R&M Williams has won a second major contract for Bristol Airport to develop the new Administration Building, following the successful completion of the airport’s new £4.3 million fire station earlier this year. The Administration Building will comprise three storeys and become home to the project teams and senior management, as
Gap Homes, a concept design of factory constructed, contemporary and cost-effective eco-homes, has been launched by the architects from international firm BDP’s Bristol studio. BDP is sponsoring the Bristol Housing Festival, which opens this week on the 19th of October with the launch exhibition that will showcase creative and innovative
Nina Bressington decided to change the outside appearance of her property in Bristol, which had a red brick exterior like many ex-local authority houses. She chose an Andura coating due to its durability, the no maintenance required and the 20 year guarantee, as well as the professionalism of Andy Gazzard
BDC 319 : Aug 2024
R&M Williams has won a second major contract for Bristol Airport to develop the new Administration Building, following the successful completion of the airport’s new £4.3 million fire station earlier this year. The Administration Building will comprise three storeys and become home to the project teams and senior management, as well as offer services such as meeting and training rooms. The office structure is the latest project in a series of developments aiming to modernise and expand Bristol Airport and demonstrate its continued investment into sustainable, low carbon systems. Designed with energy efficiency in mind, the new building has a carbon emission reduction of 23% over facility-building regulations. “We are proud that this type of high quality, fast-track construction is one of our business strengths and we look forward to further cementing our reputation with Bristol Airport, with the successful delivery of both the fire station and administration block schemes. It’s a really state-of-the-art facility and we can’t wait to see the project take shape in the coming weeks,” said Darryn Parry, Managing Director of R&M Williams. A very modern façade has been designed by Bristol architects Stride Treglown for this project, establishing the new office as a signature building on entrance to the airport. “We are delighted to be working with R&M Williams on this second project. The Administration Building will be the welcome that staff, airline and business partner guests will see and we wanted the building to visually blend in with the local environment whilst providing a state-of-the-art energy efficient facility,” commented Andrew Goodenough, Development Director at Bristol Airport.
Gap Homes, a concept design of factory constructed, contemporary and cost-effective eco-homes, has been launched by the architects from international firm BDP’s Bristol studio. BDP is sponsoring the Bristol Housing Festival, which opens this week on the 19th of October with the launch exhibition that will showcase creative and innovative housing solutions. The new Gap Home prototype, designed specifically for small plots of land in towns and cities will also be present. “We are in dire need of new homes for a new generation. BDP’s eco Gap Homes will be quickly constructed, cost effective, sustainable and, most important of all, stylish, comfortable and practical to live in,” said Nick Fairham, architect director in BDO’s Bristol studio. “Disused garage plots on existing housing estates are an ideal location for these homes. Many of them have fallen into disrepair, becoming a magnet for everything from fly tipping to anti-social behaviour. Putting new, attractive and carefully designed houses in their place will not only help deliver much-need new homes, it will also bring new energy and life into these areas, revitalising neighbourhoods and helping to build stronger, more resilient communities,” he added. The eco-homes will be made in hi-tech factory conditions and assembled on site up to 40% faster than traditional construction, helping people move into their new homes sooner. Using smart design to make the best possible use of space, the homes incorporate maximum light and height and sophisticated design and storage solutions to give a sense of space, along with low energy services for modern living. With sustainability at the heart of Gap Home, the factory conditions used for the homes’ construction minimises on-site waste by up to 75% and uses materials that mean the final building has minimal energy requirements for heating, low energy lighting and renewable energy provision through solar panels on the roof, making them low carbon and low in running costs. In addition, due to the standardised elements and factory production, the homes can be produced at volume, keeping prices down whilst helping to meet high demand. A palette of materials and designs will be available allowing people to customise their own homes, including internal finishes, kitchens and bathrooms. The size of garage plots and other small urban spaces means the homes will have a compact footprint. Whilst meeting national space standards they will be an affordable option for first time buyers and those looking to downsize in later life.
Nina Bressington decided to change the outside appearance of her property in Bristol, which had a red brick exterior like many ex-local authority houses. She chose an Andura coating due to its durability, the no maintenance required and the 20 year guarantee, as well as the professionalism of Andy Gazzard at Protective Wall Coatings, a Registered Andura Contractor, to carry out the work. “I had a friend who had a similar Andura coating done to their house which had lasted extremely well, compared with a neighbour’s house which had been just painted, and was already flaking after a couple of years,” said Nina. The property is a 1940’s three bedroom semi-detached house, located in a great residential area. Nina has modernised the interior and more recently added a conservatory to the rear, a front porch and a side extension. It was after these additions in March 2018 that Protective Wall Coatings were brought in and the whole job took just five days on site to complete. When Protective Wall Coatings came to look at the mortar joints and brick faces, there would have been a lot of repairs to do in re-mortaring and so the Andura process was to be a much more effective solution. There was some preparation and repair to be done to the outer surfaces and then the first stage was to apply the GRC base coat, a high performance, breathable polymer render (unlike sand and cement) which gives increased flexibility. As the mortar joints were deep, two coats of GRC were applied, the first a rough coat then a finer flatter coat. Once this base coat had cured, the top coat of Andura Trowel & Roll coating was applied. Protective Wall Coatings find that this coating gives a thicker application and then they use a nylon roller for downward texture ensuring that when it rains, the water runs off and the surface is self-cleaning. Andura’s Trowel & Roll coating gives an attractive textured appearance and has been specifically formulated for the protection and decoration of brick, cement renders and many other masonry surfaces. It provides a hard wearing, long lasting and beautiful finish to keep exterior walls in top condition. Andura Trowel & Roll coating comes in 16 standard colours, plus a colour matching service is available. It is a solvent-borne high performance acrylic coating conforming to Building Regulations. Andura is accredited to IS0 9001:2015 quality management standards.
