Tag Archive for: Facade

Britplas appointed to new IDRM build at Oxford University

Britplas is pleased to announce that they have been awarded a contract to complete the design, manufacture and installation of the building envelope to the new Institute of Developmental and Regenerative Medicine (IDRM) at Oxford University Old Road Campus.

Working with main contractor McLaughlin & Harvey, the project is expected to start on site in October this year with a completion date next spring.

Designed by SRA Architects, the 6,000 sq m, 3-storey building will include laboratory and write-up spaces for each of three research themes, cardiology, neurology and immunology, with shared meeting / seminar rooms and specialist / ancillary labs for the purpose of life sciences research.

The building envelope is to comprise rock wool-based composite panels finished in naturally weathered Corten Steel, glass rainscreen and Schueco curtain walling, triple glazed to attain a required U value of 0.9. The building will also feature glass brise soleil. All components are being designed to meet Passivhaus standard with an air tightness of 1.0.

Britplas pre-construction manager Ben Woodward commented: “We are delighted to be working with new client McLaughlin & Harvey on such a prestigious scheme and returning to Oxford where we have a great track record of similar projects over the past few years.”

Image: SRA Architects

Britplas to construct building envelope at new Moxy Manchester hotel

hotel facade contractor

Britplas has been appointed to deliver the external facade package to a new hotel in Manchester city centre by main contractor Gilbert-Ash.

The project will see a former hat factory (Invicta House) in Manchester’s Spinningfields district, transformed into a stylish new 145 bedroom hotel under the Moxy brand, part of the Marriott International portfolio.

Britplas will be installing the full building envelope including Kawneer curtain walling, SFS and weathered-effect aluminium rainscreen, some of which is perforated to resemble the punch cards of a Jacquard loom as an echo to the site’s textile history. The scheme will retain and preserve the building’s listed Victorian facade.

The project is due to start in Q4 this year, with completion in May 2021 and the hotel has a planned opening date of late next year.

Maritime defence facility brings Britplas on-board

Britplas have been appointed as the external envelope supplier for the latest development of Qinetiq’s Portsdown Technology Park (PTP). Main contractor Volker Fitzpatrick will be completing the project for client QinetiQ, who have a long-standing interest on site which had its first military facility built in 1870.

The complex project will require Britplas to design, manufacture and install a mixture of curtain walling, cladding and soffit systems as part of a facade package worth in excess of £2m, made up of 1,450m2 cladding, 1,900m2 curtain walling and 675m2 fire screens. The new facility will offer 6,320m2 office space, an auditorium and accommodation, forming the National Maritime Systems Centre.

For over 45 years PTP has integrated and tested combat and communications equipment and software for all Royal Navy warships prior to their deployment at sea. The new £23m facility will continue this by securing 100 new jobs in addition to the 300 based at the site.

Recent examples of technology that has been tested and integrated with existing equipment includes BAE Systems’ Artisan surveillance radar and MBDA’s Sea Ceptor Air Defence System.

The exact systems being used are:

  • Schueco FWS 50+ capped curtain walling system
  • Aluprof MBSR50N fire rated curtain wall
  • Aluminum cladding system

Installation of the façade is scheduled to start on site in July 2019 with Britplas due to finish in by the end of 2019.

Britplas secure glazing package for Edinburgh St James, one of the UK’s largest private sector regeneration projects

Britplas has recently secured a contract worth in excess of £8m for the design and installation of the glazing to a large section of Laing O’Rourke’s landmark Edinburgh St James development.

With a total investment value of £1.7billion, Edinburgh St James is one of the UK’s largest regeneration projects, located at the top of Leith Walk. Its predecessor, the St James shopping centre, was built in the 1960s and has recently been demolished to make way for 850,000 sq. ft. of retail space, a luxury hotel, 150 new homes, 30 restaurants and a cinema.

At a pre-construction level our team worked with Laing O’Rourke and BDP Architects to deliver both the aesthetic and performance requirements of Edinburgh’s new centrepiece. The end result was a multi-faceted package consisting of:

  • Kawneer AA100 capped curtain walling
  • Kawneer AA720 window/ door suite
  • Kawneer AA4110 sliding door
  • Kawneer AA190 thermally broken and non-thermally broken commercial doors

Work on the site started in 2016, with extensive demolition and excavation required (to a depth of some five storeys). Britplas are due to begin installing the external facade in February 2019, finishing 10 months later in Q1 2020. The whole program is scheduled to be completed in 2020.

Britplas appointed to Norton Street residential scheme

Britplas have been awarded a £4.2m contract to design and install the external vertical envelope to The Weavers, Norton Street – a £36m student accommodation development in Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter.

The scheme is located in Islington, 400m from both Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Liverpool, and will house a total of 748 students across three blocks of eight, eleven and fifteen storeys.

Britplas were appointed to the 220,000 sq. ft. scheme by main contractor Create Construction, and are due on site in late August 2018, finishing early January 2019.

The in-house design department at Britplas have worked in collaboration with the client and scheme architect to choose a specification consisting of both Aluprof and Smartwall systems which have been chosen to meet both aesthetic and technical requirements. Products used will include:

  • Aluprof MB-SR50N capped curtain walling;
  • Aluprof MB-SR50N SG silicone pointed curtain walling;
  • Aluprof MB-70Hi window suite: Opening lights glazed internally, fixed lights externally; and
  • Smartwall thermally broken commercial door system.

Britplas start on site at Honeybourne Place

Britplas are starting work on site at Honeybourne Place, a new £12m office development in the heart of Cheltenham.

The Honeybourne Place façade schedule is due to run until mid-2018, and represents £3.5m to Britplas for the design, manufacture and installation of the majority of the external envelope, a striking glazed façade designed by architects Roberts Limbrick. Located in central Cheltenham, the 60,000 sq. ft. scheme is the first of its type in several years for the Gloucestershire town, with demand for high quality office space outstripping supply.

The initial SFS load bearing sub-structure is being installed prior to the arrival of the first glazed units and cladding next week. When completed, it will feature Schüco FW50+ curtain walling, steel fire resistant screens, finished with a large range of cladding varieties.

Britplas are due to install stone, ceramic, composite, brick slip, aluminium rainscreen, brise soleil and architectural fascias and soffits creating a challenge for our procurement and on-site teams.

Work starts on site at Oxford Science Park

The latest collaboration between Britplas and Barnwood Construction has now started on site, with the steel framework now in place at Plot 12, Oxford Science Park, in readiness for the installation of a Schüco FW 50+ curtain walling system.

Recently named the Schrödinger Building, Plot 12 is a 61,500 sq ft, £13 million state of the art office and laboratory building due for completion early next year.

Britplas Site Manager Kevin Wilkinson is now preparing for the first glazed units to be lifted in to place over the next few weeks. The project is the third secured by Britplas for main contractor Barnwood Construction following the successful design and installation of two building façades on the nearby Milton Park development last year.

Our Pre-Construction Manager Ben Woodward commented “We are delighted to have secured a third project working with Barnwood Construction. The ongoing collaboration is testament to the high standards achieved by our design and construction teams on the recent Milton Park projects, and we look forward to helping to create another great building which will be an exciting addition to our portfolio.”

Landmark telescope development brings Britplas on-board

Britplas have recently secured a £1.2million package for the installation of the façade at the new Square Kilometre Array (SKA) building at Jodrell Bank in Cheshire. Our design department has already started working closely with The University of Manchester and main contractor, Sir Robert McAlpine, to ensure the solution is fit for purpose as part of this world class research facility.

The high-spec Aluprof systems consists of MB70 doors and windows set within 1200m2 of SR 50N curtain walling system, producing a slim line external profile for the £16.5million project. The external façade is completed with 1000m2 of Trimo Qbiss cladding.

The SKA is the world’s largest multi-purpose radio telescope, based in both South Africa and Australia, with over one hundred thousand dishes and antennae being controlled from Jodrell Bank. About the project, Professor Stephen Watts, Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy at The University of Manchester stated “Our astronomers and engineers are playing a significant role in this revolutionary new telescope, and obtaining planning permission for the new building is a key milestone – we very much look forward to seeing the development move forward over the next year.”

Tag Archive for: Facade