Corecom Consulting, a Leeds-headquartered IT recruitment firm, has recorded substantial growth within the last 12 months, as it opened an extra office in Manchester. The company has also extended its charity partnerships and gained new clients. Opened in January 2018, the Manchester office marked the launch of software testing community
Squire & Partners, the architects behind Landmark Manchester (Landmark), a 180,000 sq ft office development, have revealed the key features being implemented in the Grade A, BREEAM Excellent building to ensure that it tops occupiers’ tick lists ahead of its Summer 2019 launch. Currently under construction in Manchester’s central business district
The Christie in Manchester has seen the UK’s first NHS high-energy Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) Centre. The state of the art technology uses an advanced form of radiotherapy for the treatment of complex and hard-to-treat cancers in children and adults. Selected by the Department of Health as one of the
Anco&co, a build-to-rent (BTR) development, has just launched in the heart of Manchester with the help of me&dave that created an innovative language-led brand identity for the company. As the development is located in a popular up-and-coming neighbourhood – Ancoats – the fly-poster campaign was inspired by protest placards. me&dave
Caddick Construction has been appointed by Williams Group for the development of its £41 million flagship Jaguar Land Rover, BMW and Mini Automotive Retail Centre near Manchester Trafford Centre. The construction work is underway and the project will include a three-storey BMW showroom, two-storey Jaguar Land Rover showroom and a
All it took was a faulty boiler in a school in Manchester to destroy an entire basement, thus calling for a complete reparation of the entire location. Stretford Grammar School have been using the help of Sika to transform its basement from a water-logged concrete mess into a brand new
Foresight Group has ploughed £3 million into Manchester bases civil engineering firm Utilities Design & Planning from the Foresight Regional Investment Fund. UDP, a provider of traffic management and civil engineering services, offers inspections, planning works and project management of utilities, sewer connections and highways and rail schemes. The firm
Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens are set to receive a £10 million facelift as plans have been unveiled for a multi-million pound regeneration. Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets (L&G) will give the city centre space an overhaul as part of a £10 million investment, in conjunction with Manchester City Council.
Manchester’s skyline is set for a major new arrival after the news that plans to build a 52-storey skyscraper at the former Granada studios site in the city centre have been given the green light. Plans to build 387 apartments as part of the new £1.35 billion St John’s neighbourhood
The biggest multi-sector showcase of innovation in the UK will come to Manchester in November, which will be the first ever time the annual show has been away from London. The Department for International Trade and Innovate UK will host Innovate 2016 which is being held at Manchester Central on
Corecom Consulting, a Leeds-headquartered IT recruitment firm, has recorded substantial growth within the last 12 months, as it opened an extra office in Manchester. The company has also extended its charity partnerships and gained new clients. Opened in January 2018, the Manchester office marked the launch of software testing community networking events in the region. The company has extended its support for Emmaus, a charity for the previously homeless, partnering with its Salford community in addition to Leeds. “We are ahead of our five per cent forecasted growth figure and on track to achieve a turnover of £4,940,125 and net profit of £474,978 by the end of 2018,” said Jonathan Sanderson, managing director at Corecom Consulting. Since the start of the year, the company has achieved 10 award shortlists including those for the company’s innovative marketing strategy, presence in the Manchester region, contributions to charity and for its entrepreneurial company leaders. “By 2019, we plan to open a third office in London. We are looking forward to and are committed to expanding our relationships across the North West and South East of England, including sharing our knowledge and expertise in the local communities in which we operate,” said Jonathan about future plans. Established in 2008, Corecom Consulting has grown from 15 to 24 employees over the last 12 months and the company plans to recruit an additional six members of staff at its Leeds HQ and is forecasting a year on year growth of eight per cent in both Leeds and Manchester by December 2019.
Squire & Partners, the architects behind Landmark Manchester (Landmark), a 180,000 sq ft office development, have revealed the key features being implemented in the Grade A, BREEAM Excellent building to ensure that it tops occupiers’ tick lists ahead of its Summer 2019 launch. Currently under construction in Manchester’s central business district at St Peter’s Square, Landmark aims to deliver a world-class professional environment to its occupiers. Barings Real Estate along with development manager Castlebrooke Investments, enlisted award-winning architects Squire & Partners to bring the pivotal scheme to life. Meeting the BREEAM Excellent, Grade A, EPC ‘A’ target rating criteria was a natural start and the Platinum WiredScore accreditation and spectrum of connectivity management features that have followed on will ensure that all potential occupiers can move in and start work immediately with ease. “The overall design and finishes at Landmark are about so much more than just meeting set criteria. The double height reception, with approximately 90 ft glazed frontage onto Oxford Street, was influenced by the previous art deco cinema which sat on the site. The double height interior is treated as a contemporary interpretation of the cinema lobbies of the period, emphasising a sense of theatre and drama upon arrival. The whole building is being constructed with an offset core to enable virtually column-free office space across approximately 14,000 sq ft floor plates, unlike any other in the city centre. The offset core will deliver maximum flexibility for occupiers the majority of which will benefit from uninterrupted views towards the south of the city,” explained Murray Levinson, Partner at Squire and Partners. Barings’ Landmark team includes Castlebrooke Investments as development manager, award-winning architects Squire & Partners, acclaimed lead contractor Bowmer & Kirkland, Gardiner and Theobald as project manager and leasing agents CBRE and Colliers International. The Barings Real Estate team offers a broad range of investment opportunities globally across the public and private debt and equity markets. The team invests across all major property sectors with a focus on global relative value and trend-backed preferred strategies.
The Christie in Manchester has seen the UK’s first NHS high-energy Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) Centre. The state of the art technology uses an advanced form of radiotherapy for the treatment of complex and hard-to-treat cancers in children and adults. Selected by the Department of Health as one of the two providers of the service, together with University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, The Christie chose to deliver the construction phase through the Procure 21 framework. It worked in partnership with Interserve. “We are delighted to be able to offer this life changing treatment to patients. The delivery of this facility has been one of the most complex and precise projects within the NHS. We identified very early in the project that we needed a construction partner that could work alongside our team. The partnership approach integrated with Interserve’s technical expertise and energy to solve problems is one of the key reasons we completed on time,” said Jason Dawson, Director of Capital, Estates and Facilities of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. Providing 4 treatment rooms, a patient reception, consultation rooms and public space, the five storey building is designed to be future proof with additional space for the Trust to grow into. As PBT uses a high-energy beam of protons rather than high-energy X-rays to deliver a dose of radiotherapy, the building’s concrete walls had to be up to six metres thick. The building incorporates 20,000 m³ of concrete and 1,700 tonnes of reinforcement, including steel bars up to 100mm diameter. Through this, 10 km of services pipework has been carefully threaded. The concrete itself weighs 48,000 tonnes, the equivalent of two aircraft carriers. In order to meet the building’s demanding energy needs, a new substation has been built, providing an equivalent amount of power to that needed to run the nearby Trafford Industrial Park. Starting with this autumn, the building will begin treating patients and, once fully operational, it will treat around 750 people a year.
Anco&co, a build-to-rent (BTR) development, has just launched in the heart of Manchester with the help of me&dave that created an innovative language-led brand identity for the company. As the development is located in a popular up-and-coming neighbourhood – Ancoats – the fly-poster campaign was inspired by protest placards. me&dave has also referenced Manchester’s world-famous music scene – the iconic bands, and gig posters by artists like Peter Saville of Factory Records fame. me&dave were asked by real estate investors DTZ Investors to create a strategy that would demonstrate how Anco&co is moving the rental sector into a new era. To achieve this, the brand takes a cheeky dig at some of the problems that old-school tenants face, highlighting the benefits of this new ‘hotel style’ living. The campaign has been deliberately designed to pique interest and get people talking. Hoardings surrounding the whole site have been covered in fly posters and a dedicated website has been set up so that people can register interest. Some of the messages are explicit, such as ‘There’s a new landlord in town’, while some are intentionally abstract, such as ‘Sorry Billy, we’re over’. As well as being humorous and aesthetically striking, the campaign stands for a cause: “It’s saying, ‘We’ve had enough of being fobbed off with old mattresses, exploitative landlords and damp, substandard accommodation,” said Mark David, co-founder and creative director of me&dave. Anco&co tenants, who will be able to move in next summer, will enjoy ready-to-live, fully furnished one- and two-bedroom apartments with en-suite bathrooms, private kitchens and living rooms. They’ll also have access to communal bars, cafés, co-work spaces, a common room, cinema, rooftop terrace and concierge service. Everything has been conceived to strike the perfect balance between the need for privacy and hanging out with neighbours. “There aren’t many schemes like Anco&co out there, so when it came to branding and marketing there was no blueprint. We knew that me&dave was the right agency as it nails what’s right for a brand, even if that means breaking the ‘rules’. This project needed a creative team to think outside the box and disrupt the rental sector, and me&dave delivered,” said Christian Birrell of DTZ Investors.
Caddick Construction has been appointed by Williams Group for the development of its £41 million flagship Jaguar Land Rover, BMW and Mini Automotive Retail Centre near Manchester Trafford Centre. The construction work is underway and the project will include a three-storey BMW showroom, two-storey Jaguar Land Rover showroom and a single-storey MINI showroom. The dealerships will occupy a 14.3-acre site opposite Event City and next to John Lewis at the Intu Trafford Centre. Designed by Wilmslow-based architects Taylor Design, the development is scheduled for completion in late summer 2019. “Our vision includes a striking range of contemporary showrooms including the new Jaguar land Rover ARCH concept featuring a dual-branded showroom and service drive through for Jaguar and Land Rover,” said Nick Cook. Williams Group managing director. “Our stunning new flagship retail centre at this premium site will provide the perfect platform to display our range of prestige vehicles.” Alongside the showroom space, Caddick Construction will also deliver workshops, including service drive through for both centres, valet and car washing facilities together with roads and drainage works with the development. Part of the wider TraffordCity redevelopment by Peel Land and Property, the scheme will create a further 3.4 million sq ft of retail, leisure and commercial space around Intu Trafford Centre. “We have built an extensive portfolio of car showrooms and dealerships, which demonstrates the strength and capability of our teams working in partnership with clients in the automotive sector,” said Ian Threadgold, North West construction manager at Caddick Construction. “We are extremely proud of our long association with Manchester, where we are currently working on the landmark 34-storey Angel Gardens project in the city centre.” “Undertaking this major development enables us to continue contributing to its future prosperity by engaging with local suppliers, as well as creating local job opportunities,” concluded Ian Threadgold.
All it took was a faulty boiler in a school in Manchester to destroy an entire basement, thus calling for a complete reparation of the entire location. Stretford Grammar School have been using the help of Sika to transform its basement from a water-logged concrete mess into a brand new water proof center to lead the way to making the school a more environmentally-friendly location. The councillors of Trafford Borough oversaw the repairs that were completed by Grade 2 contractors, who applied an easy-to-use concoction created by Sika to apply directly to the affected walls themselves. The solution’s extra added strength is due to its mixture with concrete so as to ensure that it protects the walls from future damp as much as possible. It has even been approved by the British Board of Agrement (BBA) as a solution of long-lasting impact to ensure that the basement location of the school remains safe from all future possible mold attacks. Another Sika product (405) was used to mend the roof that was falling apart under the constant strain of adverse weather conditions. It was also rid of blemishes and should ensure the safety of the school roof for the full duration of the building’s lifetime, as is also the case with the Sika 1 solution. With its properties designed to withstand extreme temperatures and ultra-violet (UV) rays, Sika 405 was a further long-term solution to the school’s building renovations. Steve Parry, an RM of Structural Repairs, was adamant that these solutions would satisfy all parties concerned and would prove a significant step forward to reducing the impact of the school on the outer environment. It is equally hoped that the pupils of Stretford Grammar School will have benefited from witnessing these important refurbishments and will have seen this as an education to how schools and communities can work together to reduce their carbon impact on the atmosphere.
Foresight Group has ploughed £3 million into Manchester bases civil engineering firm Utilities Design & Planning from the Foresight Regional Investment Fund. UDP, a provider of traffic management and civil engineering services, offers inspections, planning works and project management of utilities, sewer connections and highways and rail schemes. The firm has sales of around £6 million and employs 33 members of staff, a number that will rise through the use of sub-contractors. The investment will allow the continued expansion of the company and the ability to make the most of the major infrastructure investments in the North West. UDP was established in Salford 20 years ago by the current directors Noel Gallagher and David Hilton who will stay with the firm as part of the transaction. Former MD at Enterprise, Richard Fraser, will join as non-executive chairman, and former FD at Amey Plc, David Atherton, will join as finance director to support the current management team. This is the third investment from the £40 million FRIF which is led out of Foresight’s office in Manchester and invests in high growth SMEs in the North West area. Managing Director UDP, Dave Hilton, commented: “The Manchester market is fast providing more opportunities for expansion with focus on a growing economy and infrastructure. Foresight’s support will allow us to engage with this growth in activity through driving sales, and by expanding services into adjacent geographies to meet emerging demands.” Among UDP’s clients are Manchester and Salford City Councils, Transport for Greater Manchester, Greater Manchester Police and property developer Argent. Claire Alvarez, senior investment manager, Foresight added: “UDP has demonstrated strong growth in recent years, and is a great example of the type of SME that we look for in the FRIF.” Foresight WAS advised in the transaction by a team from Addleshaw Goddard led by Katie Simpson and Andy Green with financial due diligence provided by Stephen Green’s team at RSM, commercial diligence carried out by Roger Penny of RPL and management due diligence carried out by Mike Hicks of Catalysis.
Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens are set to receive a £10 million facelift as plans have been unveiled for a multi-million pound regeneration. Legal & General Investment Management Real Assets (L&G) will give the city centre space an overhaul as part of a £10 million investment, in conjunction with Manchester City Council. L&G’s lease area is set to be extended in return. Bill Hughes, Head of Real Assets at L&G, said that they see the partnership with Manchester City Council and the proposal for Piccadilly Gardens as a chance to regenerate a prominent and well-used space in central Manchester that is also a thoroughfare to other parts of the city He continued: “Under the proposals L&G will dedicate £2m worth of investment in improvements to Piccadilly Gardens to make them more attractive and welcoming to families while deterring anti-social behaviour. The plans include removing the existing Pavilion building and feature wall and replacing them with two new Pavilion buildings linked by a covered area of new public space for year-round use. Greater Manchester Police have been consulted on the landscaping design “to deter anti-social behaviour and improve natural surveillance”. “The proposed Pavilion design will bring a new vibrancy and economy to Piccadilly Gardens which we hope residents can be proud of and visitors to Manchester will see as a destination in its own right,” Bill Hughes said. “L&G has a longstanding track record of working with progressive local authorities to bring forward regeneration and improvements to social infrastructure projects. We see Piccadilly Gardens as a prime example of this kind of collaboration in action.” The proposals for the Pavilion and Gardens will be undertaken and paid for by L&G. It is estimated that the cost will surpass the £10 million mark, of which £2 million will be invested in public realm improvements.
Manchester’s skyline is set for a major new arrival after the news that plans to build a 52-storey skyscraper at the former Granada studios site in the city centre have been given the green light. Plans to build 387 apartments as part of the new £1.35 billion St John’s neighbourhood were given the go ahead by the city council this week. The tallest building in Allied London’s redevelopment at St John’s will stand at 168.4 metres, which is just half a metre shorter than the iconic Beetham Tower in Manchester’s Deansgate. Nadler Hotel plans to operate from the 18 lower storeys of the skyscraper with private rented flats in the storeys above. The 3.2-acre site around the former Granada Studios site is part of the wider 13-acre St John’s £1.3 billion regeneration project, which includes many more high rise buildings. Four new buildings are also scheduled to be built, ranging in size from three to 51 storeys, featuring a mix of residential, leisure and workspace. It is set to include approximately 400 new flats, shops and class A office space, along with a mix of restaurants, bars and cafés. Public spaces also feature in the design, with access to rooftop gardens, riverside walkways, car and cycle parking and landscaped green spaces. The developer now has to meet around 50 recommendations that were made by the council for the plans to go ahead, including provisions for cycling and electric vehicle charging stations. There are also provisions to be met with regard to the local labour agreement. Manchester City Council planning committee member councilor, Chris Paul, commented: “I strongly welcome this application and it is really good but I would like to see it tied in with as many job creation opportunities as we possibly can. We certainly could work in creating as many apprentices, in particular for under 24-year-olds, as is humanly possible.” Once finished, at the end of 2018, St John’s Neighbourhood will be made up of 1,450 homes, 2.8 metre square feet of workspace, public realm, hotels, arts venues including the £110 million Factory arts centre and independent shops, cafés, and restaurants.24
The biggest multi-sector showcase of innovation in the UK will come to Manchester in November, which will be the first ever time the annual show has been away from London. The Department for International Trade and Innovate UK will host Innovate 2016 which is being held at Manchester Central on November 2 and 3, 2016. It will offer innovative UK businesses the chance to connect with research partners, export opportunities and investors to make their company scale up and grow. It is anticipated that the event will attract 2,500 businesses and investors, 200 speakers and 150 exhibitors. It will feature an exhibition of the most cutting edge innovations from companies throughout the country and inspirational keynote speeches from a number of the most respected industry leaders. Innovate UK Chief Executive Ruth McKernan commented: “We are very excited to be taking our annual flagship innovation showcase to Manchester this year. It is part of our commitment to build on and to support innovation excellence throughout the UK.” Among the show highlights will be: Over 90 innovators in our showcase area, 28 of whom will be launching new products or innovations at the show Key external speakers include Jess Butcher of Blippar; Paul Coby, Neil Rickets of Versarien; Paul Misener, VP Global Innovation for Amazon; Dr Alan James, VP Hyperloop One; Juergen Maier, Chief Executive of Siemens; Paul Clarke, Chief Technology Officer of Ocado. A wealth of information about the technology and innovation opportunities of the future, and how businesses can make the most of them. On Day One we’ll be exploring the key themes of Manufacturing of the Future, and Cities of the Future. On Day two, the key themes will be Health in the Future, and Technologies of the Future Businesses attending Innovate 2016 will receive expert advice on how to innovate and internationalise and set up meetings with international buyers and investors.
