Contractor G F Tomlinson has completed construction works on the Barr’s Hill School in Coventry, expanding the school’s capacity with the creation of a new teaching block for year seven pupils and re-modelling of existing buildings. The company led on the construction of the building on behalf of Coventry City Council
Leading UK construction company Willmott Dixon has strengthened its presence in Sussex with a new office. The firm held an event to celebrate the opening of the Gatwick office, welcoming leaders and representatives from both Crawley and Surrey County Council. The new base expands the company’s presence as it looks
The £1.6 million contract to develop the expansion plans for Viking Shipping Services in Yorkshire has been handed over to Britcon, which aims to expand its offerings at the Selby site with a new warehouse and office facility. “After a thorough contract tender process managed by GGP Consult we were pleased to
A total of 65 potential sites have progressed to the next stage of consideration for the new offsite construction centres at Heathrow, with the final four sites being identified next year following the completion and assessment of a pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ). They have until the 18th of January to make
Steel firm SCH Site Services is helping major logistics company Stiller to expand once more with the development of a £750,000 warehouse. Based on Aycliffe Business Park, Stiller Warehousing and Distribution is in the process of building a new 40,000 sq ft warehouse for its rapidly expanding list of customers.
The £300 million Meadowhall major leisure expansion plan has been submitted by British Land. The new leisure hall will span 330,000 sq ft of space and will be covered with a striking undulating glazed roof structure. This will allow the developer to increase the shopping centre’s dining and entertainment offerings
It is expected that, by Autumn 2017, Bournemouth University will be able to commence its upcoming project to enhance and develop facilities available on campus through a £40m investment project. The arrangement, which has incorporates both the university and Threesixty Developments, looks to lay the foundations for a new 10,000
Contractor G F Tomlinson has completed construction works on the Barr’s Hill School in Coventry, expanding the school’s capacity with the creation of a new teaching block for year seven pupils and re-modelling of existing buildings. The company led on the construction of the building on behalf of Coventry City Council since works started on the school in 2021. The £6.5 million new teaching building known as ‘The Bridge’ is set across two storeys and comprises seven modern classrooms. The facility provides a dedicated space that has been designed to help 11 and 12-year-olds benefit from a smooth transition into secondary education serving as their own ‘mini school’. Works also included the re-configuration and remodelling of existing buildings to accommodate the school’s expansion over the coming years, with the school’s science department being extended and refurbished, as well as new classroom spaces, improved sports and gym facilities, external play spaces, and an additional dining area. “We’re pleased to see works have completed on this dedicated space for year seven pupils at Barr’s Hill School. This being our second project through Pagabo’s National Framework and for Coventry City Council,” said Chris Flint, Managing Director of G F Tomlinson. “The expansion and improvement of the school will ultimately provide 310 additional places, as well as a dedicated space to help pupils prepare and adjust for secondary education. We look forward to seeing the school welcome pupils into the new space.” Procured through Pagabo’s National Framework for Medium Works, this is the second scheme G F Tomlinson have successfully delivered for Coventry City Council – the first being the £3.7 million development of Cardinal Newman Catholic School in Coventry. The school, whose most recent exam results place it in the top 1% nationally, currently offers 780 places for children aged 11-16, plus 140 sixth form students, and has an expansion plan to ensure it provides a total of 1100 places in five years’ time. “The new spaces are transformational, they offer students exceptional learning environments to go alongside their exceptional achievements. It was wonderful to see the amazed faces of the year seven students going into The Bridge for the first time, they could not believe it! We are grateful to G F Tomlinson for the delivery of an exceptional learning space and a well thought through scheme,” concluded Chris Jupp, Headteacher at Barr’s Hill School. Building, Design and Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Leading UK construction company Willmott Dixon has strengthened its presence in Sussex with a new office. The firm held an event to celebrate the opening of the Gatwick office, welcoming leaders and representatives from both Crawley and Surrey County Council. The new base expands the company’s presence as it looks to deliver more projects that play a key role in the county’s future. The opening comes shortly after the successful completion of L3 Technologies’ new flight simulator production and training facility on Gatwick Road in Crawley. It was designed to promote an agile, collaborative, project-led working approach, and will accommodate both pre-construction and operations staff, with partners and customers also encouraged to utilise the space. “Willmott Dixon has been well established in the county since 1930 when we built Bailiffscourt at Climping near Littlehampton for Lord Moyne. Since then we’ve grown across Sussex and opening our new Gatwick hub, close to where many of our people live, is a natural evolution,” explained Russell Miller, Willmott Dixon Director for Delivery in Sussex. “Gatwick is a thriving area and has, along with Sussex, a really bright future with many bold and imaginative initiatives to encourage growth and investment. We want to be part of shaping that by basing ourselves in an area close to our partners and customers,” Russell added. The event also saw Chestnut Tree House – the children’s hospice for Sussex –presented with a cheque for £7,104.12 which was raised by the team at Willmott Dixon following a sponsored skydive.
The £1.6 million contract to develop the expansion plans for Viking Shipping Services in Yorkshire has been handed over to Britcon, which aims to expand its offerings at the Selby site with a new warehouse and office facility. “After a thorough contract tender process managed by GGP Consult we were pleased to award Britcon the Viking project and commence the new development at our Selby site. We look forward to working with the Britcon team,” commented Graeme Pickering, Director at Viking Shipping Services. The comprehensive freight forwarding and cargo handling services provider will complete the design and build phases of the 12,000 sq ft warehouse and adjoining 4,500 sq ft offices. “We are pleased to be appointed by Viking Shipping to assist with its exciting growth at Selby. Amongst our expertise is full turnkey solutions where we are able to take care of planning issues, ground and civils works and of course the build programme,” said Matt Harker, Regional Manager at Britcon. “On this particular project two of the original rail lines dating back to the historical landmark are still exposed with two sets of buffers and the local authority has requested that we maintain these as practical in the new build,” he added. Construction has commenced on site and is expected to take 29 weeks to complete. Britcon is one of the UKs most successful and progressive construction and development businesses based in the North of England. Established for nearly 30 years as a family owned business, Britcon has exceptional pedigree with an impressive and diverse client portfolio. The business directly employs over 100 people in its team and maintains an operating turnover of £50 million. Viking Shipping Services Ltd commenced trading in the 1940’s with the specific aim of providing a comprehensive freight forwarding and cargo handling service. Based at Selby just off the M62 in North Yorkshire, Viking Shipping is strategically located to facilitate a range of services for cargo arriving by both road and sea.
A total of 65 potential sites have progressed to the next stage of consideration for the new offsite construction centres at Heathrow, with the final four sites being identified next year following the completion and assessment of a pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ). They have until the 18th of January to make their case for the project. Various sites across the UK have been visited by Heathrow representatives in order to identify the location for the future hubs, which will be used for off-site construction to make the multi-billion expansion more affordable and sustainable. “This is an exciting opportunity for us to engage with site promoters that are passionate about creating a lasting legacy. These responses will help us understand which sites will best work for the expansion programme as well as for future construction projects,” said Heathrow’s Executive Director for Expansion, Emma Gilthorpe. “When we began this search last year, we were inspired by just how many locations up and down the country were interested in playing a role in delivering the third runway. This shows the great potential there is for offsite construction to revolutionise the way major infrastructure is delivered in the UK,” she added. The expansion project will have four sites either assembling components of the expanded airport or serving as a consolidation centre for these loads before they are transported to Heathrow. Of the potential sites, 50 are existing or functioning sites, many of which are already experienced in delivering major projects, while the other 15 sites are either undeveloped or proposed facilities with the potential for additional flexibility and customisation.
Steel firm SCH Site Services is helping major logistics company Stiller to expand once more with the development of a £750,000 warehouse. Based on Aycliffe Business Park, Stiller Warehousing and Distribution is in the process of building a new 40,000 sq ft warehouse for its rapidly expanding list of customers. The latest development will stand at 10 metres tall and will have the capacity to store a further 6,000 pallets for the family run business. The scheme will support dozens of local jobs during its construction. Darlington bases ADG Architects will manage the project with civil engineering support from Durham based firm BDN. Hall Construction is its main contractor, based nearby at Rushyford, which awarded Aycliffe based SCH a project to fabricate and erect its frame using 90 tonnes of steel. CH, which has previously worked with Hall Construction on the refurbishment of buildings at PD Ports on Teesside, completed the steel fabrication and erection of the frame within eight weeks, and the warehouse is expected to be fully completed in the New Year. SCH managing director Gary Finley said: “We’re delighted to have worked on a project so close to us in Newton Aycliffe which is supporting several local employers. “We fabricated the steel in-house at our facility just around the corner from Stiller’s site and erected it on site. “The extension had to join an existing warehouse which made it a little more complex than a stand- alone shed and we also had to design the end connections for the structure, but we’re pleased we’ve been able to work with one of our neighbours in enabling their ambitious plans for future growth.” The new warehouse will take Stiller’s recent investments in equipment, people and property to more than £6.4 million in the last three years.
The £300 million Meadowhall major leisure expansion plan has been submitted by British Land. The new leisure hall will span 330,000 sq ft of space and will be covered with a striking undulating glazed roof structure. This will allow the developer to increase the shopping centre’s dining and entertainment offerings as it looks to become an experience led destination. Featured in the expansion plan, British Land said that a new cinema will be included in the plans to replace the current one, along with a gym, and flexible leisure space that could be turned into a ten pin bowling site or an indoor golf centre. The expansion is the next phase of the evolution of the shopping centre and will come after a £60 million refurbishment which is now underway, with an expected completion date of the end of next year. Sheffield City Council is due to make a planning decision in spring next year. If the proposals gain approval, British Land is hoping to start work on the site in 2018 that will see the creation of more than 500 jobs during construction. Head of Retail and Leisure for British Land, Charles Maudsley, commented: “Understanding and anticipating our customers’ needs is a key strategic focus area and the Meadowhall Leisure Hall proposals respond to the changing way people live their lives. “The exciting £60m refurbishment completing next year, the continued leasing success and Leisure Hall plans combined reinforce our commitment to ensuring Meadowhall remains an outstanding place for modern consumer lifestyles.” Executive Director of Sheffield Chamber of Commerce, Richard Wright, said: “The Leisure Hall will be a jewel in the Sheffield City Region’s crown, set amongst other equally important investments in this great city. “We therefore welcome British Land’s exciting plans and lend them our wholehearted support. They will reinvigorate Meadowhall and serve as a catalyst for further investment in the region.”
It is expected that, by Autumn 2017, Bournemouth University will be able to commence its upcoming project to enhance and develop facilities available on campus through a £40m investment project. The arrangement, which has incorporates both the university and Threesixty Developments, looks to lay the foundations for a new 10,000 meters squared facility within which it will be able to host its Faculty of Health & Social Science in addition to a vast student accommodation totalling some 550 beds as a separate development. And for these developments, a joint planning application is on the books, with the view to having it submitted this spring, thus giving plenty of notice for the completion of the facility by 2018, and the complementing accommodation for students by 2019. As part of the deal, Threesixty Developments has agreed that its sister organisation, The Student Housing Company will be in charge of running the accommodation facet of the development, yet with a guarantee that the University will be able to benefit from a referral agreement to secure further student accommodation for those who need it most – most specifically, this entails international students coming over for their first year at the university. Commenting on the development, Christian Davis, Development & Transaction Director at Threesixty highlighted the time and effort put into ensuring that both parties have been able to come to mutual terms which will benefit both, whilst also taking the university another step along the road to creating further academic and accommodation assets on the campus. Though there is still more to confirm with regard to receiving planning permission and guaranteeing positive impacts on the local community, the project, at this stage, is generally well-anticipated by key stakeholders. Jim Andrews, Chief Operating Officer at Bournemouth University commented: “We are delighted that this complex commercial transaction is now complete and we can focus in delivering world class facilities.”
