"brick block cutting services"

A combination of primer and non-slip, waterborne lacquer from Bona was used to renovate the oak floor in a food service area at Thorpe Park Hotel & Spa, Leeds. Bona Intense primer delivered a subtle grain enriching effect and Bona Traffic HD Anti Slip was chosen for its combination of high durability and low level slip potential that surpasses the HSE’s low level slip classification of 36+ when tested using the Pendulum (CoF) test. Floors finished with Bona Traffic HD can be put back into full use after just 12 hours – perfect when avoiding downtime is a key requirement.

According to Jovan Nel, head of Style’s moveable wall service and repair division, the need to ensure that operable walls are in good working order has caused a surge in demand. “Businesses, hotels, education facilities, local authority venues, community centres and healthcare trusts have all been booking our technicians to carry out routine servicing and inspections while lockdown restrictions eased,” said Jovan. Style has a nationwide team of fully trained engineers who are fully accredited to service and repair all makes of moveable wall, even if Style didn’t install it, from fully automatic systems to simple folding partitions.”

The ChallengeTramways is a 402-bedroomed new build student accommodation complex for Chester University. It comprises 356 en-suite cluster rooms and 56 en-suite studios incorporating communal kitchens and living rooms.The development was to be split into five blocks of accommodation, with each block between three and five storeys in height.The SolutionForterra’s Dark Multi Smooth and County Multi Smooth bricks were selected for the project’s facing brickwork. Used alongside zinc wall cladding, these red bricks helped to create interest and variety in the external appearance of each of the five blocks.Part of Forterra’s Butterley range of bricks they are both smooth, wirecut bricks. While County Multi Smooth is a fully red brick, Dark Multi Smooth introduces elements of blue.The BenefitsThe juxtaposition of the metallic cladding with the red and blue facing brickwork ensures the Tramways development offers its own, unique architectural interest while at the same time complementing the local built environment of this part of Chester.

Reflecting the critical role that moveable wall and folding partitioning systems play in allowing educational facilities comply with social distancing rules, Style has seen a dramatic increase in enquiries from with the sector for their operable wall maintenance and repair services. “Many educational facilities now benefit from one or more partitioning wall systems, allowing smaller bubbles of students to be safely taught in separate classrooms,” comments Julian Sargent, group managing director of partitioning experts, Style. “As with any product, the functionality, reliability and longevity of a wall can be dramatically improved with routine servicing and timely repairs.”

Walton Court Gardens by BroadwayMalyan and Gillespies for Crest Nicholson is a substantial project offering 375 new homes in Walton-on-Thames on the site of the former Birds Eye headquarters. Walton Court pays homage to the site’s original building by echoing the prior site half hexagonal aluminium facade in its full-height angled facade, evoking the original pattern. The central “jewel” building is sat amongst the surrounding buildings clad in Freshfield Lane’s Danehill Yellows. Sunlight bounces from the centre building offering an ever-changing facade through shadow and light. Streets built for the project will be planted alongside new and existing trees to create harmony between the landscape and architectural vernacular. The project draws on influences from the Birds Eye master plan and retains its strong sense of geometry while ensuring that the site is pedestrian friendly and easy to navigate for its new residential community.

Developed by Willmott Dixon and designed by Corstorphine & Wright as part of Devon & Cornwall’s Police and Crime transformation plan, this state-of-the-art police centre and operational hub is the base for up to 450 officers across the area. The project was developed with the intent to improve custody areas for detainees and provide a comfortable, modern working facility for its staff. During the development of the project, suggestions were taken from custody sergeants to help create a better space for staff and detainees.To provide the facilities necessary for 21st-century policing, attention was paid to integrating assets such as a virtual court system, and technology to monitor the health of vulnerable detainees and allow for crisp, modern meeting spaces that cater for a multitude of police functions.Local suppliers were engaged with the project and through training schemes, the project has been able to offer valuable experience to apprentices. Utilising 314sqm of Solar panels also means this build generates a substantial amount of green energy.Blockleys Synthesis S14 was used to create a strong, dark belt around the building which then blends smoothly into vertical strips of glass and contrasting white facades.

James Watt Dock is a development of 137 new-build one- and two-bedroomed flats for social rent. The homes, built over five blocks, will offer residents magnificent views over the historic dock and the River Clyde. Residents will also benefit from parking, amenity units, and a landscaped public space.PROJECT INFOThe site is a brownfield waterfront site adjacent to the Grade A listed Sugar Sheds, which are a unique example of Scotland’s Victorian industrial architecture. The sheds became the design driver, aiding the architects in establishing mass, orientation, position and material.Farmstead Antique, from Forterra’s Butterley range, with its tumbled and distressed multi patches, was selected for its similarity to the bricks used in the Sugar Sheds. It allowed the design of the new development to relate to the historic building while delivering a modern, clean-cut façade.With a water absorbency of only 7%, the brick also offered the high technical performance required owing to the development’s location on the Firth of the Clyde, a robust marine environment.

The ProjectNew Build, State of the Art facility offering full-scale test equipment to create a realistic, complete test setting – ideal for training.  The facility is intended to offer a range of professional courses for technical staff from electrical utilities, industrial plants, equipment manufacturers and service companies. Space Invader architects designed the high-quality refurbishment and specified Excelsior to manufacture and deliver the washroom package.  The ChallengeThe washrooms form part of a £2 million build for Omicron. The building itself in its design and quality is at an extremely high standard.  All the latest technology from fittings, desks to equipment have been considered and the washrooms needed to equal this standard. The Architects vision was to create Superloo facility affording the user complete privacy and comfort which is what is expected in modern buildings.  The Solution Excelsior Flush 30 Full Height Cubicles provided complete privacy for the user and a flush frontage complete with aluminium rebated edge detail to the doors and pilasters enhance the cubicle system and protect the meeting styles.Vibrancy has been created throughout the building’s interior and exterior on this project and white cubicles with a vibrant pop of yellow on the cistern panelling created just the right finish.Built by Pave Aways, the building was handed over to a very happy client in September 2017.Flush 30 Cubicle (Floor to Ceiling)SpecificationProduct Range: Flush 30 HPLDoors: HPL Bonded onto 28mm MR Core, Blanc Megeve B070, rebated HPL/ABS edge detail.Pilaster: HPL Bonded onto 28mm MR Core, Blanc Megeve B070, rebated HPL/ABS edge detail.Partition: HPL Bonded on 18mm MR Core, Blanc Megeve B070 with matching HPL/ABS edge detail.Ironmongery: Stainless Steel

Winner of 2017’s “Best Forecourt Innovation Award”, Abbeyside Service Station's recent renovations included a second storey for café, seating and storage. Maximising shop floor was priority and a Gartec 7000 platform lift with kerb for goods ticked all the boxes. “A platform lift meant much less space was used, but prams and wheelchairs can still get upstairs to the new café easily – and we saved a lot of money. The lift is used daily for stock and does exactly what we need it to do – very reliable and works very well”

In our first in a series of case studies, we’ve invited FireDNA Alliance Partner, Steve Neilson to share his experiences using the FireDNA system to inspect and catalogue 9422 fire doors in three months, on behalf of Mitie, for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.The Scottish Fire & Rescue Service is the fourth largest in the world and ensures the safety and wellbeing of the people in Scotland. Operating out of 547 buildings across 357 sites, these centres are managed by the UK’s largest ‘Facilities Management’ provider Mitie.Following several months of discussion between Mitie and the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service regarding the status of the fire doors across their property portfolio, a tender was issued for an extensive fire door inspection and evaluation programme to be undertaken.Having secured the works through competitive tender, we further engaged with Mitie and the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service team. Working through their property asset registers in detail we gained a full understanding of the scope and requirements of the project.Following weeks of detailed project planning and final agreement on the timeline, it was evident that we had just over 3 months to inspect and report our findings on 9422 fire doors across the 357 site locations, and this all had to be done during the winter months of late 2021 and early 2022.In order to deliver on such a tight timescale, absolute dedication and collaboration was required from all parties…the project managers, admin staff and fire inspectors as well as the teams at Mitie and Scottish Fire & Rescue Service. To support this challenging task we armed our resources with a new cloud based system called ‘FireDNA’.We had been approached by FireDNA a couple of years earlier to see if we would be interested in helping to beta test their new ‘Fire Door Inspection and Monitoring Software’, to which we agreed, little did we know at the time that this software would prove invaluable to us further down the line!Deploying teams of up to 10 Fire Inspectors at a time, armed with the new and now completed FireDNA Inspection and Monitoring App, we set about working through the phased inspection schedule.Having been involved in the development testing of the FireDNA software, we had no doubt this system would, increase the speed in which the surveys were carried out, and dramatically reduce the time and effort in reporting the findings. Working closely with the FireDNA software support team, who assisted us in the initial software training, our Fire Inspectors were able to work efficiently and effectively ‘at pace’ through the challenge. The FireDNA App also has ‘LiveChat’ built in so any questions or queries by our operatives in the field were easily and quickly dealt with by the FireDNA team, which meant there was very little downtime during the inspection process.One of the great benefits of using the FireDNA App is that everything is ‘real-time’ so our office-based project managers could immediately see how the inspections were progressing. Once the inspection data and supporting photography was in the system report generation was largely automated and nicely formatted into MS Word and Excel documents.These reports could then be initially shared internally with our remedial work/replacement estimators for accurate cost estimates, who in turn could then produce accurate cost estimates and quotes for the works required as each buildings inspection was completed. This created a very fast, efficient and accessible workflow process for the whole team.FireDNA is not only a fantastic fire inspection and reporting tool, but also initiates the ‘golden thread’ of information, allowing building owners and managers like the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service and Mitie to take ownership of the ‘live data’ in the system, which can easily be updated and shared as each fire door asset is inspected, monitored and maintained year-on-year, which will soon become the minimum legal requirement.FireDNA also enables building owners and facility managers to create status reports for O&M compliance, which can be shared with insurers and the like, as well as appointing contractors and maintenance teams to carry out and catalogue remedial works and new installations, which are all date-stamped and locked into the system.In our view, anyone involved in fire inspections, installations, planned preventative maintenance and asset recording of passive fire products, such as fire doors, doorsets and fire screens should be using the FireDNA system. For duty holders such as building owners, facility managers, landlords and surveyors to make sure the assets they are responsible for are safe and compliant and the data unambiguous and accessible by all that need it, including residents.We believe FireDNA is the best system on the market and anyone who uses it will appreciate not only the time and money savings but importantly how this centralised system improves work standards across the full lifecycle of passive fire products. Steve Neilson – FireDNA Alliance Partner – Scotland

Dyson’s low energy hand dryers are helping Welcome Break to reduce its carbon footprint, with the hand dryers emitting 85% less CO₂ than single-use paper towels.[1] Global research and technology company Dyson for Business, and the UK’s leading motorway service provider Welcome Break, are announcing details of a recent partnership which is helping Welcome Break to deliver its sustainability goals by using the latest washroom technology.  The company has installed over 450 Dyson Airblade 9kJ low energy hand dryers across all of its 44 service areas and 31 hotels in the UK. Each hand dryer uses only a sixth of the energy of conventional dryers, corresponding to 9.1 kilojoules of energy per use, and captures 99.95% of particles through its HEPA filter – helping Welcome Break’s 85 million annual visitors dry their hands hygienically and efficiently.[2]  In the wake of COP26 and the implementation of the Government’s Net Zero strategy, businesses are racing to reduce their carbon footprint.[3] One of the main areas where major sustainability gains can be seen is in the washroom. Globally, millions of tonnes of paper towels are used every year, with most going into landfill since they cannot be recycled.[4] But with research showing that damp hands can transfer up to 1,000 times more bacteria than dry hands, customers must be able to dry their hands thoroughly and sustainably.[5] Dyson’s innovative technologies negate these concerns. All Dyson hand dryers include air-cleaning HEPA filters and touchless activation as standard. Dyson hand dryers are just as hygienic as using a paper towel, and the Airblade 9kJ model produces up to 88% less CO₂ than paper towels.[6],[7] Implementing this simple change to its UK washrooms is helping Welcome Break to further its mission of becoming the greenest motorway service, while boosting hygiene levels for customers. Tom Crawford, Global Director of Sustainability at Dyson said: “Dyson was founded on a principle of lean engineering and doing more with less when it comes to our technologies and how we do business. We applied the same philosophy to the development of our hand dryers, making wasteful paper towels redundant with the launch of the Dyson Airblade™ hand dryer. Working with Welcome Break to help the company boost sustainability and hygiene in its washrooms nationwide aligns perfectly with our own goals and we are excited to see how the partnership continues to benefit visitors in the future.” Martyn Brett-Lee, Commercial Director at Welcome Break said: “We are delighted to have installed Dyson Airblade technology across our Welcome Break locations. On our mission to become a more sustainable Motorway Service Area Operator, reducing our CO2 emissions is key and Dyson’s Airblade technology is one of the many ways we’re driving this. Given the last few years we’ve all experienced, we’re pleased to provide our customers assurances that their hand drying is with HEPA-filtered, clean air.” Dyson for Business offers high quality products for professional settings including its award-winning hand dryers and air purifiers. From motorway services to education establishments, Dyson for Business offers peace of mind through its use of the latest technology and engineering innovation. --- [1] Average electricity price £0.1/kWh as of December 2018: See our calculations.[2] https://www.dyson.co.uk/commercial/hand-dryers/airblade-9kj [3] Net Zero Strategy: Build Back Greener, HM Government, https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1033990/net-zero-strategy-beis.pdf [4] https://www.dyson.co.uk/inside-dyson/sustainability/overview[5] Epidemiology & Infection, Residual moisture determines the level of touch-contact-associated bacterial transfer following hand washing, December 1997[6] Frontiers Public Health, Aerosols and Bacteria From Hand Washing and Drying in Indoor Air, 2022 https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.804825/full [7] Average electricity price £0.1/kWh as of December 2018. See our calculations.

A busy service corridor in a medical education and research facility, has recently been refurbished with the help of products from Yeoman Shield’s heavy duty range.Wanting to protect vulnerable walls and corners throughout the heavily used service corridor, the facilities management invested in a complete Yeoman Shield heavy duty wall protection system installed by their directly employed fixing operatives.A striking and durable protective finish to the corridor walls was achieved with Yeoman Shield Chequer Plate Wall Panels. The panels were paired with heavy duty Rubber E-Fender running at the top and the bottom of the chequer plate at such levels to absorb impact from the most frequently occurring and heaviest of blows from footfall, trolleys and motorised carts.Yeoman Shield HD75 heavy duty Rubber Protection Angles were fitted full height to vulnerable corners protecting the structure.Designed specifically to protect areas in a building that experiences heavier footfall such as warehouses, storage and service facilities, the heavy duty protection products, when installed, keep areas damage free, providing an easy clean hygienic surface whilst putting an end to frequent costly re-pair and re-painting, offering long term savings on maintenance budgets.

Kylna Court’s terraces faced significant safety and design challenges, calling for a robust solution. This case study showcases the ongoing progress at Kylna Court, where AliDeck’s innovative and non-combustible Junior Ridged Board, alongside bespoke balcony components, plays a pivotal role in ensuring project success. By integrating cutting-edge products, the project not only addressed immediate issues but also ensured a cost-effective, futureproof solution, compliant with BS 8579:2020.

The ChallengeLocated in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, Foundry Gardens is a development of two to five-bedroomed housing. It was important that this relatively low-density scheme fit the traditional vernacular of the area.The SolutionChelsea Smoked Red brick was chosen and used alongside white boarding and tile. The white boarding element has been used to emphasis corner and key buildings, detailing porches and canopies.Chelsea Smoked Red brick is a red, stock thrown, wire cut brick by Ecostock, the most sustainable stock brick available in the UK. It is a high quality facing brick with recycled content. The range carries BES 6001 Responsible Sourcing certification.The BenefitsThe choice of brick helps the development to seamlessly fuse the traditional with the contemporary.The project won the Large House Builder category at the Brick Development Association’s annual Brick Awards 2018.

Arqiva provides much of the infrastructure supporting television, radio, satellite, and wireless communications in the United Kingdom; most of the UK uses its TV services. Major broadcasters such as the BBC, ITV and BSkyB as well as independent radio groups, depend upon Arqiva to keep connected to their customers. Arqiva plans to build hundreds of new structures to meet increasing national demand, as well as to maintain its existing 6,000 sites. Arqiva sought to improve their worker access safety measures, leading them to find a more reliable replacement system.

Rawson’s Jazz Solution Dyed Nylon carpet tiles are most suited to education environments and These education carpet tiles are durable and provide choice with 24 colourways.

Newton-trained contractor Structural Repairs are leading national specialists in renovating, strengthening and repairing commercial and domestic buildings. However, in 2020 it was their own requirements that were the focus of their efforts, as they sought to renovate a historic railway arch in Windsor in order to create a new head office for the business.

As the oldest building on Newcastle University's campus, The Armstrong Building has an iconic status. Grade II listed and steeped in history. A setting perfect for the Westfield Yorkstone, which was supplied to this project in the form of both paving and setts, in a multitude of plan sizes.

Portakabin Ltd. were working on a project for Servicecare Support Services Ltd. to install a temporary canteen and locker room facility. They required the extra building space so they could continue to operate whilst adhering to social distancing measures throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.Alongside the temporary building, they were in need of a wall mounted canopy along the right elevation to provide weather protection above the main entrance to the building that leads to the corridor.Able Canopies have been working with Portakabin for a number of years, adding shade and shelter structures to their temporary buildings. Although our canopies are permanent structures, we have designed above ground planter pads and special wall brackets to enable us to install the canopies and take them down when they are on longer required.These adaptions have been designed for our Coniston Wall Mounted Canopy and have been successfully used for many years now. The staff at Portakabin therefore put the Coniston Wall Mounted Canopy forward to Servicecare Support Ltd. who were pleased with the design and specifications and were happy to go ahead with the installation.The final design was 10m in length with a 3m projection to cover the whole span of the temporary building and provide the weather protection required above the entrance.

Hydrock is an award-winning, multidisciplinary engineering design consultancy working with clients across the UK. With 16 offices and over 500 staff, their work covers various sectors, including acoustics, nuclear, fire, civil + structural and building performance engineering. Director of Building Performance Engineering, Anuran Wickramasinghe, caught up with us to tell us more about the work Hydrock does for its clients and why the business uses NBS Chorus on its projects.WORKING COLLABORATIVELYAs a multidisciplinary consultancy, Hydrock work on a wide range of exciting projects, from concept to detailed construction drawings to post-occupancy evaluations. Recent projects have included the new facilities for the English National Ballet, UWE's engineering faculty and Bristol’s inland surfing destination, The Wave. According to Anuran, the ability to work on projects in the cloud has been one of the most useful features of NBS Chorus. As a cloud-based specification platform, Chorus allows multiple users to work on a specification remotely and on a range of devices, which has been extremely useful for Hydrock given the distance between their offices - and around 90% of their technical staff are currently working from home. “We’re dispersed all around the country and are working from home so having an online version of the spec is very helpful,” he said. "Having an online platform makes things much easier for us while working from home because now the engineers can access the specification and share information without overloading our servers"IMPROVING CONSISTENCYBefore adopting NBS Chorus, Hydrock used desktop product NBS Create, which is due be retired. Anuran highlighted the consistency and standardisation benefits that NBS Chorus’ stylesheets feature provides as one of the significant benefits the business has seen since making the switch. “One of my main tasks last year was to standardise our specifications and projects, and that is why we decided to use NBS Chorus. NBS's automatic updates to the standards and guidance take away a big slice of our work because we cannot dedicate a team to continually update our standard template. We’re pushing hard on our branding and thanks to the Stylesheets feature; we’ve now got the front page of our documents looking standardised which is great progress.” “Shortly, we want to utilise the Masters' feature and have one standardised template that we can work on to create our specifications and projects.” In terms of helping Hydrock create more robust specifications, Anuran says that the prompts and guidance notes provided within Chorus have helped improve decision-making during the specification process. The ability to start specifying early describing system performance before developing a fuller specification defining products and execution requirements is also of benefit. “The prompts on whether to park or specify something have helped us to progressively develop a robust specification because we can always revisit the specification and make sure that we haven't missed something that could lead to an omission on a project which could be extremely detrimental."SUMMARYIn summary, NBS Chorus is not only helping Hydrock to create more robust and more effective specifications, but it’s also helping to improve collaboration across the business’ different locations and disciplines. "Having up-to-date information and the template there help us to produce the documents much more efficiently. I don’t like the ‘copy and paste’ style of doing things because you could be working on a residential project and accidentally insert a clause from a healthcare project which happened to be the last specification the engineer worked on. The efficiency comes from being able to use the template as a starting point and not having to write a specification completely from scratch," Anuran said. “The collaboration aspect of NBS Chorus is the key because it means that the different disciplines can access and work together on the document at the same time."

See how our innovative acoustic solutions helped create a modern, flexible and social space for accountants and tax advisers across their 10,000 sq ft office in Chelmsford. The project included different colours and textures and given the sensitive nature of some of their work, the scheme also included quiet spaces, meeting rooms and work pods.

Pura® NFC by Trespa brings subtle touch to balconies of senior housing complexA majestic historical villa and its surrounding park garden in the picturesque city of Bree were the perfect setting for a modern senior housing complex. These comfortable apartments are aimed at older people who desire living independently, but with customised assistance always within reach.

A great example of 1930s Art Deco architecture, The Douglas Building sits on Great Titchfield Street in London’s West End. Formerly known as The Media Village, Douglas House was acquired by serviced office providers The Office Group (TOG) from landlords The Langham Estate in 2019. TOG together with Note Design Studio transformed the building with a colourful concept that blends the distinctive 1930s features and gives a sense of fluidity, openness and light throughout.As its former name suggests this area of London is a hub for local media and IT businesses operating out of the West End and the brief for the building was to create a flexible workspace where people can feel stimulated by their environment leading to greater productivity. Wellness was also a central focus and the building includes an oxygen room, a parents’ room and a roof terrace which are all integral to enabling and inspiring everyone who enters.Well ventilated and an abundance of natural light have become buzzwords in the COVID era and the more than 300 new steel windows from the Clement EB24 range which were chosen by office fit out and refurbishment contractors Parkeray perfectly facilitate both. Polyester powder coated in Pure White and furnished with Warren handles in a satin chrome finish the windows lend the building a contemporary look on the outside as well as supporting the 21st century ways of working inside.Peter Clement, Chief Executive of Clement Windows Group, commented:“As with all prestigious window replacement projects of this magnitude Clement took part in a competitive tender process. Whilst this was in play we understand that both Parkeray and the client’s team had the opportunity to compare our EB24 steel window to others being considered. We believe it was the quality and overall finish of EB24 combined with an attractive price and fine references that convinced them and the client to proceed with us.”

The ChallengeSituated in the Rye Lane conservation area in Peckham, South London, the four to seven storey mixed-use development in Rye Green – comprising 27 residential units laid out across six floors, with two retail units on the ground floor – would provide affordable housing for people in the community who are most in need.The scheme had to consider two elements, the first being the redevelopment of the frontage building (Rye Lane) with the retention of its façade, and the second being the six-storey (with set-back seven-storey) block to the rear, on the site of the existing fish warehouse.The SolutionThe architectural design of this residential development incorporates traditional and modern features with an existing brick façade.PROJECT INFOPRODUCT DETAILThe seven-storey block is rectangular in form and has been built with a striking yellow facingbrick with protruding red brick paneling. The contrast between red and yellow brickwork is exaggerated with the introduction of green glaze facing brickwork at street level. This change in texture and brick finish works well with the local vernacular.The new second and third floor additions are set back from the retained frontage.The design is simple and functional, and the specified fabric responds to the historic character of the conservation area.Three facing bricks from Butterley Brick were selected for the build. Arden Special Reserve, a red, light textured brick, and buff Village Harvest Multi – also light textured – were used as the facing material for the main body of the buildings. Wilncote Blue Smooth, a dark toned brick. was used to define the base of the buildings. The set-back top floor of the seven-storey block is clad in zinc shingles to reflect its roof-like character.The BenefitsThe high quality development, together with its associated external landscaping, has contributed positively to its place in Peckham.Butterley Brick offers a range of high quality facing bricks manufactured from locally sourced raw materials; the range carries BES 6001 Responsible Sourcing certification. The bricks contribute to thermal mass and can be recycled at the end of their use.

A Suffolk-based local authority turned to Crown Paints Specification Services to transform the tallest building in the most easterly settlement of the UK. St. Peter’s Court – in the coastal town of Lowestoft, Suffolk – was in need of re-decoration and Waveney District Council wanted a product that would last for the long-term. Crown Paints came out to the site, which comprises of 90 flats over 15 floors, and after an extensive inspection and review of requirements, specified 3,600 litres of Sandtex Trade 365 All Weather Masonry Paint for the project.

With passenger growth at a five-year high, Heathrow Airport looked for new ways to make it easier and quicker for passengers to travel through the airport and board aircrafts quicker. dormakaba supplied and installed self-boarding gates, integrated with Heathrow’s Biometric system, as the ideal solution. Simon Wilcox, Heathrow Passenger Automation Programme Lead, recognised the growing number of passengers it handled every year and wanted an innovative way to make it easier and quicker for them to travel through the airport – without having to compromise on security. As such, the automation programme required implementing biometric gates that would bring facial recognition to each point of the departing passenger’s journey. The new technology would use facial recognition at check-in, bag drops, security lanes and boarding gates to create a seamless experience for passengers walking through the airport. When looking for the initial self-boarding gates, the team at London Heathrow Airport contacted dormakaba. After reviewing the requirements for the airport, dormakaba recommended and supplied its HSB-M03 Self Boarding Gates and PaxCheck Self Boarding Solution. dormakaba also provided its project management services, and the airport has taken out an on-going service contract for third and fourth line support. Andy Carter, Contracting Business Sales and Operations Director at dormakaba UK said “As part of their passenger journey, Heathrow required a bespoke and technically capable system to allow them to cope with the increasing passenger numbers whilst also providing a seamless passenger experience”. “The final project looks to have over 400 gates installed across the whole airport. Each one has dormakaba software on the gates, incorporating Heathrow’s biometric data, as well as a connection to the management server.” This challenge of complex integration was overcome by the close collaboration between dormakaba engineers and the project team with London Heathrow Airport’s team, and suppliers for third party products and systems. Currently, Terminals 2A, 2B and 5A have been completed, with Terminal’s 3, 4, 5B and 5C scheduled for completion by end 2020. Completed terminals now benefit from a market-leading, self-boarding solution that adheres to all the latest relevant security and build standards as well as third and fourth line support from dormakaba. Across these completed terminals, passengers present their boarding pass to a reader on the gate, which then scans and checks the pass with the airline’s Departure Control System (DCS) and either opens or remains closed depending on the response. For passengers departing on domestic flights, the gate also uses facial recognition technology to verify that the passenger boarding the aircraft either entered the airport through the front door or has been through a UK Border Force check since arriving on an international flight. Its installation being partnered with the airport’s chosen biometric provider Atkins, this system allows domestic passengers to mix with those transferring between international flights at Heathrow in the Common Departure Lounges, where they can enjoy all the benefits of the many dining and retail outlets, as well as the numerous lounges available. The self-boarding solution also includes a web-based administration programme, PaxCheck, that allows for management of the gates and sends reports of passengers and when they passed through – allowing for faster boarding, and fewer staff. This also means airport and airline management can have live stats on the numbers of passengers passing through the gates in any given period

The waterproofing to a large residential flatted development in London was carried out using the Koster TPO membrane.This warm roof design incorporated the Koster TPO Fleecebacked membrane mechanically fixed through PIR insulation, Koster Vapour Barrier and into the timber substructure as per the wind load calculation.An interesting project with many challenges that were all individually designed by the Koster technical team in collaboration with the project architects.The final roof incorporates hard standing areas, sedum and green roof sections, a solar panel farm and decorative stones.A beautifully deigned and usable area providing residents an amazing view over London.

Celebrating 50 years trading this year, as part of their celebrations and charitable activities, Harrison Thompson were pleased to offer their services to their local hospice.The Sue Ryder Wheatfields at Headingley Leeds is a charity run 18-bed hospice, offering the very highest care and services to patients with life-limiting conditions and their families, free of charge.“For our 50th anniversary, we wanted to focus our charity efforts on local organisations.” Explained Harrison Thompson Director, Graeme Brumwell.“Serious illness has touched a number of lives within the company and Wheatfields Hospice has been a facility close to our hearts helping families on these difficult occasions.“It seemed only fitting that we should offer something back for the care that Wheatfield has provided over the years.” Concluded Graeme.Yeoman Shield – the wall and door protection division of Harrison Thompson – got in contact with the Hospice to offer free material and installation for wall and door protection products to be fitted in an area of their choice which was gratefully accepted.2.0mm thick wall protection panels in Cream were fitted to the bedroom walls at the head of beds protecting from marking and damage which can occur from the movement of both the bed and medical equipment.In the corridors, Yeoman Shield’s Fire Rated Door Edge Protectors were fitted to the meeting edge of doors helping to protect from damage and helping to prolong the life of expensive to replace fire doors.The installation of Yeoman Shield will help Wheatfields to keep looking smart and inviting for all those who use the facilities whilst importantly helping to reduce their repair and redecoration cost over the years to come.Sue Waddington, Service Improvement Matron commented “I cannot commend high enough the service that we have received from Yeoman Shield’s contract department.“Due to the nature of our provision of specialist care and services, we had to call on Yeoman Shield at short notice to carry out the work when rooms were available. The installation was undertaken with great empathy and regard for the surroundings.“Now completed the Wall & Door protection looks great and dovetails into our existing décor lovely and gets the hospice well on the way to our forthcoming refurbishment plans for the inpatient unit” Concluded Sue.

Style’s glazed folding wall system, the Stylefold 120, was recently installed at Clarksons Port Services’ new offices in Aberdeen, allowing a highly functional meeting room to be quickly created at one end of a large open-plan area. When not required, the wall can easily be folded back to merge the room seamlessly into the larger space.A leading expert in moveable wall systems, Style offers an extensive range of solutions for almost any location, including being the sole UK distributor for Dorma Hüppe, as well as for the revolutionary Skyfold vertical rising wall range.The Stylefold 120 folding wall installed at Clarksons is a simple, yet very effective solution for rapidly dividing space, with the glass panels maximising natural light whilst still delivering a 31dB acoustic rating for privacy. Clarksons Port Services is a division of Clarksons, the world’s leading integrated shipping services group. Having moved to larger premises at Aberdeen Harbour’s Matthew’s Quay, with a view to increasing efficiency and reducing carbon footprint, the integrated shipping and offshore services provider now has 1,600 sq metres of outdoor storage and 2,000 sq metres of customs bonded warehouse at this site.Style worked closely with architects, Philip Rodgers Design, and contractor, TransForm, to deliver a partitioning solution for the new offices that successfully combines functionality with exceptional aesthetics. Making minimal impact on the existing structure, the Stylefold 120 is easy to install wherever an economical retrofit solution is required. “The Stylefold 120 folding wall is smooth and effortless to manoeuvre, whilst the anthracite finish specified at the Aberdeen offices perfectly complements the contemporary interior design,” said David Louden, Style’s director for Scotland.“The addition of an integrated pass door means that it is entirely practical to leave the private meeting room in situ for long periods, if desired.”

The original timber sleepers used for Manchester Royal Infirmary external areas had begun to rot away quite early in their lifespan. We were tasked with replicating the existing footprint of planters to replace them within the confines of the existing paving. All installation works were undertaken in a busy hospital with minimal impact on patients and workers. Using a typographical survey we created CAD outlines for each planter, a number of existing structures featured extremely tight angles, which meant we needed to modify our corner cuts to ensure a perfect match.Our components were all pre-cut ready for installation so there was no need to use any heavy machinery on site. WoodBlocX modular system is guaranteed for 15 years and because the structures are made up of a series of individual blocks, held together by strong dowels, they will not warp or distort, nor will they rot, thanks to the pressure treatment used.WoodBlocX components are manufactured in five different sizes and work in the same way as bricks, in addition, any capping and angled parts are pre-mitred, which saves installers significant build time and eliminates the need for sawing, drilling and disposing of waste. With WoodBlocX you receive a guaranteed standard of material. From the planting of the trees to harvesting of timber all the way through to cutting the WoodBlocX components, we keep on top of every aspect of each process - maintaining the highest standards of timber quality. Using WoodBlocX, specifiers can be safe in the knowledge that the supply chain of their timber products is sustainable and reliable.

The Hive is a new creativity & innovation hub, built alongside the existing structures of Headington School and designed to ensure that creative thinking is established as the heart of a Headington Students education.Designed by LSH Architects, the 23,000 sq. ft building consists of sculpture studios, kiln room, photographic facilities, textile studios and 3 artist studios, with media editing suites and a Cinemax screening room also being included. Other facilities specifically suited to a range of creative outputs have been carefully and cleverly built into the project. To enable a sense of openness, high ceilings are used throughout the buildings and the gallery space is further enhanced to allow vast columns of light to permeate the area.Michelmersh’s Hampshire Red Stock Multi ATR was supplied via EH Smith and helped settle the building into the verdant, green backdrop and give the building a warm, comforting feel, as well as allowing the building to fit snugly within the landscape created by the surrounding buildings.

The Pears Building by Hopkins Architects is a world-class immunology research and treatment centre built for University College London. With only 5 similar specialist immunology centres in the world (and the only one outside of the US), the Pears Building offers world-class expertise to patients. The Pears Building provides offices, multiple research wings to house over 200 researchers and a 35-bed patient hospital for outpatients or visiting academics.At the centre of the building is a large atrium with joins the wider building and its office space to the public-facing café and entrance area. Vast, open windows flood interiors with huge amounts of natural light creating a soothing, and uncluttered feeling. Materials selected for the building were done for their sustainable credentials, ease of maintenance, durability, and cost.The Pears Building was designed to avoid becoming a “monolithic” structure and sits well within the local area. During its construction efforts were made to retain as many existing trees on the site as possible to ensure the village-esque feeling of Hampstead is uninterrupted. As expected with forward-thinking institutions, the architects endeavoured to achieve a BREEAM excellent rating, which it easily achieved with its holistic approach to sustainability.The Pears building uses Freshfield Lanes First Quality Multi in its construction and has been commended for numerous awards and won the Public Buildings award at the Construction News Awards.

Vandersanden has installed their first wind turbine at their Lanklaar site in Belgium. The wind turbine will supply 10,000 MWh of green energy annually, equivalent to the energy consumption of 2,000 families. With this new sustainable milestone, Vandersanden aims to make their production processes and sector more sustainable. The family business continues to build a green future. In recent years, Vandersanden has invested in solar panels and the use of geothermal power to generate heat and electricity.  "At Vandersanden, we don't think in years, but in generations. That is why we find it extremely important to manufacture as sustainably as possible, for people and the environment, for now and later", says Raf Jansen, COO at Vandersanden. "Alternative green energy sources are the future. With our wind turbine, we are helping to build that greener future."Production of enough energy to power 2,000 householdsIn November 2021, Vandersanden started with the preparatory works on its premises for the installation of the wind turbine. All construction elements, such as the mast sections and rotor blades, were delivered in April and the assembly was completed in early May. Currently, the electrical works are in progress and the connection of the wind turbine to the electricity grid is being prepared... The wind turbine has a full height of 200 metres and will supply 10,000 MWh of energy annually. That is equivalent to the energy consumption of approximately 2,000 families. More than 50% of the energy generated will be used for Vandersanden's activities at its site in Lanklaar. Remaining energy will be offered to the grid as green electricity. "Not only do we want to make our own production process and our own sector greener, we also like giving something back to the community," Raf Jansen explains. "This is part of what we call Collective Well-being, offering our surplus production of green energy to the grid and where local residents can also enjoy clean energy."  For the full story, and to watch the video, here Renewable energy | Vandersanden

Utilising the same bricks as were being laid by the bricklayers to the masonry walls, FastClad supplied the cladding to the balconies so that there was a seamless match.Collecting bricks from site to ensure that they were from the same production run, the slips were cut and bonded to our profiled backing board at our Leicester factory.These boards were then returned to site for mechanical fix to the balcony structures and pointed in a lime mortar to match that of the cement mortar being used by the bricklayers at an off-site compound.The balconies were then craned into position and fixed to the structure.

Specified at the design stage Bioclad’s white antimicrobial PVC system along with BioArmis wall protection including bump rails and corner guards were installed through-out this recent healthcare scheme.

The Dimplex Edel air source hot water heat pump has proved its credentials as an exceptionally efficient, easy to install and cost-effective renewable water heating system for one resident on the island of Jersey.