When patients are allowed to recover in a more comfortable environment studies show there is a positive impact on their healing and well-being. Effective building design has been widely used to help patients recover more quickly and hospital staff to work more efficiently. Evidence-based design (EBD), the process of making
While most affordable hotels are bland and impersonal, Qbic hotel celebrates individuality. Branding agency Ragged Edge partnered with Qbic to redefine their brand, creating a bold and distinctive platform with the power to bring their unique vision to life, all over Europe. A brand built to deliver an ambitious goal
The largest ever Built To Rent (BTR) scheme has been announced by Legal & General, who is set to bring around 1,000 homes and 85,000 sq ft of commercial space to London. Two adjacent sites in Wandsworth will combine for the scheme, providing purpose-built rental homes with long leases for
The Mayor of Dawlish has officially opened Cavanna Homes’ latest show home at Barley Meadow community in Dawlish with a ribbon-cutting. The development, located off Secmaton Lane, has already secured four reservations. Councillor Lisa Mayne was joined by Andy Addison, Head of Operations, Lauren Pybus, Sales Manager, and Anne Beadle,
Weston Homes is due to deliver a project that will transform a historic military hospital site in Aldershot into a new £60 million residential area of 140 private sale homes. The former Cambridge Military Hospital and ancillary buildings will be converted into the new homes, commercial/community facilities and grand communal
The regeneration of Stratford is reaching a new milestone, with construction work on one of the area’s new residential communities nearly complete. Housebuilder Bellway London is behind Legacy Wharf, a development of one, two and three-bedroom apartments off Cooks Road. Building work is due to finish next month on the
A new deal has been signed by Interserve with Land Securities Group Plc to continue work on retail centres across the UK. Worth over £15 million, the one-year extension of the contract will see the firm deliver a range of services at four major retail centres. This extension can be
Clegg Construction has completed a new Students’ Union building at a West Midlands university. The build was carried out by the Nottingham-based company at Aston University in Birmingham, on behalf of Aston Students’ Union as part of a £6.1m design and build contract. The modern new build replaces the 1960s
Site remediation works have been completed at Broad Street in Birmingham, allowing for construction to begin on a new £118 million residential tower. When complete, the Broad Street development, which was recently renamed The Mercian, will have 481 apartments exclusively for rent, offering hotel level service and a whole host
Abtec Building Technologies (Abtec BT) has upgraded the environmental controls in various buildings at Arthur Mellows Village College, a sixth form secondary school located near Peterborough. As well as reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions, the new controls have provided the school with greater ease of use and operational efficiencies.
When patients are allowed to recover in a more comfortable environment studies show there is a positive impact on their healing and well-being. Effective building design has been widely used to help patients recover more quickly and hospital staff to work more efficiently. Evidence-based design (EBD), the process of making changes to the built environment based on research to improve outcomes, has helped lower the incidences of hospital-acquired infections, medical errors, patient accidents, and staff injuries. “The environment’s influence on a patient’s well-being was first, scientifically, explored by professor Roger Ulrich in his 1980s study that sought to determine whether there was any measurable positive influence in a patient’s recovery when they were given rooms with different views,” commented Gareth Rees, Head of UK Strategic Market – Healthcare Siemens Smart Infrastructure. “The research showed that patients who had views overlooking nature [rather than that of a building] experienced shorter stays, needed fewer pain medication and were more optimistic about their prospects. These findings paved the way to a greater awareness and understanding of how space and hospital architecture can affect our physical condition and state of mind.” Using EBD techniques today architects and designers have been developing solutions for better healing environments. Healthcare facilities often have unique individual requirements with specialised hospital rooms requiring bespoke implementations for patient recovery wards, operating theatres, pressurised rooms and laboratories. Careful design can improve safety and productivity, reduce staff stress levels, lower resource wastage and enhance environmental sustainability. There is a delicate balance between providing the ideal recovery conditions in patient rooms and an optimal work environment for staff to deliver the best possible care. The provision of WiFi and personal control over room conditions are important elements for patient satisfaction. Room automation controlled by a patient’s smartphone or tablet allows the precise control over temperature, ventilation and other functions that affect comfort. Wearable tags can also be deployed to monitor the vital signs of patients to automate control of a recovery environment. Circadian lighting that follows a patient’s natural daily rhythm or sleep/wake cycle reduces tiredness and enhances recovery sleep while audio levels can be improved through the use of sound-absorbent materials installed in ceilings and flooring. Acuity-adaptable spaces lessen the movement of patients reducing stress on both patients and staff. Operating theatres are complex environments that need to be spacious, hygienic and well-lit (with overhead surgical lights). Generally windowless temperature and humidity levels are tightly controlled. Pressurised rooms are designed to isolate a patient with infectious diseases and require air management and filtering systems. Medical or clinical laboratories where approximately 70 percent of treatment decisions are made require stable conditions with exact controls over temperature, humidity and sometimes, pressure. Smart infrastructure and IoT technologies are an expanding area of interest to healthcare planners and allow owners and operators of hospitals to leverage more from their existing assets which are becoming more intelligent- producing and using data to perform better throughout their lifetime. Total Integrated Power and lighting control systems, air, space and asset tracking solutions all improve energy usage, space utilisation and real-time location usage. Concluded Rees: “Hospitals are never going to be places that any of us are going to particularly enjoy visiting but through better physical environments designers can speed up our recovery and alleviate a lot of the stress and fear. Better performing buildings can provide higher comfort levels and well-being for all occupants.”
While most affordable hotels are bland and impersonal, Qbic hotel celebrates individuality. Branding agency Ragged Edge partnered with Qbic to redefine their brand, creating a bold and distinctive platform with the power to bring their unique vision to life, all over Europe. A brand built to deliver an ambitious goal “Qbic was already doing something remarkable. Our London and Amsterdam hotels were the greenest in their respective cities,” says Julie Fawcett, Managing Director, Qbic Hotels. “But to achieve our ambitions, we knew we needed to build a rich, meaningful brand with the power to drive the whole business.” Welcome Character Ragged Edge helped create a strategic platform that could inform every part of the Qbic hotel experience, internally and externally. “We wanted to take Qbic’s desire to do good, and amplify it into something bigger and more emotional” says Max Ottignon, Co-founder, Ragged Edge. “This led us to ‘Welcome Character’, a brand idea that’s as distinct in the category as it is relevant to guests who want to be treated as individuals, not room numbers.” An identity that celebrates individuality The new visual identity is inspired by the hotel’s physical layout, and the coming together of different people and ideas. And the tone of voice celebrates guests’ quirks and eccentricities: weird is welcome. Introducing Motley While Qbic’s rooms are for overnight guests, the shared space is for everyone. So Ragged Edge and Qbic created a sub-brand with its own distinct character: Motley is a place for locals and guests to come together to eat, drink, work or play. Spreading good character The brand gave Qbic the platform to relaunch its London and Amsterdam hotels, followed by imminent new openings in Brussels, Manchester and beyond. “The result is so much more than a visual identity,” Julie explains, “it’s a platform that enables us to bring our unique character to new cities, and new people, all over Europe.”
The largest ever Built To Rent (BTR) scheme has been announced by Legal & General, who is set to bring around 1,000 homes and 85,000 sq ft of commercial space to London. Two adjacent sites in Wandsworth will combine for the scheme, providing purpose-built rental homes with long leases for all ages, demographics and social groups. “As renting continues to become a tenure of choice in the UK, the delivery of high density, high quality developments with vibrant communities is becoming more and more important. To do this, we need to deliver schemes which offer well connected housing options, which are carefully integrated into the public realm, maximising our existing infrastructure and supporting economic growth. This latest development in Wandsworth, our largest BTR acquisition to date, is a perfect example, offering 1,000 new rental homes alongside improving the station infrastructure and offering commercial real estate space to support local businesses,” commented Paul Miller, MD Principal Investing at Legal & General Capital. Located within Zone 2 and adjacent to Wandsworth Town train station, the £500 million development will include a new entrance to the platforms and will form part of the major regeneration of the local area. It will also include 35% affordable housing. Through the creation of a BTR asset class, Legal & General is looking to use its sources of long term capital to help address the chronic lack of housing supply and meet the increasing demand for affordable, quality rental accommodation. “This latest acquisition is another great example of Legal & General investing in a location with significant urban regeneration potential and providing large scale sustainable rental schemes which will have a positive socioeconomic impact. The location is highly desirable for renters and, with 1,000 units planned for the site, demonstrates Legal & General’s ambition to make a real impact on the delivery of new homes within the UK. Representing our largest scheme to date, this flagship BTR development is another step forward towards tackling the severe housing crisis facing both London and the UK, offering homes for all ages and social groups, as well as reduced living costs thanks to economies of scale,” said Dan Batterton, Head of Build To Rent at LGIM Real Assets.
The Mayor of Dawlish has officially opened Cavanna Homes’ latest show home at Barley Meadow community in Dawlish with a ribbon-cutting. The development, located off Secmaton Lane, has already secured four reservations. Councillor Lisa Mayne was joined by Andy Addison, Head of Operations, Lauren Pybus, Sales Manager, and Anne Beadle, Sales Advisor, for the ceremony. Cllr Mayne said: “It’s remarkable to see how this space has changed since the turf cutting back in November into a community of new homes for Dawlish. “It was a pleasure to officially open the new show home at Barley Meadow and to see this beautiful development coming to life”. Barley Meadow, offers a selection of two, three and four-bedroom homes close to the coast and the countryside, and is within easy reach of Dawlish town centre by car, foot, bike or bus. Andy Addison added: “It’s really positive to have four of our new homes already reserved before our show home was even opened. This development is bursting with energy and is surrounded by beautiful countryside. We would encourage anyone looking to move to the area to come and visit us”. The show home is a ‘Brook’ style three-bedroom detached property with a master en-suite bedroom, spacious lounge with large bay windows and double doors leading onto the lawned garden. Prices at Barley Meadow start from £225,000 for a two-bedroom home. The local area has two primary schools, a college, and local amenities including a post office, supermarket, banks, restaurants and a leisure centre. Dawlish train station is two miles away and provides links to Plymouth, Exeter, Bristol and London. As well as 74 new open market and affordable homes, the homebuilder will be funding a new cycle route to connect Barley Meadow to the town centre, and supporting recreation facilities and habitat improvements for the Cirl Bunting bird population. For more information about Cavanna Homes’ Barley Meadow development, please call the sales advisor on 01626 817424 or visit the website: www.cavannahomes.co.uk. The show home and marketing suite is open daily from 10am – 5pm.
Weston Homes is due to deliver a project that will transform a historic military hospital site in Aldershot into a new £60 million residential area of 140 private sale homes. The former Cambridge Military Hospital and ancillary buildings will be converted into the new homes, commercial/community facilities and grand communal foyers and spaces. The iconic site comprises a collection of Victorian and Edwardian buildings, which are being restored as part of Grainger’s Aldershot Urban Extension scheme, now known as Wellesley. “Weston Homes is pleased to be working alongside Grainger plc to reinvigorate the iconic Victorian and Edwardian military buildings of the Cambridge Military Hospital and transform them into a new residential address for Aldershot that local people will be proud to call home. With our proven historic building restoration expertise, Weston Homes will bring a new lease of life to these heritage buildings which are of national importance due to their military history, we will transform them into modern homes layered with the rich history and unique character of this historic site,” said Bob Weston, Chairman & Chief Executive of Weston Homes. The project involves a team of multi-award-winning architectural practices with the masterplan devised by Adam Urbanism, with detailed architectural design by Feilden & Mawson for the Cambridge Military Hospital; Omega Partnership for the Louise Margaret Hospital and former Nurse’s Residence; Adam Architecture for Gun Hill House & Gun Hill Water Tower; and Thrive Architecture for Cambridge House & St Michae’’s House, and Allen Pyke Associates for the landscape design. “We are delighted to have secured Weston Homes for this important heritage site and look forward to working with them to deliver 140 new homes within the historic buildings of the Cambridge Military Hospital. Weston Homes has proven restoration and conversion skills which will be essential for ensuring the preservation of the period buildings. This partnership underlines Grainger’s commitment to the wider Wellesley development and reinforces our role as a leading partner for major residential regeneration projects,” added Helen Gordon, Chief Executive of Grainger plc. Weston Homes will deliver both converted and new build homes, including one, two and three-bedroom apartments and two, three and four–bedroom houses set in landscaped grounds. Original features such as fireplaces, paneling and staircases will be retained and incorporated into the new homes that will become part of the new residential area. Work will begin this summer, with the project anticipated to be phased over several years.
The regeneration of Stratford is reaching a new milestone, with construction work on one of the area’s new residential communities nearly complete. Housebuilder Bellway London is behind Legacy Wharf, a development of one, two and three-bedroom apartments off Cooks Road. Building work is due to finish next month on the first phase of Legacy Wharf, which comprises five linked apartment blocks around an attractive communal courtyard with flower beds, meeting places and a children’s play area. The development includes commercial and retail premises, as well as landscaped podium gardens, a gym and a concierge service for residents, all within walking distance of one of London’s largest shopping centres, world-class sporting facilities and fantastic transport links. Emma Hamlett, Sales Director of Bellway London, said: “We’re delighted that this new community at Legacy Wharf is nearly complete, with many of our new residents already settled in and loving their brand new home in this flourishing part of the capital. “The 2012 Olympics legacy has made Stratford one of London’s most sought-after and fastest-growing residential districts and Legacy Wharf offers a great chance for first-time buyers and central London commuters to get their feet on the housing ladder in this fantastic location. “What’s more, Help to Buy London is making buying here possible for people who might otherwise not be able to afford their own place in the capital. “With apartments selling fast, I would encourage anyone hoping to take advantage of the opportunities here to act now and avoid missing out.” Help to Buy London allows purchasers to buy a new-build home with a five per cent deposit and a 55 per cent mortgage. The remaining 40 per cent is provided in the form of an equity loan from the government, which is interest free for the first five years of homeownership. The scheme is available on new-build homes in London worth up to £600,000. The final three-bedroom home within the first phase at Legacy Wharf is available from £593,000. Further one, two and three-bedroom designs are due to be released for sale soon. More information is available at bellway.co.uk CAPTIONS A computer-generated image of Legacy Wharf, Stratford
A new deal has been signed by Interserve with Land Securities Group Plc to continue work on retail centres across the UK. Worth over £15 million, the one-year extension of the contract will see the firm deliver a range of services at four major retail centres. This extension can be extended for a further year and it involves approximately 520 employees providing facilities management, customer service and security services at Landsec’s retail centres in Leeds, Cardiff, London and Oxford. “I am delighted Landsec has once again chosen Interserve to deliver facilities management services. Our team is dedicated to the Landsec account and has an intimate knowledge of the four major retail centres that we provide services to. This illustrates our ability to retain leading UK clients, developing long-term strategic relationships with them as we continue to grow our private sector client base,” said Jeff Flanagan, Managing Director, Interserve Business & Industry. Interserve secured the new contract after its success during the initial three-year partnership, in which the firm supported Landsec in the opening of its Westgate retail centre in Oxford, with one hundred Interserve colleagues now dedicated to providing excellent FM services on site. The construction giant was also selected for its integrated capabilities and expertise in providing best-in-class customer solutions to complex national contracts. Landsec is the largest commercial property development and investment company in the UK.
Clegg Construction has completed a new Students’ Union building at a West Midlands university. The build was carried out by the Nottingham-based company at Aston University in Birmingham, on behalf of Aston Students’ Union as part of a £6.1m design and build contract. The modern new build replaces the 1960s Students’ Union building and is located at the heart of the university campus. The two-storey steel framed building was designed by architects Robothams and has striking full height glazing. There are a range of facilities inside including a café, bar and restaurant, shop, social spaces, prayer room and washing facilities, games area, media room, multi-exhibition and rehearsal space and office space for the union’s student officer team and services. Sustainability is a key factor of the new building which includes district heating, use of sustainable timbers, photovoltaic panels and a strict recycling policy – the building has also achieved an A-rated Energy Performance Certificate. Simon Blackburn, Managing Director of Clegg Construction, said: “This is a fantastic new venue for the Students’ Union and is among the most modern and sustainable of its type in the country.“We were delighted to work with Aston University once again having also completed the new labs for the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies.” Amna Atteeq, Students’ Union president said: “It’s been a pleasure working with Clegg Construction over the last 12 months on the new SU, I know students are going to absolutely love it and it’s going to become a home from home whilst they are studying at Aston. I’m going to be finishing my studies next year and I can’t wait to spend time enjoying the amazing new building.” This was the third project Clegg Construction has completed at Aston University in recent years. It completed the new facility for the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies in November 2017. Prior to that it carried out a £5.2m remodelling of the School of Engineering and Applied Science’s chemical engineering and applied chemistry facilities. Clegg Construction has completed schemes for the University of Birmingham and University of Nottingham and last year the new £10.1m Science Centre for the University of Wolverhampton.
Site remediation works have been completed at Broad Street in Birmingham, allowing for construction to begin on a new £118 million residential tower. When complete, the Broad Street development, which was recently renamed The Mercian, will have 481 apartments exclusively for rent, offering hotel level service and a whole host of on-site amenities including a 24-hour concierge service and smart lifts that register when residents enter the building and are ready and waiting at ground level. It will also provide residents with quality health and wellness zones, including a 200m podium open-air running track on the roof – one of the first in the UK’s housing market. Rhodar completed an £850,000 remediation project at the site, removing redundant structures from the site including well shafts, the remnants of a former abattoir, and a series of Victorian-era basements. Remediation of soils across the 3,000 square metre site was carried out to remove asbestos, heavy metals and hydrocarbon contamination throughout the earthworks, removing all risks and safety hazards. Over a 16-week period, Rhodar’s team delivered an expertly-engineered platform to facilitate further operations allowing the tower construction phase to begin. Over 7,500 cubic metres of soil has been excavated and treated, with 6,500 cubic metres being returned to the site and 1,000 cubic metres of this soil being removed to achieve development levels. Specialist, heavy equipment, including a crusher, a screener, a roller and D5 bulldozer were needed for the next phase of remediation. 120 linear metres of sheet piling was installed to depths of up to nine metres below ground level to facilitate the excavation, processing and re-compaction of site soils during the removal of legacy below ground structures from previous phases of development. A specialist RTG RT21T piling rig was utilised together with concrete cutting equipment to remove difficult to access obstructions at the site boundaries and for the sheet piling to be installed. This will form part of the permanent works for the new residential tower. Construction has now started on-site after developer Moda Living held a ground-breaking ceremony on Tuesday 30 April.
Abtec Building Technologies (Abtec BT) has upgraded the environmental controls in various buildings at Arthur Mellows Village College, a sixth form secondary school located near Peterborough. As well as reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions, the new controls have provided the school with greater ease of use and operational efficiencies. Serving pupils aged from 11 to 18, Arthur Mellows Village College is a secondary school in Glinton, around 8km north of Peterborough. Although Olympic medal-winning gymnast Louis Smith and footballer Luke Steele (goalkeeper at Nottingham Forest) are among notable alumni, the school is an academy with a specialism in technology. As such, facilities like its Science Department require regular investment. The original project Arthur Mellows Village College relocated its Science Department to a new build in 2009, leaving its previous building to become disused and unfit for purpose. However, the school recently wanted to breathe new life into the old Science Department building and, with a combination of funds from DfE grants, The Wolfson Foundation and its own financial resources, Arthur Mellows Village College set about creating a vision that would be called the McLaren Building. The upgraded facility would house art, science and media studies classrooms. A major aspect of the refurbishment would focus on the upgrading of environmental controls, with Abtec appointed by the project consultant to undertake this work. “In the old science block we were tasked with providing integrated lighting controls, mechanical vents and a BMS plant room based on Tridium technology – totally replacing the old systems,” explains Phil Peer, Project Manager at Abtec. Upon completion of the work, it was clear to see that the McLaren Building, which opened in 2016, had been refurbished to a very high standard. Indeed, the facility exceeds current thermal insulation levels. Housed within the revamped building are five dedicated art classrooms, a kiln room, screen-printing room, two science laboratories, a science preparation room, two media rooms, a media studio, a computer room and two further classrooms. The total cost of refurbishment works and fit out was approximately £1.5 million. Further works Due to the success of the McLaren Building, Abtec has since completed several additional projects at Arthur Mellows Village College, including the introduction of: a BMS in the humanities block; lighting controls in the newly constructed site office block; and lighting controls and BMS in the sports hall. “We also performed BMS works in the main plant room, which was originally served by another system,” says Mr Peer. “Equipment has been installed that interfaces with other plant rooms – it’s all in one place. The college sublets spaces for events, so the BMS had to offer easy adjustment.” Another area that leveraged the expertise of Abtec was the refectory, where extra space was constructed on to the existing block. Abtec provided a solution for controlling the underfloor heating, CO2 mechanical vent, lighting control and plant room controls – all of which were fed from the main plant room. “Throughout the various projects we adopted an agnostic approach, using DALI, which is industry-recognised open technology,” says Mr Peer. “It was important to avoid reliance on any one manufacturer, so if something needs to be replaced, it can be.” The systems installed by Abtec also facilitate the automatic testing of emergency lighting on a monthly basis, a function that saves on labour costs and time – boosting operational efficiency in the process. A common head end sits on a virtual school server, so all data is aggregated back to one place. In addition, a single set of graphics is deployed across all plant rooms to provide the same look and feel. The results All of the newly introduced lighting is based on LED technology, which in combination with the Abtec control systems means a better learning environment for pupils. Furthermore, new heating plant is helping to drive energy efficiency and CO2 reductions in line with Part L of the Building Regulations. “The temperature and lighting is a lot easier to control now, whereas before it was difficult to say the least,” states Gary Wentworth, Site Manager at Arthur Mellows Village College. “We had to go down to the boiler room and locate the right switch, which was not necessarily obvious. Now it’s all centralised on one computer, so we can alter time zones and schedules, and respond to issues quickly; it only takes a couple of minutes. The lighting has daylight harvesting control, which is saving energy as well as ensuring the right light levels for students and staff.” image credit © Paul Bryan (cc-by-sa/2.0)’
