Leanne Wood, Diversity Creative Interiors Design Director, discusses how focusing on the design detail can help you to avoid building regulations pitfalls in commercial spaces. A beautiful new office space with great furniture, stylish lighting and state-of-the-art equipment can be an inspiring place to work – boosting staff creativity, productivity
A new way to purchase a new home, which gives purchasers very real choices, is now available in Chapelton, Aberdeenshire. Purchasers are able to buy a plot, make a large number of choices about living spaces, room layouts, and the fitting and finishing and then leave the building work up
Hill’s Panel Products (HPP) is supplying and manufacturing furniture and fittings for hundreds of new apartments in Manchester city centre. Together with Beech Design & Build, a leading landlord and developer of apartments for young professionals, students, and visitors, they are working on a series of apartment schemes. HPP could
Your home is the place you turn to when the busy life outside of it gets a bit too much. For this reason, it should give you a feeling of calm when you enter it, as well as making you more productive and efficient. So how can you make your
Quest Industrial Flooring installed a Sika Comfortfloor Decorative Pro for Stick ‘n’ Step. The charity puts great price on having its classes fit with the right floor, as most of their work takes place on it. A fit for purpose and high performance replacement was necessary so that they can
Ab Rogers Design (ARD), a London studio, has created a 19 square metre concept apartment, in which it managed to squeeze a kitchen, bed, and bathroom by making a pair of plywood living units with space saving details. Property developers U + I have assigned ARD with the task to
Indeglas , the Scotland headquartered business recognised as a world class supplier of interior glass solutions, is set to undertake supply work to the value of half a million pounds for purpose-built offices on Belfast’s riverside of Allstate NI, the IT support arm of Allstate Corporation, a US insurance company.
The interior design and all the specific elements that you will decide to incorporate in your home have an effect on the general air in the place. A badly chosen item can provoke anger, anxiousness or even physical headaches on a daily basis, just as the right fit can light
Building and engineering company, Britcon has completed major refurbishment works for Goole Academy high school. The project, valued at close to £1m, was awarded to Britcon by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) working with Arcadis LLP. It is part of the Government’s £4.4 billion Priority School Building Programme
The British Coatings Federation (BCF) in association with the Painting and Decorating Association (PDA) and the Scottish Decorator’s Federation (SDF), has launched a new initiative ‘PaintSafe’ which aims to promote the safe use of paint and related products and provide best practice for decorators and other applicators during preparation, application and
Leanne Wood, Diversity Creative Interiors Design Director, discusses how focusing on the design detail can help you to avoid building regulations pitfalls in commercial spaces. A beautiful new office space with great furniture, stylish lighting and state-of-the-art equipment can be an inspiring place to work – boosting staff creativity, productivity and not least the feel-good factor. However, renovation is a time-consuming and costly business and companies always aim to keep staff downtime and disruption to an absolute minimum. The last thing the manager of a busy workplace needs to hear once their staff are settled at shiny new workstations is that the business is in breach of building regulations. As well as having to start from scratch, you could face a fine or even prosecution. So, what can you do to ensure you don’t run into any problems? Keep reading to find out more. Make building regulations a key part of the design process Building regulations are minimum standards for the design, construction or alteration of almost any building. They are designed to ensure the health and safety of people in and around buildings. Diversity Creative Interiors work with clients from the very beginning of any refurbishment or renovation project to ensure this crucial aspect of design detail is spot on. Planning permission and compliance with building regulations are always given absolute priority in the design process. Leanne says: “Getting the basics right at the very start of a project is fundamental to its success. Cutting corners to race ahead and save money can be false economy and have disastrous implications longer term.” “We work on the client’s behalf to ensure that renovation plans adhere to building regulations from the offset. At Diversity Creative Interiors we manage the whole process from start to finish, working closely with local authorities. This gives our clients peace of mind that their project has the building regulations stamp of approval.” Having worked in the industry for eight years, Leanne finds that the same stumbling blocks come up time after time when clients want to renovate a commercial space. For example, building stud walls are great for partitioning and re-allocation of space, but they can create building regulations problems. The fitter must consider a raft of issues such as ventilation – as you are creating a new room you must take into account the need for adequate ventilation in the new space you have created. Fire safety and soundproofing are also frequently overlooked when constructing a stud wall. For example, it is important to use fire-resistant plasterboard, and you must ensure there are suitable escape routes and that the new wall does not block access. The other issue with building new stud walls is overcrowding the space with too many desks and too much furniture. Leanne adds: “You may have a beautiful new office, but the space may not be functional or safe. And, it might not meet building regulations or work effectively for the staff actually using the space.” Disabled access and fire safety are often overlooked in renovations Appropriate access for disabled users is another area this is often overlooked at the start of the design process. Designs often fail to allow for the 1500mm turning circle required for wheelchairs, and there must be room for movement between corridors, desks with chairs pulled out, and also within disabled toilets and doors. Additionally, if someone using a wheelchair is working at first floor level, having enough fire doors between a fire and where the person is located is critical. Provision must be made to ensure the person can wait safely until the fire brigade can extinguish the fire or help the person get out of the building. General fire safety is often not given enough consideration, despite being a key part of building regulations. Renovators must design in signage, extinguishers and correctly-located smoke alarms as well as clearly indicating exit routes. Protect period detail in older properties Older properties are most often in need of renovation. And, if you’re working on the renovation of an older property, attention needs to be paid to preserving and protecting the building’s period details. Removing period details can destroy the character and the market value of a property. In period property refurbishments it is worth observing the techniques and materials used in the building’s original construction. Always try and repair, or replace sympathetically, on a like-for-like basis. If you do this, conservation is both cost-efficient and environmentally-friendly. If they are still intact, you can preserve internal original doors, floorboards, fireplaces and plaster mouldings. It is also important to remember that features are not always purely decorative, but often have a practical and structural purpose. Removal may only necessitate an alternative solution. You should also keep in mind that work involving drainage, heat-producing appliances, cavity wall insulation and electrics generally requires approval. So, for your peace of mind, to ensure the wellbeing of your workforce, and to keep on the right side of building regulations, Diversity Creative Interiors advise that you start with the basics. If you’re embarking on a renovation project in a commercial space, build on these common sense and solid foundations. For further advice or to discuss you project visit www.diversitycreativeinteriors.co.uk or call 0115 967 3767.
A new way to purchase a new home, which gives purchasers very real choices, is now available in Chapelton, Aberdeenshire. Purchasers are able to buy a plot, make a large number of choices about living spaces, room layouts, and the fitting and finishing and then leave the building work up to the experts. Called custom build, this is a form of development that lies between self-build and buying a new house from a developer. Custom build gives buyers the ability to select the house that best suits their needs and budget, and takes away issues that can arise in getting the building work done. It is brought to Chapelton by designyourhome.com, a part of the Places for People group of companies. Kim Slowe, managing director of designyourhome.com said, “We expect custom build will revolutionise new house building in the UK. Customers like choice and that is what we are giving them. After a customer buys a plot in Chapelton, and has made their choices, we can build it to their specification and have it ready to move into 6 months later.” Fully serviced plots are available in Chapelton through designyourhome.com from £165,000. NOTES Chapelton is a new settlement lying some 8 miles south of Aberdeen close to the A90. The settlement is being built as a series of villages, each comprising houses, flats, commercial properties and leisure/open spaces. Construction of the first of the villages (called Cairnhill) started in 2014 and so far there is a café, nursery school, beauty salon, allotments and a variety of houses and flats including retirement properties. The construction of Chapelton will take a number of years to complete, and once done, Chapelton will include all of the ingredients that make up a town. Ultimately it will comprise some 8,000 dwellings and be a town larger than Stonehaven. Custom build is relatively new to the UK housing market. At present it is more prevalent in England than Scotland due to legal obligations that exist for the Local Authority to allocate a part of any new development site to include self-build plots. There is no equivalent legal obligation on councils in place in Scotland at present. Custom Build as offered by designyourhome.com is a simplified form of self-build. designyourhome.com has already done much of the early planning work for the plot, agreeing what is and is not possible to build at Chapelton with the Local Authority and master planning architects. As a result, as soon as the customer finalises choices, it is possible to clear them quickly for planning and building warrant and then to start to build. In this way it is possible to ensure that the customer will move into their new property six months after they buy the plot and enter into a build contract with designyourhome.com. The customer is able to choose from a variety of pre-agreed layouts for each floor of their house, a number of options for extensions, and some external modifications such as additional windows. There is wide range of choices for internal fittings and finishings from the type of doors and ironmongery, the design of skirting and coving, the layout of bathrooms and en-suites, the type of kitchen fittings and equipment and many more. designyourhome.com is being offered by ZeroC Holdings Ltd, a part of the Places for People Group of companies. ZeroC Holdings has many years of experience as a housebuilder and is one of a limited number of builders at the Prince of Wales Poundbury development in Dorset. ZeroC Holdings is experienced in delivering mixed use properties on design-led schemes such as at Chapelton. Benefits of the designyourhome.com custom build model arise to both the purchaser and the developer. The customer is able to own a new home, built to their own specification and cost. Unusually for a self-build project, the customer has certainty on cost and time. Interest payments for the developer are reduced and this saving is shared with the purchaser. Purchasers of designyourhome.com properties at Chapelton are able to do some of the work themselves (for example carry out decoration) as long as any work done complies with the Chapelton Design Guide. This would obviously lead to a lower build cost. designyourhome.com is selling eight plots at Chapelton for custom build. The first two fully serviced plots, with the ground floor slab already in place, are released for sale, each at a price of £165,000. The house options available are for either 2 or 3 bedroom properties with a garage. A separate build contract will be entered into with designyourhome.com for any building work at the same time as buying the plot.
Hill’s Panel Products (HPP) is supplying and manufacturing furniture and fittings for hundreds of new apartments in Manchester city centre. Together with Beech Design & Build, a leading landlord and developer of apartments for young professionals, students, and visitors, they are working on a series of apartment schemes. HPP could potentially provide products for contracts covering between 1,500 and 1,700 apartments. Until now, the company has supplied kitchens, bedrooms, and bathroom furniture and fittings in a few key city centre locations including Portland Street, Princess Street, and Cross Street. The products the company supplies include Avanti doors, HPP’s own manufactured range of Glide sliding doors, PVC-edged Aspects doors, vinyl-wrapped Aspire doors and products by brands such as Egger, Kronospan, XyloCleaf, Blum, and Sensio. Shaun Nolan, HPP’s national contracts manager, explains the type of materials and products they have used: “The carcass materials for rooms have predominantly been made using XyloCleaf products. The kitchens have bespoke designs with built-in handles and strip lighting. For the bedrooms, we have again used a lot of XyloCleaf products for boards and doors, and BLUM fixtures and fittings. We also supplied sliding doors from our Glide range, which are manufactured on-site to any size and specification.” HPP is a distributor of leading brands that offers services such as product sourcing, development, design, manufacturing, and cost control. Moreover, HPP also schedules meeting with the client and provides him with the right alternatives. “Architects and specifiers may have particular ideas of what they want but sometimes this cannot be manufactured at the right cost. With 200 or 300 apartments, the price must be right. HPP can provide alternatives that can be manufactured at the right cost and still provide the desired look and feel,” explained Shaun. “We can produce prototypes, ensure the finished article looks right and then begin full manufacturing.” Since its launch in 1991, HPP has managed to expand its range of products to more than 6,000, including full and processed sheet material, vinyl wrapped furniture doors and furniture fittings. The company’s head office and manufacturing site are located in Oldham and a second distribution Sheffield is currently being extended.
Your home is the place you turn to when the busy life outside of it gets a bit too much. For this reason, it should give you a feeling of calm when you enter it, as well as making you more productive and efficient. So how can you make your home even more cosy and relaxing? 1. Lightning More and more people have started using fairy lights to cover their walls because they make the rooms more comfortable and welcoming. It might be time consuming, but it is definitely worth it. The lights can be purchased online or from retailers like Primark, which offers really cheap options. After you’ve installed them on the walls don’t forget to add photos, cards, or anything you have in your house. 2. Warm Metals Moving on into the kitchen, warm metals such as bronze, copper, and rose gold can instantly warm up your house and create a rustic, country feeling. You can hang cutlery or other utensils on kitchen walls, or buy objects made out of these warm metals for your bedroom and bathroom. 3. Textures Textures patterns can give your rooms more depth and dimension, so consider purchasing throws, pillows, rugs, or even a wall hanging. However, textures really do stand out so make sure you feel comfortable with what you choose. 4. Soft Furnishings When you think of the term ‘cosy’ the first things that pop into your head are pillows and blankets, so make sure you have plenty. Use them to cover your bed or sofa, and why not even make your own reading space on a comfy chair with a fluffy pillow and a soft blanket? 5. Fireplace If you are lucky enough to own a fireplace then make sure you light it up more often, because it really makes a space feel cosier. If not, why not invest in an electric one, or, if that is not an option for you, go on YouTube, find a video of burning logs and connect it to your laptop or TV. You can even hear the sound of burning logs, or opt for some classical music.
Quest Industrial Flooring installed a Sika Comfortfloor Decorative Pro for Stick ‘n’ Step. The charity puts great price on having its classes fit with the right floor, as most of their work takes place on it. A fit for purpose and high performance replacement was necessary so that they can keep supporting the young people with cerebral palsy with the right education. “The team at Stick ‘n’ Step needed to replace an old, uneven, and sloping floor with a brand new, state-of-the-art flooring solution for our work with children and young people with cerebral palsy. From quote to completion our team was kept up to date with progress and had regular explanations of the different phases involved in the work,” explained Matt Meaney, Development Manager at Stick ‘n’ Step. The new system is smooth, durable, slip resistant, and resin based, while holding excellent shock absorption properties. Its cushioning layers provide a comfortable surface to learn and play, while its durability and easy to clean benefits help maintain the health and safety standards, which is paramount for a children’s learning environment. Quest Industrial Flooring had only four weeks to complete the project and the discovery that the sub-base underneath the existing wood and vinyl flooring required a week’s worth of repairs, turned it into a difficult challenge. However, the company managed to do it and the new floor was ready at the start of the new school term. “Thanks to Sika’s advanced floor system, the technical know how and attention to detail of our installers and the understanding of close collaboration between client, contractor and manufacturer, the ideal solution for the school’s 90m2 classroom floor was created,” said Mark Jones, Contracts Director at Quest Industrial Flooring. Sika is a specialty chemicals company that holds a leading position in the development and production of bonding, sealing, damping, protecting, and reinforcing systems and products for the building sector and the automotive industry. It has subsidiaries in 97 countries and manufactures in over 190 factories.
Ab Rogers Design (ARD), a London studio, has created a 19 square metre concept apartment, in which it managed to squeeze a kitchen, bed, and bathroom by making a pair of plywood living units with space saving details. Property developers U + I have assigned ARD with the task to condense the functions of a traditional home into an efficient micro living space. This prototype is on display at their Westminster offices. U + I have been analysing London’s property market for a while and they wanted to create a design-led housing option that was smaller in scale and more affordable. “It is time to re-think and invent a new way for people to live in the best parts of the city,” said the studio. “The campaign led by U+I is ongoing, and will continue to challenge the perception that small is less.” The incorporation of two multi-purpose living units maximises the space in the apartment, with one of them featuring a set of stairs with drawers integrated into the risers. The steps lead into a double bed, while underneath sits a series of tall cupboards. The second unit hold the white-tiled bathroom. Both units have been crafted from birch plywood and paired against light-hued timber flooring. The rest of the floor rests a cooking area and a lot of free space that can be used by inhabitants to personalise the apartment with furniture and homeware of their choice. The apartment is fronted by a large window that allows the natural light in and its chunky ledge can be used as a spot to sit, relax, and enjoy the view. Furthermore, the ceiling has been placed at just over three metres in height so that the space does not feel too confined. This creation is part of several other London practices that have found in micro apartments a solution to urban living.
Indeglas , the Scotland headquartered business recognised as a world class supplier of interior glass solutions, is set to undertake supply work to the value of half a million pounds for purpose-built offices on Belfast’s riverside of Allstate NI, the IT support arm of Allstate Corporation, a US insurance company. Indeglas, formerly known as Deko Scotland, is a specialist contractor and sole distributor in the UK and Ireland for the products of award-winning glass manufacturer, Deko of Denmark. Established 17 years, Indeglas distributes and installs all over the UK and Ireland, and is one of the only full-service, Category 1 subcontractors which can source, design, and install Deko’s leading-edge glass solutions. Jeanette MacIntyre, Managing Director, said: “As a purpose built office building, the architects, WDR-RT-Taggart of Belfast, have delivered an amazing design concept which specifies top quality materials and we are delighted that they selected DEKO glass solutions for the interior glazed screens.” Indeglas has been contracted to provide all interior glass solutions, including meeting rooms, boardrooms and individual offices. In addition, it is providing freestanding writable screens. These high-tech screens operate like a whiteboard, but due to an interlayer within the glass, anything written or drawn on the board can be saved by camera then wiped off leaving no residue. Indeglas’s highly skilled engineers are already on site in Belfast and work is expected to be concluded by March 2018. When complete, the purpose-built complex will comprise five storeys of riverfront office space. The principal contractors are O’Hare & McGovern, a County Down-based main contractor with over 40 years’ experience. This is yet another repeat contract for Indeglas, which worked with O’Hare and McGovern on the new Boroughmuir High School in Edinburgh and the £25 million Ballymena Health and Care Centre, the largest of its kind in Northern Ireland. Mrs MacIntyre said: “I like to think the fact that so many contractors and architects are repeat customers is a sign of the diligence, excellence and quality of materials that Indeglas designs, supplies and installs as a matter of course. “We are particularly proud of the freestanding writable glass solutions. The ability to have group strategy discussions, notes, ideas, and targets displayed on these attractive, interlayered glass panels located at each desk cluster is an innovative solution which represents the kind of joined-up thinking we like to make available to all our clients.”
The interior design and all the specific elements that you will decide to incorporate in your home have an effect on the general air in the place. A badly chosen item can provoke anger, anxiousness or even physical headaches on a daily basis, just as the right fit can light up the room without the use of electricity. You might not believe in good vibes, Feng Shui or whatever you prefer to name it. Still, there is no denying that some rooms make you feel like you can play casino games here and never lose a hand, while others practically suck the life out of you. Years of extensive research have identified the presence of various types of plants as one of the main interior design elements to have had an effect on the research subjects. Following is a list of the top recommendable indoor plants you should keep in your home – and with factual proof to support their claims. Aloe Plant A room filled with sunshine is the perfect location for an aloe plant in your home. Under such conditions, the plant grows rather fast and will be able to protect you from all kinds of chemicals from cleaning products that might pollute the air. Apart from that, the leaves from the aloe plant could come in handy in case you burn or damage your skin during activities like cooking, repairing or cleaning around the house. Peace Lily The peace lily is the perfect solution for someone that doesn’t have too much of a ‘green thumb’, as it is low maintenance and doesn’t need any extra living conditions. In fact, it is better off kept under a cooler temperature in shade. Still, residents in your home are bound to benefit from its presence there, as it is known to purify the air of all kinds of toxins. Snake Plant The snake plant is yet another low-maintenance instance of indoor flora that could survive just fine in any corner of your home. Remembering to water it from time to time is enough to make it grow tall and do its thing – it is known to absorb the carbon dioxide from the air at night and release pure oxygen, making it the perfect bedroom decoration. Philodendron Philodendron owners could enjoy its benefits for years at a time, as long as they are able to provide it with proper amounts of water and exposure to sunlight on a regular basis. Despite the gentle appearance of its heart-shaped leaves, the philodendron is a known protector from the commonly found chemical substance xylene. Red-Edged Dracaena The red-edged dracaena is primarily famous for the pleasant aesthetic effect it provides. Under the right conditions (which mostly implies lots of exposure to sunshine), the dracaena can grow higher than ten feet and fill up any awkwardly empty space in your home. As for health benefits, owners of the red-edged dracaena plant will experience a toxic-free environment, as its leaves relieve the air of xylene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene.
Building and engineering company, Britcon has completed major refurbishment works for Goole Academy high school. The project, valued at close to £1m, was awarded to Britcon by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) working with Arcadis LLP. It is part of the Government’s £4.4 billion Priority School Building Programme which is rebuilding or refurbishing those school buildings in the very worst condition across the country. Britcon has replaced all drainage around the complex of buildings on Centenary Road originally built in the early 1900’s. It has also completed major external works which include new hard and soft landscaping including an extensive new Multi Use Games Area (MUGA), roads, paving, planting and irrigation and fixtures such as lighting. John Whitmore, Director at Britcon, said, “The project was complex in that we have to replace critical facilities whist in a live school environment where over 1000 pupils and teaching staff are circulating. The Academy has a listed element and due to the age of the buildings the draining needed renewing. The external works also provide for a more productive environment with new class leading sports facilities and enhanced wayfinding.” Britcon has extensive expertise in the education sector. As well as the Goole Academy it has completed major building and refurbishment projects for Royds Hall School in Huddersfield, Roundhay Primary School in Leeds and Ward Green School in Barnsley Other projects include the University of York, University of Bradford, University of Huddersfield and Queen Ethelberga’s Collegiate. As a business Britcon also actively engages with all the Education establishments with whom it works to support learning practices in the construction sector, setting coursework around its projects, and providing educational site visits and placement opportunities. Established for more than 26 years, Britcon is £50 million turnover business headquartered in Scunthorpe and directly employs 90 people on its project sites across the UK. It is currently listed by the London Stock Exchange in its latest report of ‘1000 Companies to Inspire Europe’. @Britcon_Limited
The British Coatings Federation (BCF) in association with the Painting and Decorating Association (PDA) and the Scottish Decorator’s Federation (SDF), has launched a new initiative ‘PaintSafe’ which aims to promote the safe use of paint and related products and provide best practice for decorators and other applicators during preparation, application and drying. Working in collaboration with the major paint manufacturers in the UK, the first phase of the campaign focuses on decorative paints, and was launched 28 and 29 November at the 2017 National Painting and Decorating Show. A second phase to promote safe use of industrial paints will be launched late in 2018. Unveiled as part of the campaign includes a tri-fold leaflet, which outlines do and do not points to follow whilst painting, and specific guidelines with regards to lead exposure and preparation. The leaflet is available for download at www.paintsafe.org.uk and will be available via trade outlets across the UK in the first quarter of 2018. BCF’s Chief Executive, Tom Bowtell commented: “Whilst we know most decorators are aware of best practice, it never hurts to be reminded of the best and safest ways to work with paints and coatings particularly when sanding and spraying, or dealing with period houses that may have been previously painted with lead based paints in the pre-1960s period.”
