operational, the development will help Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK achieve its goals of reducing direct carbon emissions. Both state-of-the-art, sustainable warehouses will offer a wide range of warehousing and distribution services to a diverse customer base of Global retail brands, particularly those in the fashion, toy, FMCG, home and health & beauty sectors. Commenting on the project Glencar CEO Eddie McGillycuddy said: “It is with a tremendous sense of pride and happiness that we today can formally announce practical completion has been reached and we are handing over this truly incredible new dedicated logistics campus to Baytree and Rhenus. This cutting-edge project is one of the largest and most sustainable developments Glencar has ever had the privilege of delivering and we are absolutely delighted with the outcome. The vast scale of the warehouses coupled with the latest emerging warehousing and logistics technology and innovations looks set to ensure Rhenus can accommodate customers well into the future. As a BREEAM Outstanding certified building we are enormously proud of the hard work and dedication that the team has put in to achieve this outstanding success. I would like to thank everyone involved and look forward to seeing the building come into life and enable Rhenus to meet growing demand and exceed its customers’ expectations. Also commenting, Amit Babbar, Baytree Development Director said: We are delighted to have reached practical completion on this industry leading development for Rhenus. The development incorporates a number of industry firsts on a development of this scale and represents our commitment to pioneering advancements in both the environmental and social elements of industrial and logistics buildings. We are extremely pleased with the collaborative approach taken by all involved to create a new benchmark in the sector. Harry Wheelhouse, Business Development & Marketing Director at Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK also said: “This new site will allow us to meet the demands of our growing business and attract new customers, whilst enabling us to deliver our high-quality, personalised service. More importantly, our new, sustainable warehouses can potentially support our customers in achieving their own carbon-reduction goals. Every aspect of our warehouse environment, will be measured using the latest in digital technology including CO2 levels by area. As all companies will need a plan to achieve a carbon-zero supply chain by 2050, Rhenus Warehousing Solutions UK is perfectly positioned to help its customers document their own roadmap to deliver this.” Also commenting, Laurie Chetwood, Chairman of Chetwoods, outlined: “We are really proud to have designed this pioneering scheme. It has been a pleasure to work with this project team who have been open to the innovative use of timber in the industrial and logistics sector. With this project setting an industry precedent, we hope to be nearing a breakthrough moment in the UK market as further developers consider procuring timber in elements of their warehouse designs. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Berkeley Group – one of the largest home builders in the UK – has reaffirmed its support for the newly updated Consumer Code for Home Builders (‘the Code’) as part of its continued focus on customer satisfaction. This ongoing commitment will see thousands of home buyers benefit from additional protection introduced following an independent review of the Code. The revised Code (fifth edition), effective from 1 January 2024, provides enhanced protection for consumers, with additional requirements and guidance for builders to help improve customer service. Berkeley Group has sought to operate in line with Code requirements since the Consumer Code for Home Builders was first launched in 2010, and latest research shows 97.5% of its customers would recommend Berkeley to a friend[1]. The Group is now preparing for the additional requirements contained in the updated Code. Rob Perrins, CEO of Berkeley Group, said: “Our customers are at the heart of everything we do, which is why we’ve always been supportive of the Consumer Code for Home Builders. The Code provides clear requirements, with supporting resources and training, which help our colleagues across the business maintain consistent, high quality customer service. “We particularly value the experienced, independent feedback provided by the Code through a combination of site audits, adjudicator decisions and industry-wide learning. The Consumer Code for Home Builders is ideally placed to provide us with credible, experienced, and sometimes challenging feedback, that supports our commitment to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.” Noel Hunter, Code Chair, said: “We are delighted that Berkeley Group has confirmed its ongoing commitment to the Consumer Code for Home Builders. Our revised Code builds on over ten years of enhanced protection for new-build home buyers. It’s extremely encouraging to see the additional requirements and consumer protection we’ve built in, being welcomed by the industry.” A free ‘Transition Pack’ is available to help home builders comply with the revised Code and can be downloaded from the Code’s Home Builder Resources Page alongside other useful documents. 1Based on customer feedback surveys independently collected by In-house Research FY 2023 [1] Based on customer feedback surveys independently collected by In-house Research FY 2023 Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
The Grade II listed former Post Office building in Lowestoft, has won a prestigious accolade at the East Suffolk Council’s Quality of Place Awards 2023, winning first place in the Conservation category. The awards recognise and encourage an interest in the quality of the built and natural environment of the district and promote an awareness of the need for high standards in all forms of design, including planning, architecture, sustainable development, landscaping and community engagement. Purchased by East Suffolk Council in 2018 as part of a wider programme to boost regeneration in the town centre, the project to restore this 19th century building was made possible through the London Road, Lowestoft Heritage Action Zone project, funded by Historic England, East Suffolk Council and the Towns Fund. Local contractor R G Carter, started restoration works to the building at the start of 2022, working with architects Chaplin Farrant and Kings and Dunne, and heritage specialists to restore the external façade of the Grade II listed building. The completed works included over 60 sash windows refurbished and restored by carpenters from R G Carter, with Oak Hill stripping and preserving each frame with traditional linseed oil. The roof was also reinstated with natural Welsh slates and the ground floor restored to its original appearance. The conservation to the external fabric of the building, led by Aldis & May, started with steam cleaning all three storeys of stonework, followed by air lime repointing, consolidation and mortar repairs to walls and decorative features such as cornices and balusters, as well as removing algae, sulphation crusts, dirt, and a linseed oil surface coating. Heavily weathered balusters at the parapet were replaced, and repairs to the chimneys and leadwork and rainwater goods renewed. On their site visit in October, the Quality of Place Awards judging panel were impressed with the scope of the work, and the attention to detail that was behind every decision. They praised the team for their dedication to ensuring that every intervention was sensitive to the historic materials, and for their engagement with the local community during the project. They were happy to see the positive impact that the restoration has already had London Road North and excited to see the Post Office become a lively place once more, which this restoration will enable. Gavin Leeks, from R G Carter says; “We are delighted that the Post Office has received this conservation award in recognition of the craftmanship and commitment of everyone involved. It has been an honour to be part of this unique project and to play our part in bringing this important local building back to its former glory and preserve the rich architectural heritage in Lowestoft.” Tony Calladine, East Regional Director, Historic England, said: “Congratulations to everyone involved in the restoration of the former Post Office in Lowestoft on this well-deserved award. This important local landmark has been a central project of the London Road Heritage Action Zone and it’s wonderful to see the building repaired, restored, and ready for a new life. I’m looking forward to seeing people exploring and enjoying the revitalised space.” In May 2023, the high quality of the conservation repairs project was also recognised with the RIBA Suffolk Individual Craftmanship Award. Thanks to this flagship restoration project, the Post Office will once again benefit the people of Lowestoft. A conversion phase will commence in 2024 for the Post Office to become a new cultural arts space run by Messums, recognised for revitalising old buildings and embedding them within communities. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Panics come and panics go in the pragmatic world of engineering. It is part of the job to identify potentially intractable problems – and then bend the collective mind to creating a practical solution to them. That is why the current disquiet over RAAC in a number of public buildings throughout the UK needs to be kept in perspective. If you subsisted only on a diet of mainstream media, you could be forgiven for thinking the entire built estate was on the point of imminent collapse. For clarity, this is not the case. Yes, RAAC – Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete – exists in a number of buildings, but the number is small in comparison to the totality of schools (more than 20,000 in England), hospitals and other public buildings, and most closures are precautionary, rather than evidence-based. But first of all, what is RAAC? It is an aerated lightweight cementitious material with no coarse aggregate, looking in cross-section a bit like the inside of an Aero bar. When it was introduced to the UK from Scandinavia in the reconstruction period after the war, it was hailed as an innovative wonder material. In fact, if RAAC planks – the technical name for the concrete panels – in a building are properly protected, there is a maintenance schedule and there is no sign of water ingress, the roof will likely be fine and the facility can continue to be used. According to construction and engineering materials expert Professor Chris Goodier of Loughborough University, RAAC is still manufactured and installed all over the world and can be an appropriate construction material if properly designed, manufactured, installed and maintained. The problems arise in situation where maintenance has been neglected over the course of years, or indeed decades. In buildings from the fifties, sixties and seventies, when RAAC was used freely, maintenance regimes were not as comprehensive as they are now and users did not know what to look for or what to do. Given that the material was lightweight and economical, it is hardly surprising that many manufacturers were happy to supply it – with the best of intentions and with no foreknowledge of the issues which would rear their heads further down the line. Although local authorities have been aware of RAAC in their buildings for some time, things came to the boil a year ago when the Office of Government Property sent a Safety Briefing Notice to all Property Leaders, regarding the dangers of RAAC, stating that “it is now life-expired and liable to collapse”. It put the onus squarely on those responsible for the management, maintenance or alteration of central and local government buildings to know whether their buildings contain RAAC and, where they do, to act appropriately to ensure that such buildings are deemed safe. How can those concerned go about this? The first step is inspection, either by a surveyor or a structural engineer. Both are professionals who will act in the client’s interest, the difference being that the former will identify problems while the latter will also propose manageable solutions. Inspection is eased by the fact that most RAAC planks are in flat roofs on single-storey buildings. Drones can give a clear picture of the roof covering and heat sensors can check if water has penetrated. If there is water ingress, then as far as RAAC is concerned it is game over. There is no remedial solution and use of the building has to be immediately stopped. However, RAAC planks can be replaced with traditional roofs with timber joists or a dual-pitch roof truss. The good news is that RAAC does not affect residential buildings. The bad news is that, like a previous panic – asbestos, many owners or operators of public or commercial properties do not know that they are, or might be, affected. The issue is not going to go away. But there are answers to it, and prudence would dictate more regular monitoring and inspection regimes – something that will almost certainly be factored in by insurance companies at renewal time. However, It’s not a case of RAAC and ruin. Professional advice and guidance can alleviate the understandable instinct to panic. Alan Ferns is Director – Structural Engineering at Dougall Baillie Associates Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
