atkins

Faithful+Gould launches ‘blue-light’ estate decarbonisation programme with National Fire Chiefs Council

Faithful+Gould launches ‘blue-light’ estate decarbonisation programme with National Fire Chiefs Council

Faithful+Gould (member of the SNC-Lavalin Group), is working in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), to launch a first-of-its-kind national decarbonisation programme – to include organisations from across the emergency services sector. The world-leading project and programme management consultancy will become the key team to lead on the

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SNC-Lavalin Atkins launches Decarbonomics for industrial sector - empowering businesses to meet Net Zero targets

SNC-Lavalin Atkins launches Decarbonomics for industrial sector – empowering businesses to meet Net Zero targets

SNC-Lavalin (TSX:SNC), a fully integrated professional services and project management company with offices around the world, is launching its decarbonization service for the industrial sector – enabling industrial users in global markets to make informed, tailored and data-led decisions about reaching Net Zero targets. The move is the latest progression

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Atkins awarded contract on Ireland’s MetroLink

Atkins awarded contract on Ireland’s MetroLink

Atkins, a member of the SNC Lavalin Group, has been appointed by Transport Infrastructure Ireland to deliver the detailed design for the Advance Works programme for the MetroLink Project, a high capacity, high-frequency metro railway and integrated public transport network connecting the Greater Dublin Area, including Dublin Airport and city

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World’s first zero-emissions cement industrial trial launches in UK

World’s first zero-emissions cement industrial trial launches in UK

Scientists and industry unite to decarbonise construction supply chain and tackle global climate emergency   Cement 2 Zero (C2Z), a UK-based demonstrator project to trial the world’s first zero-emissions cement on an industrial scale, was officially launched this week having successfully conducted the first in a series of pilot-scale melts. The

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Kawneer systems help herald a gateway to a unique building

Manufacturer’s aluminium glazing systems used again at Bournemouth University. Frequent Kawneer specifiers Atkins has used the manufacturer’s architectural aluminium glazing systems again, on a unique building which forms a new £27 million gateway to a leading UK university. Kawneer’s AA®100 zone-drained and capped curtain walling forms triangular screens some 25m

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Latest Issue

BDC 321 : Oct 2024

atkins

Faithful+Gould launches ‘blue-light’ estate decarbonisation programme with National Fire Chiefs Council

Faithful+Gould launches ‘blue-light’ estate decarbonisation programme with National Fire Chiefs Council

Faithful+Gould (member of the SNC-Lavalin Group), is working in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), to launch a first-of-its-kind national decarbonisation programme – to include organisations from across the emergency services sector. The world-leading project and programme management consultancy will become the key team to lead on the decarbonisation of the blue-light estate, by reducing energy consumption, changing user behaviours and improving sustainability measures. The programme has already seen some major successes, with several organisations within the programme securing funding through Salix’s Low Carbon Skills Fund (LCSF); the majority of the funding applications led, authored and co-authored by Faithful+Gould. Daniel Jermin, Regional Director and programme lead for Faithful+Gould, said: “The world experienced its hottest day ever recorded in July 2023, breaking the global average temperature record previously set in 2016. It comes as a timely reminder, if one is needed, that the time for taking action on climate change is now. “As such, we are extremely proud to have supported the design of this decarbonisation programme’s operating model and to lead the project in collaboration with NFCC, Fire and Rescue Services and wider blue-light organisations. “We are able to deliver a programme of real change, based on our wide experience of working with clients to decarbonise buildings at estate level, in order to make carbon visible, change behaviours and accelerate the journey towards Net Zero targets.” Elli Nikolaou, NFCC National Category Lead for FM and Construction, said: “We are making a significant positive impact to decarbonisation by focussing on what is on our doorstep. With buildings responsible for 40% of global carbon emissions, our national decarbonisation programme demonstrates how we can tackle such a global challenge. “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts, which our programme has already demonstrated by partnering with Faithful+Gould under our National Decarbonisation Consultancy Services Contract.” The aim of the appointment is to provide expert advice and guidance, as well as the structure and governance in the planning and delivery of professional consultancy services. The programme will see the provision of services that include Programme Advisory, Programme Management and Sustainability Advisory, structured across these three tiers: Tier 1. Energy data and carbon emissions analysis, decarbonisation planning, feasibility assessments, and modelling of decarbonisation and energy efficiency opportunities; Tier 2. End-to-end consultancy support in the preparation and submission of funding applications; and Tier 3. End-to-end consultancy support in the design and delivery of decarbonisation and energy efficiency projects. The programme sits squarely in what Faithful+Gould strive to do as an organisation, which is directly delivering against the NFCC Procurement Hub’s targets that are aligned to the joint NFCC and Home Office Strategy, as well as the Home Office Fire Priorities. The creation and the success of the programme’s roll-out to date has been built from its mechanical parts, to include: scoping collaborative commercial activities and opportunities, increased commercial capability across the sector and demand and spend aggregation. For more information visit NFCC Programme: NFCC Programme – Home Page (nfcc-procurementhub.org.uk) Read about F+G’s Sustainability Services here: Sustainability – Faithful Gould (fgould.com)

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SNC-Lavalin Atkins launches Decarbonomics for industrial sector - empowering businesses to meet Net Zero targets

SNC-Lavalin Atkins launches Decarbonomics for industrial sector – empowering businesses to meet Net Zero targets

SNC-Lavalin (TSX:SNC), a fully integrated professional services and project management company with offices around the world, is launching its decarbonization service for the industrial sector – enabling industrial users in global markets to make informed, tailored and data-led decisions about reaching Net Zero targets. The move is the latest progression for the award-winning* DecarbonomicsTM service, following its initial launch at the start of 2022 for commercial and government sector building portfolios. SNC-Lavalin has adapted the tool to enable its expansion into sectors such as industrial, mining, power & renewables and aviation infrastructure. What is DecarbonomicsTM Julie Gilmour, industrial decarbonization lead in Nuclear & Power at Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, said: “Industrial users need to pinpoint what interventions and actions will deliver the most cost-effective, efficient route to Net Zero for each individual site. Through DecarbonomicsTM Industrial we’ll combine our data-driven approach and carbon knowledge with process engineering expertise to analyse even the most complex sites, and bring together a wider range of data to identify process efficiency improvements and develop site-specific roadmaps.”  Tom Waterman, project manager in Nuclear & Power at Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group added: “DecarbonomicsTM Industrial empowers clients to meet Net Zero targets and improve strategic decision making by providing early, data-driven insights and essentially making carbon visible. By allowing scenario comparisons and providing robust and accurate roadmaps clients can fully understand the impacts, and cost, of each combination of interventions and carbon reduction measures. These are delivered alongside clients’ industry-aligned, existing solutions, reporting systems and streamlined audit processes, to implement the changes required.” SNC-Lavalin has delivered this scope of work for multiple clients including its role as Engineering Partner for the UK Government’s Industry of Future Programme in 2022.  It is now looking to global markets where it has regional coverage in the UK and North America to co-create with clients as the proposition evolves and scales. As a group, SNC-Lavalin’s core expertise serves clients across a range of markets including Transportation, Buildings & Places, Defence, Industrial & Mining and Power & Renewables – as well as a complete range of services in instrumentation and automation of industrial processes. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Atkins to expand Environment Practice as focus shifts to more holistic services

Atkins to expand Environment Practice as focus shifts to more holistic services

Initiative launched to promote sustainable infrastructure, unlock value and transform communities Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, is expanding the size and scope of its environmental services in response to the demand for more sustainable infrastructure and nature-based solutions. The move will see its Environment Practice expand by 50% by 2025, and five new service lines introduced, to tackle the key challenges of climate change resilience and global pressures for demand on resources. As industry faces mounting pressure to develop critical infrastructure against a backdrop of rising costs and looming net zero targets, Atkins is set to make a fundamental shift in how it delivers its services. By putting the environment and communities at the heart of the development process it will unlock value in projects, helping to create sustainable infrastructure and thriving places as a result. Alongside the recruitment drive across a range of roles, five new service lines have also been launched to directly address the changing needs of its clients which will include: Nature-based solutions, Valuing a Sustainable Future, Carbon Advisory, Planning & Consenting and Sustainability and Climate Resilience. The renewed focus is in response to increased demand on resources such as water, energy and housing, at a time when there is a real need to restore nature and communities and protect them from the impact of climate change. The approach draws on Atkins’ wide breadth of expertise across the business globally, and will enable the environment team to work with clients from day one on a project. Dr Victoria Hutchinson, Atkins Environment Practice director, said: “By working with clients much earlier in the project process, we can put environment and communities at the heart of the decision making, which ensures better outcomes and improved circumstances for people. “This will help mitigate any project risks around time and budget and make sure clients get consentable solutions that are ready to go to site quickly. “It means meeting demand for new services, but also growing our existing consulting strategy and advisory services. “We are bringing our understanding of client objectives and regulatory requirements, as well as our ability to rapidly assemble and interpret data sets, so we can take complex client projects and bring them together behind a coherent presentation of data. This demonstrates real long-term value across physical, environmental and social drivers.” By engaging with clients and stakeholder groups before work starts on-site, potential problems can be identified and resolved early on. In addition opportunities for ensuring better social value outcomes can also be identified and realised early in the process – unlocking value in the project for the client as well as its end-user communities. Atkins has been bringing this new approach to some of the UK’s biggest infrastructure projects*, which has resulted in more efficient processes, more informed decision-making, improved design and more opportunities to transform communities and the environment. Dr Hutchinson adds: “By finding new ways of looking at value we can help rebalance communities, create more opportunity for under-represented groups to participate in the economy, and identify nature-positive ways of stimulating growth. This should mean that overall we invest in infrastructure that creates better outcomes for communities and the environment.” Mike McNicholas, managing director of Atkins’ Infrastructure division, said: “As a business we have undergone a process of ‘re-imagining’ the role of our environment services in order to meet the ongoing challenges faced by clients. “We have always been alive to the dynamics of the markets we operate in and the need to adapt to changing circumstances, and of course listening to our clients. “As a result we have created new service lines to specifically address those issues faced by our clients, and have been proactive about getting the best people in place to head them up. “The result is a holistic approach to projects that enables clients to make informed investment decisions and ensures all stakeholder groups fully understand the benefits of the approach, resulting in faster, better, greener project outcomes.” For more information about Atkins Environment Practice and services, please visit: Reimagining our environment to unlock investment – SNC-Lavalin (snclavalin.com) Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Atkins to deliver masterplan for Homes England’s South West Rugby scheme

Atkins to deliver masterplan for Homes England’s South West Rugby scheme

Atkins, part of the SNC-Lavalin Group, is set to deliver planning and design services for a major urban extension in the West Midlands. The scheme will make a significant contribution to meeting housing needs, including affordable housing, in the area, while also providing new schools, healthcare, retail provision, green areas, community spaces and infrastructure improvements for the wider community. The engineering and design consultancy, working with supply chain partners LDA Design and Levitt Bernstein, has been appointed as masterplanner and multi-discipline designer for Homes England’s portion of the 4,000 homes that remain to be delivered as part of the South West Rugby Urban Extension. Alongside this, sustainability and biodiversity net gain are embedded in the approach as Atkins will ensure the environment plays a key role in benefiting communities, whilst minimising the impact on nature.  Joanne Farrar, project director for Atkins, said: “This is a hugely significant development that will help to meet the real need for housing in this part of the West Midlands. But this is about more than simply building houses to meet the acute demand. “This project and the physical and social infrastructure that it will deliver will create truly thriving places based on safe and secure homes, producing better social value outcomes. “It also represents a priority development with a clear focus on creating a sustainable community where people can live, work and play for generations.” Ben Frodsham, Senior Planning and Enabling Manager for Homes England adds: “Atkins has been providing services for Homes England for many years and has a strong track record of delivery both nationally and in the Midlands region. “The team was able to demonstrate a joined-up and efficient approach to the scheme, bringing some trusted supply chain partners in to add additional value including LDA Design and Levitt Bernstein. “We have great confidence they will deliver what is needed to support Homes England in the delivery of a vibrant, sustainable and successful new community in South West Rugby.” The Homes England land and infrastructure on the site comprises approximately 40% of the total development, and is one of the largest in the region for the housing and regeneration agency. The urban extension project is the largest single commission to come to Atkins from the current Homes England Framework, with the contract set to run until 2025. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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Atkins awarded contract on Ireland’s MetroLink

Atkins awarded contract on Ireland’s MetroLink

Atkins, a member of the SNC Lavalin Group, has been appointed by Transport Infrastructure Ireland to deliver the detailed design for the Advance Works programme for the MetroLink Project, a high capacity, high-frequency metro railway and integrated public transport network connecting the Greater Dublin Area, including Dublin Airport and city centre. Atkins, supported by its subconsultants RPS, a Tetra Tech company, will develop the detailed design for a programme of activity to precede the main infrastructure works, including utility diversions, archaeological and heritage works, facilitation of land access and environmental monitoring, with the aim of achieving a level of site readiness to facilitate mobilisation of MetroLink’s main infrastructure works. Martina Finn, Managing Director, Atkins Ireland, said “The Metrolink Project will provide Dublin with a modern, interconnected transport system that eases congestion and offers commuters faster, more convenient and cleaner transport options in and around the city. “This appointment builds on our existing role as Operations Advisor for Metrolink and we’re pleased to bring our local teams of experts and global experience in transportation to support Transport Infrastructure Ireland as they progress this exciting project.” MetroLink is one of the key projects identified in Ireland’s National Development Plan. It will be a first-of-a-kind public transport infrastructure in Ireland, with much of the 18.8km route running underground. The Project will link Dublin Airport, Irish Rail, DART, Dublin Bus and Luas services, linking major transport hubs and key destinations in the city centre, and is estimated to carry up to 53 million passengers annually. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals 

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World’s first zero-emissions cement industrial trial launches in UK

World’s first zero-emissions cement industrial trial launches in UK

Scientists and industry unite to decarbonise construction supply chain and tackle global climate emergency   Cement 2 Zero (C2Z), a UK-based demonstrator project to trial the world’s first zero-emissions cement on an industrial scale, was officially launched this week having successfully conducted the first in a series of pilot-scale melts. The innovative project, which secured £6.5million of Government funding from UKRI as part of the Transforming Foundation Industries Challenge, aims to further advance the construction, cement and steel sectors’ decarbonisation journey to net zero industries of the future, to help meet the UK Government’s commitment of achieving Net Zero by 2050.  Led by the Materials Processing Institute, supported by the University of Cambridge (UoC), and in collaboration with key players in the supply chain, Cement 2 Zero is the first collaborative trial of its kind, to address the global construction industry’s biggest challenge of decarbonisation, in response to the climate emergency. Concrete is the most widely used material on earth, after water, and it is fundamental to our way of life, our economy and shaping our world. However, the chemical and thermal combustion processes involved in the production of cement are a significant source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions – with more than four billion tonnes of cement produced each year, accounting for around seven per cent of global CO2 emissions, according to the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA). In the UK, concrete and cement account for 1.5 per cent of UK carbon dioxide emissions* The Cement 2 Zero project will investigate both the technical and commercial aspects of upscaling Cambridge Electric Cement (CEC) production to produce 20 tonnes of the world’s first zero emissions cement.  The first phase of trial melts is being carried out by the Materials Processing Institute, initially in a 250kg induction furnace, before being scaled up to 6T in an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). Once the process has been substantially trialled, developed and de-risked effectively, industrial scale melts will follow in CELSA’s EAF in Cardiff. The two-year industrial trial will test each stage of the production process and brings together the expertise of the Materials Processing Institute, the University of Cambridge and key supply chain partners – Atkins, Balfour Beatty, CELSA, Day Aggregates and Tarmac – before using the innovative product in a live UK construction project.  If successful, it could not only further advance the cement, steel and construction industries, but influence how we recycle, construct and maintain our built environment and transport infrastructure, shaping the future of towns and cities, whilst simultaneously boosting economic development, and most importantly, reducing CO2 emissions to help tackle global warming.  Chris McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of the Materials Processing Institute, said: “Cement 2 Zero has the potential to make a significant contribution to achieving a zero-carbon society, secure and increase jobs in the UK cement and steel sectors and challenge conventional production processes, creating high-value materials from demolition waste.” Dr Philippa Horton, University of Cambridge, who created the project consortium, said: “If Cambridge Electric Cement lives up to the promise it has shown in early laboratory trials, when combined with other innovative technologies, it could be a pivotal point in the journey to a zero-emissions society. The Cement 2 Zero project is an invaluable opportunity to collaborate across the entire construction supply chain, to expand CEC from the laboratory to its first commercial application.” This major break-through is a result of Dr Cyrille Dunant and his research team at the University of Cambridge. They invented a new process which brings together two critical industries and construction materials – cement and steel – by combining the production processes, transforming a by-product of steel recycling into a valuable material, in one zero emission process.  Dr Dunant, said: “We take the built environment around us for granted, new homes, schools, hospitals, workplaces, roads and railways, as well as infrastructure that provides us with clean water, sanitation and energy all require cement which is an essential building material. It’s estimated that annual production equates to more than 500kg of concrete per person on the planet per year, and it is not currently possible to produce the material without creating CO2 emissions. “This breakthrough offers a positive move in cement production and will support the industry response to the UK’s legally binding commitment to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. “ The science behind this breakthrough Known as Cambridge Electric Cement (CEC), three researchers at the University of Cambridge, Dr Cyrille Dunant, Professor Julian Allwood and Dr Philippa Horton, invented a process that converts construction and demolition waste to cement over molten steel, using an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF), which is used to recycle scrap steel. The Cement 2 Zero project aims to demonstrate that concrete can be recycled to create a Slag Forming addition which could, when cooled rapidly, replace Portland cement.   Dr Dunant discovered that the chemical composition of used cement is virtually identical to that of the lime-flux used in the conventional EAF steel recycling process.  Traditional Portland clinker, one of the main ingredients in cement, is produced by firing limestone and other minerals in a kiln at extremely high temperatures (1,450 degrees Celsius), a process which accounts for more than 50 per cent of the cement sectors’ emissions. By contrast, Cement 2 Zero will use recycled cement as the flux in the electric steel recycling process (EAF powered by renewables), the by-product of which, when cooled and ground, produces Portland cement clinker, which is then blended to make ‘zero-emissions’ cement.  Therefore, this innovative cement product (CEC) could be made in a virtuous recycling loop, that not only eliminates the significant emissions of cement and steel production, but also saves raw materials, as illustrated in the infographic attached to this press release. Professor Julian Allwood, University of Cambridge and Cambridge Electric Cement, explained: “By combining steel and cement recycling in a single process powered by renewable electricity, we could supplement the global supply of the basic construction materials to support the infrastructure of a

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Atkins opens up historic Cardiff canal in regeneration development

Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, has helped to unveil a historic canal in the centre of Cardiff which has been covered over for more than 70 years, as part of a £6m regeneration project in the city. Atkins was appointed by Cardiff Council to design the Canal Quarter development, alongside Faithful+Gould, also a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, which is providing project management and commercial support. The development scheme involves the daylighting of 70 metres of the Dock Feeder Canal on Churchill Way, Cardiff. The dock feeder was originally constructed in the late 19th Century to provide a constant supply of water to the Bute docks – allowing for large container ships to dock in Cardiff, regardless of the tide, leading to Cardiff becoming a world leading exporter of iron ore and coal. It was paved over between 1948 and 1950, and after being hidden to generations of shoppers and city residents, will now form the centrepiece of a new sustainable urban district in the city centre. Alongside opening up the canal, the scheme involves the construction of two pedestrian footbridges, a cantilevered stage and rain gardens to manage surface water drainage among other structures. The project also includes the upgrade of the surrounding highways network with the creation of cycleways, EV taxi charging points, refurbishment of existing highways and new bus links. Atkins has provided the design for the scheme with a multidisciplinary approach including the design of structures, drainage, landscape, lighting and electrical as well as highways, with the surrounding road network. Hamish Watkins, project manager for Faithful+Gould, said: “This is a really important development for Cardiff as it forms a key part of the regeneration of the area. Already, prior to completion we have seen the redevelopment of near-by buildings to boost hospitality and business to This part of the city. “It will also provide an area for residents and tourists alike to visit, work in and enjoy, which means it’s providing commercial value as well as social value for the community it serves. Ben Ferguson, Senior Landscape Architect for Atkins and lead designer on the project, said: “It’s great to be able to reflect the industrial heritage of the area by re-opening the dock feeder. During the late 19th and the early 20th century this waterway was at the centre of a tree-lined boulevard and to re-establish that aesthetic, and to reveal the waterway once again within a forward looking and sustainable design will be incredibly exciting.” Additional work on the scheme will include multiple packages of work such as street lighting, CCTV, new traffic signals and additional service diversions. Cllr Dan De’Ath, Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Transport at Cardiff Council, said: “The opening of the dock feeder canal and the new transport scheme will not only mark the beginning of a new district centre for the city and act as a catalyst for new investment, but it will play an essential role in managing traffic flow and surface water drainage in the city centre. “A series of rain gardens will be built, with specific soil and planting to treat the surface water to remove pollutants before the water flows into the canal. This will ensure that 3,700 m2 of water will be diverted away from the sewage system each year, reducing the cost and energy of treating this water through the sewage pumping station at Cardiff Bay.” This project, which started in February, is part of a wider masterplan to develop a new district in the city, interlinking Bridge Street, David Street. Charles Street, Tredegar Street, Guildford Crescent, and Barrack Lane to develop a high-density, mixed-use development, attracting homes, hotels, hospitality, high quality offices, leisure and retail units.

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Three Chamberlain Square secures planning permission in the £1.2billion Birmingham city centre transformation project

Paradise Birmingham, the £1.2 billion transformation project at the heart of the city, has today received its latest planning approval from Birmingham City Council. In a unanimous decision from the planning committee, permission was granted for Three Chamberlain Square, a new 10-storey, 185,000 sq ft commercial building, a key part of the second phase of the Paradise masterplan. Grounded in sustainability and with a unique ‘inside-outside’ ethos to the workplace, Three Chamberlain Square will be one of the most sustainable commercial buildings located in the city centre. It will be a first for Birmingham in terms of environmental standards, while offering a unique working setting for occupiers. In addition to incorporating a low carbon approach to materials, waste and construction, the design of Three Chamberlain Square builds in a low carbon future for its occupiers. With lots of natural light and ventilation, the building reflects the demands of the modern workplace and will remain sustainable. It is the fourth commercial building at the estate after One Chamberlain Square, Two Chamberlain Square and One Centenary Way. The residential Octagon tower is also currently under construction on the northern part of the estate, fronting Summer Row. The building will offer 200 bike spaces and dedicated changing facilities, all electric power and heating, and stairwell connections between floors, creating an agile and adaptive approach to the workplace. It will be a beautiful and inspiring building, promoting health, sustainability and wellbeing among those who will work there well into the future. With its prominent setting next to the Grade I Town Hall, Three Chamberlain Square will help create new connections in and around the civic heart of Birmingham and across the city centre. Designed by award-winning architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, Three Chamberlain Square is a key statement of sustainability for the city and aims to be one of the greenest commercial buildings built in the UK post-Covid. The building will improve accessibility along Paradise Street and to metro and rail connections, as well as aiding pedestrian flows between different parts of the city centre. The building is a key part of Phase Two of Paradise, which includes the almost complete One Centenary Way, plus a new 17-storey hotel on the corner of Paradise Street and Suffolk Street Queensway, and three important new public spaces, Ratcliff Square, Western Terrace and Ratcliff Passage. These new, high-quality public spaces in the southern part of the Paradise estate will provide a more fitting environment for the surrounding historic buildings, as well as create new connections through to the Westside part of the city. The new public realm, designed by Grant Associates Landscape Architects, will build on the success of the refreshed Chamberlain Square, Congreve Street and Centenary Way, which form part of Phase One of the development. Rob Groves, regional development director at Paradise development manager MEPC, said: “This planning approval is another huge vote of confidence in both the city and Paradise, and its ability to attract new jobs, skills and investment to Birmingham. A further commercial building will enable us to meet market demand for space in the city centre, in a highly-sustainable, people-centred building of the highest quality. In addition to office space, Three Chamberlain Square will bring further leisure and retail opportunities to the heart of the city, with the prospect of more top-quality operators of the like we’ve already attracted to Paradise.” Chris Taylor, Chairman of MEPC and CEO of Federated Hermes Real Estate, said: “This is a significant next step in the Paradise story. Our ambition for Paradise is to deliver one of the UK’s leading business destinations by creating leading sustainable buildings set within the very best public realm, with first class retail and leisure amenities for all those who work, live in or visit the city.“We are committed to driving forward our investment in Paradise. Three Chamberlain Square will ensure that the momentum continues apace.” Neil Rami, Chief Executive of West Midland Growth Company: “Birmingham is the UK’s primary regional investment opportunity, as reflected through Paradise and other developments across the city centre.“The planning approval for Three Chamberlain Square underlines that status and demonstrates that the city and its operators are intent on bringing new high-quality buildings, public spaces and pedestrian routes into the city. “The quality of Three Chamberlain Square and its relationship to the Town Hall is exactly the kind of development we want to see in the city centre and can’t wait to see it take shape as an integral part of the Paradise masterplan.” George Wilson, Partner at architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, said: “Three Chamberlain Square will be a new type of commercial building for the city, one that has sustainability and post-Covid requirements at its core. It will be a welcoming environment, with active uses on the ground floor. “There will be an abundance of natural light and ventilation, with the building design unique in its pioneering approach to reduce both embodied and operational carbon, creating a low-energy, low-carbon workplace for the future. It will be a special addition to the city, with a real sense of arrival for both visitors and the public.” Paradise Birmingham has already completed phase one of the development, with One Chamberlain Square wholly occupied by PwC, and Two Chamberlain Square home to a mix of professional and financial services firms, including DLA Pipier, Knights Plc, Mazars, Cazenove Capital, Atkins and Cubo. Dishoom, Rosa’s Thai Café and Albert’s Schloss will be joined this summer by Yorks Café, along with wine bar and Mediterranean eatery Vinoteca. At almost two million square feet, Paradise is delivering up to 10 new flagship buildings, offering offices, shops, bars, cafés, restaurants, a high-quality hotel, and Octagon, the world first 49-storey, pure octagonal residential tower, across 17 acres in the heart of the city. Paradise is being brought forward through Paradise Circus Limited Partnership (PCLP), a private-public joint venture with Birmingham City Council. The private sector funding is being managed by Federated Hermes, which has partnered with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments)

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Kawneer systems help herald a gateway to a unique building

Manufacturer’s aluminium glazing systems used again at Bournemouth University. Frequent Kawneer specifiers Atkins has used the manufacturer’s architectural aluminium glazing systems again, on a unique building which forms a new £27 million gateway to a leading UK university. Kawneer’s AA®100 zone-drained and capped curtain walling forms triangular screens some 25m wide and 15m high for the main atrium at Bournemouth University’s 5,000m2 Poole Gateway Building, while Kawneer’s thermally-superior AA®720 entrance doors were used throughout the building and its AA®190 TB automatic sliding door was used at the campus side entrance lobby. In addition, Kawneer’s AA®541 fixed-light windows were used to create openings within both the rainscreen and masonry facades while thermally-broken AA®543 tilturn windows were used alongside aluminium spandrel panels as insertions to the curtain walling. Kirsty Pesticcio, senior architect at Atkins, said: “The glazed elements have a significant impact on the building and the Kawneer products interfaced really well with the masonry and rainscreen façade. “The triangulated gateway form was very complex in nature so we had to ensure fixings were angled with precision to tie into the structural members. Kawneer-approved installer Leay were engaged early within the design process to ensure the developing design met both our design concept and technical constraints of the products chosen.” The building was targeting a BREEAM “Excellent” score so upper BRE Green Guide ratings for material specification, aligned with budgets, was important. The Poole Gateway building is a state-of-the-art combined technical facility for the university’s faculties of Science and Technology and Media and Communication, the latter of which houses the UK’s only recognised Centre for Excellence in Media Practice. The two-year build by main contractor Willmott Dixon comprises a steel frame, SFS infill and composite concrete decked floors. Although the building is primarily divided by internal stud partitions, there are many technical studio spaces which had to be designed and installed as a ‘room in room’ construction using timber frames. Specialist sub-contractor Leay had a team of up to six on site for three winter months. Leay’s business development manager Mike Watts said: “The main curtain wall screens are essentially large triangles. The transom locations were staggered in design in an attempt to prevent hard lines being established in the overall design. “The transoms were set out by us to keep glass specification the same thickness on the project and also to optimise the material on the project efficiently to keep wastage down and therefore cost. “The project was also designed to limit the amount of intermediate steelwork to make the atrium feel as open plan as possible as well as to dead load the full screen down onto the ground-floor slab. “We proposed the use of Kawneer products on this scheme from the outset as we knew they would represent the best value for money and also achieve the structural requirements of the scheme. Working alongside the architect from an early stage, we were able to quickly assist with mullion sizings to allow setting out to be established and avoid potential clashes at a very early stage.” Atkins’ brief was to deliver a new gateway building on the eastern edge of the university’s Talbot Campus which sits just inside the border between Bournemouth and Poole and would be predominantly used by students from the two faculties, providing a range of high-quality technical facilities to support undergraduate and postgraduate courses as well as research. Kirsty Pesticcio said: “We believe the client is delighted with the overall design and how it meets the original brief of a gateway building to their campus.” NESTA (National Endowment for Science Technology and Art) said: “Almost half of all graduates from specialist VFX [visual effects] courses who gained employment in the industry had graduated from Bournemouth University”. Graduates have worked on Hollywood blockbusters such as Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, Gravity, Star Wars, Madagascar and Interstellar, which won an Oscar in 2015. The Poole Gateway building is one of three at Bournemouth University which feature Kawneer systems. They have also been used on a £40 million new home for the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences. Again designed by Atkins, the Bournemouth Gateway Building features Kawneer’s AA®100 curtain walling with feature face caps on tall atrium screens along with AA®720 window vents and entrance doors and AA®190 TB doors. The Kawneer systems here were installed by fellow Kawneer-approved dealer Aluminium Sashes for main contractor Kier. The Bournemouth Gateway Building is due to open in September 2020. Kawneer systems were also used on the original £22 million BREEAM “Excellent” Fusion building which features Kawneer’s AA®100 zone-drained curtain walling, AA®541 top-hung casement windows, AA®545 low/medium duty swing doors and series 190 doors. These were installed by approved dealer AB Glass for Willmott Dixon to a BDP design.

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