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The Northern Hub required improved and increased train services via direct links between Manchesters Three mainline stations and a new direct link to Manchester Airport. SureSet helped redevelop these areas by installing two mixes of Resin Bound Paving to run next to the viaduct, which also includes entrances to step areas and ramp ways. The colour Tuscan Barley Butter a dark red mix with tones of gold and yellow, and Bronze which has more browns and greens, were then used in conjunction with a traditional concrete slab. SureSet provides a durable, accessible, low maintenance surface that will last.

Metrotile has often stated that their Lightweight Steel Roofing systems can go head to head with ‘traditional’ materials aesthetically, and Gorse Hill School is a fine example of this statement in action.Gorse Hill is unique as it required a partial refurbishment. Some, but not all of the blocks roofs where in urgent need of repair. For these roofs, Metrotile’s classic ‘Roman’ profile was specificied as its contoured design matched the concrete Roman tiles that remained on some of the buildings.The finished product, is a fine example of old meeting new with brilliant results. Another important factor involved with the specification of Metrotile was the need for a secure roofing solution.

Client: Matthew AlgieLocation: Glasgow, Scotland, UKYear: 2023Project size: 300 m²Vebro systems: vebrocrete MFA high performance PU concrete flooring system was required to deliver a hygienic, durable, easy-to-clean flooring solution for a Glasgow-based coffee roastery.Matthew Algie, established in 1864, began life selling its own blend of tea to wholesale customers across Glasgow, before beginning coffee production after the second world war.Today, the Scottish company supplies its famous coffee blends as well as other peripheral goods and equipment to cafés, restaurants and hotels throughout the UK and beyond.Matthew Algie’s award-winning Glasgow roastery is in the heart of the city and close to the banks of the River Clyde.The slab in the facility’s production facility was in need of some attention, requiring mechanical preparation and exposed repairs before being overcoated.vebrocrete MF was chosen to transform the 300 m2 area. vebrocrete MF is a HACCP International certified medium duty, easily-applied, polyurethane concrete screed offering excellent chemical and wear resistance.vebrocrete MF is best suited to use in dry and semi-wet food processing and preparation areas subject to moderate temperature swings, chemical spillage and medium duty traffic.The system, which is resistant to temperatures up to 70ºC, also provides excellent cleanability and features a seamless hygienic finish.The food-safe, solvent-free, odourless, non-tainting and non-dusting system complies with HACCP food safety management guidelines.

The Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich made for a stunning venue for the London 2012 shooting competitions. But organisers knew that the ease of access and the number of roads in the area rendered the temporary shooting ranges and grandstands potentially vulnerable.Given the arsenal within, they needed a temporary perimeter that would remain intact even under deliberate attack by vehicles or people – and yet that could be removed once the Games were over with no damage to the 18th-century site.The SolutionZaun developed a mobile high-security fence with Hostile Vehicle Mitigation (HVM), especially for the London 2012 Olympics, mounting its PAS 68 Multi- Fence® into concrete blocks to resist attack by 7.5-tonne vehicles driven straight at it at 40mph.Zaun installed 2km of MultiFence and access gates around the Royal Artillery Barracks site and added HVM enhancements, detection systems and CCTV to secure the entire venue.Multi-Fence uses anti-climb mesh fencing and is available up to 5m high. The fence posts are mounted in concrete blocks that can follow a curve or go from a flat surface to an incline with ease due to an ingenious bolting method.It is one of the world’s first temporary solutions to achieve PAS68: 2010 V7500(N2) 64/90:5.0/0.0. It is manufactured to the BS EN 1317 Part 2 (vehicle restraint systems) and is approved by the Highways Agency.It is ideal for supporting crowd control at key events or for permanent installations at airports, freight terminals and ports, as no below-ground foundations are required, and they can be used on soft and hard standing. 

Aylesbury Estate, in South London, has become one of the most significant urban renewal projects in London. There is a new public square at the heart of the regeneration, featuring two separate blocks, from four to fifteen storeys which provide a Community Facility, Public Library, Community Health Care facility and an Early Years Centre.  The sustainability strategy in place for Aylesbury Square is to ‘create a place which meets or exceeds the highest quality standards for a development in London’ – and as the wall connection to the floor or floor slab can be a serious source of linear thermal bridges – the inclusion of the dedicated new Sconnex® type W is a critical addition to the design detailing.  Around 40% of all thermal bridges in a building are caused by walls and supports, resulting in some 10% of heating energy losses. With reinforced concrete construction, minimising linear thermal bridges in these areas has undoubtedly been a perennial problem.  However, the unique new Sconnex® type W offers outstanding insulation performance, combined with an exceptional load-bearing capacity which transmits very high pressure, tensile and shear forces in the longitudinal and transverse direction.  This is made possible by the use of a pressure buffer consisting of ultra-high performance fibre reinforced concrete, which achieves compressive strength in excess of 175 N/mm2 – but with extremely good flexural strength as well.  There is also a significant cost reduction involved when compared to installing insulation beneath the floor slab.

Middlesborough CouncilPAS 68 Counter Terror plantersStreet furniture | Street PlantersConcrete bollards | HVMTownscape has successfully tendered to Middlesbrough Council for the supply of PAS 68 Counter Terror planters.Thirty-two Toledo PAS 68 Planters and one hundred and six PAS 68 bollards have been supplied to create strong and robust hostile vehicle mitigation around the Town Hall and Central Square area of the city.The new line of defence is not in response to any specific threat. Centre Square is one of the region’s biggest open civic spaces and the new security measure mirrors those seen in town and city centres across the country in recent years following attacks on domestic soil and abroad.Cllr Dennis McCabe, the executive member for environment, said Centre Square played host to many public events attracting large audiences.He added:“In common with public spaces up and down the country, security arrangements remain under constant review in the wake of high-profile incidents both at home and abroad.“The CT planters will ensure that unwanted vehicles are unable to enter Centre Square, to protect those attending events or simply enjoying a stroll in the open air.”The hardwearing steel, timber, and concrete planters were chosen for their high quality and durable finish.For more details of how we can help with your PAS68 Counter Terror requirements, please get in touch.

This major redevelopment of Charlton Park Academy school involved replacing temporary mobile classrooms and a single storey building with a two-storey steel framed brick building to better meet the needs of students, teachers and carers. A structural flooring solution was required for use over precast planks, covering 800m2 on the ground and upper floor at a depth of 75mm to 120mm. Space and access would be challenging, due to the small footprint of the site, proximity to the existing school building and access from a busy main road. Given the large floor area, a traditional sand cement screed would have been very time consuming to place. Tarmac’s TOPFLOW SF a self compacting steel fibre reinforced concrete was chosen as the solution. Its flowing nature would allow it to be quickly pumped into place and adapt to the variable thickness criteria. TOPFLOW SF is designed to act as a structural topping with both, steel mesh & fibre reinforcement. The steel fibres added to the TOPFLOW SF gave its robustness and flexural strength as it was being placed over a precast plank system that could flex with loadings. They also reduced the risk of cracking. By replacing steel mesh reinforcement, it helped avoid problems with access, storage and handling and kept the site open for parallel trades. Using TOPFLOW SF rather than a sand cement screed or reinforced concrete, improved productivity and saved time. This saved 13 days or just over 2.5 weeks on the programme. 

Whitethorn Village is an attractive residential scheme positioned adjacent to the centre of Naas. The contemporary development led by Cairn Homes PLC includes a mix of spacious family homes and two apartment buildings. These comfortable, sustainable residences offer the very best in terms of quality and energy efficiency.Developer Cairn Homes collaborated with Horizon Offsite to deliver the impressive 5-storey residential blocks in Whitethorn Village, benefiting from off-site fabrication, accuracy, and rapid completion within a tightly controlled cost plan.The apartments were constructed using an offsite fabricated light gauge steel (LGS) structural system. The external LGS wall panels and floor decking used in this system incorporated a number of Partel’s low carbon building envelope solutions. This included the advanced fire rated components EXOPERM MONO DURO 200 breather membrane and ECHOSEAL ALU FR airtight and windtight tape, the multi-purpose adhesive VERBOND, and also the phA Class Passive House Certified components IZOPERM PLUS vapour control layer and VARA SEAL smart airtight tape.

The London clinic is one of the UK’s largest private hospitals. Located in the heart of London’s world famous medical district it is the first hospital to have hybrid theatres. Hybrid operating theatres combine the surgical capacity of traditional operating rooms with the imaging capabilities of a catheterisation lab.BriefThe trust required specialist hybrid operating theatre doors for its new hybrid operating suite. The hybrid theatre provides the surgical technology to enable surgeons to switch between open vascular surgery and endovascular surgery as necessary, with real time imaging support.SolutionDortek’s hygienic hybrid operating theatre doors were installed in theatre areas. Dortek’s hybrid operating theatre doors can combine a number of key properties all in one hygienic door. Whether its x-ray rated, automated, fire rated, waterproof or hermetically sealing sliding, these doors were a versatile solution for these new breed of hybrid operating theatres. Doors were also automated to allow staff to open and close them without touching any surface to reduce the risk of infection.

 Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility that treats all of the residual household waste generated in Essex and Southend. To meet the structural design criteria of the contract, a very strong roof profile was required. To ensure fully effective sealing, this had to be a plain sheet without stiffening ribs. The requirement was met by a specially modified Trisobuild® R60 roof profile in a higher strength steel. The modified Trisobuild® R60 solution spans 2.65m. Tata Steel altered its production tooling to manufacture 26,000m2 of the modified R60 roof profile in double-sided Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra®.Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra® was chosen to optimise protection against the corrosive internal environment and external weather side of the bio-stabilisation halls. Super durable Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra® provides exceptional corrosion resistance which has been proven in natural and accelerated testing. Colorcoat HPS200 Ultra® exceeds the requirements of CP15 (as per EN 10169.2010), demonstrating excellent barrier properties when used internally.Images courtesy of UBB (Essex) Construction JV.

Working through our Midlands contracting office, Planet provided smoke sealed extended height PURE20XL glazing to floors 2 to 7 of the building’s internal atrium. 6.7m high Schueco Jansen Viss screens were placed on ground level, while PURE20XL was also utilised along with rebated 1.5 leaf IsoPro doors (Rw 36 dB).Extended 3.3m LOFT100 screens (Rw 47 dB) with back-painted glass above transom level were placed in the 300-capacity auditorium with double IsoPro doors. Finally, banded LOFT20 partitions and matching IsoTec acoustic doors (Rw 38 dB) and double glazed LOFT54 (Rw 45 dB) with IsoPro doors were installed for the client’s meeting rooms and phone booths respectively.The Unity Place development is a great example of a people-first workplace design that hopes to be a catalyst for the regular return to the office for many of Santander’s staff. The building is set to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating for sustainable performance, aided by Planet’s EPD documentation for our LOFT and IsoPro solutions.

Liquasil's BBA Approved Metalseal 20 roof coating and Gutterseal system were specified for use on the Airspace Trampoline Park in Wolverhampton. The whole roof was pressure washed and a historical cut-edge corrosion treatment was removed before application; the cut-edges were treated with our SWT Corrosion Primer, with additional reinforcement to the mid-laps through the installation of Liquasil's optional HP Butyl Tape.The whole roof was then coated with Metalseal 20 in Goosewing Grey at a filmweight of c. 300 microns to provide a protective, aesthetically pleasing finish.The gutters were cleaned out and dried before being primed with our SWT Corrosion Primer. Once touch-dry, the joints could then be sealed using our Non-Sag Sealer and a single coat of Liquasil One was applied to the entire gutter. Liquasil One can be immediately applied over the top of Non-Sag Sealer, meaning no time is wasted waiting for it to cure before the works can continue.The end result was a revitalised metal roof with a protective, water-resistant coating that is guaranteed for 20 years.

This mixed use development on the southern fringes of the Olympic Park utilised the Nexus® system to achieve flawless brick-faced soffits to the hundreds of door and window heads. Nexus is a two-part brick soffit system that combine a high integrity stainless steel brickwork support system with custom-designed prefabricated brick faced soffit units. Being 70% lighter than traditional cast concrete solutions, the Nexus soffit system is simply lifted and bolted into position by hand and, as the brick slip facing is manufactured from the same batch as the main brickwork, presents a perfect colour and texture match for flawless transitions.

Architect Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners specified Howe Green when they required a unique, reliable access solution for the WCEC. Howe Green designed and manufactured a circular access cover in 316-grade stainless steel. The bespoke cover offered a stylish and discreet solution, capable of withstanding 40kn load and meeting the specification for aesthetics and performance. Each box section of the cover had built-in cable access and voice/data plug-in points. Slotted steel lids were made for when services were in use. The access covers also accept coloured polished concrete inserts made to match the surrounding Ed Lazenby floor.

Beautiful, spectacular curved glass designs made with evguard®. One of absolutely gorgeous designs accomplished by Inhouse Brand Architects for GAIA Group Offices. It is made up of concrete and exposed brickwork and has got curved walls and timber beams. Curved glass windows and intricate timber-clad ceilings enhanced the beauty of the building. Glass Benders have been manufacturing and supplying quality curved glass since 1998. They make unique glass products for a wide range of applications. More under www.glassbenders.co.za or please contact our distributor: Fraser Global Trading (Pty) Ltd Johannesburg, South Africa Web: www.fgtrading.co.za

The new site comprises a 20-cell custody suite and a three-storey office building, which accommodates more than 300 officers and staff and provides both Northamptonshire Police and Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service, which shares the office building, with modern, 21st century facilities. Marshalls provided a range of products from the Landscape Protection portfolio for the exterior space, including Geo bollards, Geo seating, a Pluto cycle shelter and bespoke concrete planters. Due to the security required around this sensitive building it was important that the items of furniture specified had the required protection against potential accidental or criminal damage ...

Harbour Central is a condominium complex in London’s Docklands, costing £17.6 million and comprising 642 private one, two, and three bedroom apartments divided across five residential buildings. This 30,000m² development also provides eight penthouse apartments with a leisure complex, all only minutes from Canary Wharf.Cellecta YELOfon HD10+ was specified by Rolfe Judd Architecture in this development for is unrivalled acoustic performance when used to isolate a floating screed from a structural concrete floor. This product also works in conjunction with underfloor heating.Galliard Homes UKS was awarded the contract to construct these luxury private apartments.

Reflections is a complex of luxury waterside apartments, built in a contemporary style, most living areas look over Bournemouth Bay and Southbourne Overcliff Drive. The complex features four 3 bed and five 2 bed apartments.Cellecta’s YELOfon HD10+ was specified by Harlequin Homes due to the system being lightweight, easy to install, and delivers unrivalled acoustic performance when used to isolate a floating screed from a structural concrete floor. YELOfon HD10+ is an acclaimed resilient layer system that carries 3 proprietary Robust Details: E-FC-5, 17 & 18.Glossbrook was awarded this 400m² contract to construct this development in Bournemouth.

Ebury Square is a development consisting of 71 one to five bedroom private apartments and a penthouse featuring opulent design and impeccable finishes. It has easy access to the Victoria Mainline, underground and Gatwick Express.Cellecta’s YELOfon HD10+ was specified by Squire & Partners due to the system being lightweight, easy to install, and delivers unrivalled acoustic performance when used to isolate a floating screed from a structural concrete floor. YELOfon HD10+ is an acclaimed resilient layer system that carries 3 proprietary Robust Details: E-FC-5, 17 & 18.Berkeley Group was awarded this 10,000m² contract to construct this development in the London borough of Belgravia.

Cornes buildings are an ambitious residential in Santiago de Compostela, which is next to the first train station of Galicia . This is one of the reasons to promote this space for a new lifestyle . Carbajo Barrios architects use concrete elements for the façade to minimize the impact of sunlight on buildings as well as give a strong architectural character . Bandalux vertical blinds were chosen as a solar control system, creating visual harmony as well as efficient sunlight management . Polyscreen ® fabric perfectly complements the clean style of interior designs, allowing visual contact outside when desired by the owners . Our roller blinds are chosen with blackout fabrics for maximum privacy and intimacy .

The 2014 Commonwealth Games’ swimming competition was played out at Tollcross International Swimming Centre. In anticipation of the games, the centre’s facilities underwent a complete refurbishment. Some of the screed below the tiles on the main competition pool floor had separated from the concrete pool tank. The entire floor needed to be re-laid. Glasgow City Council Scott hired, Tilecraft, a specialist tiling works company that delivers high quality tiles, to lay the tiles and specified products from ARDEX UK. A fast track solution which would produce high quality results was needed, and ARDEX UK seemed the logical choice.

GEC Anderson’s stainless steel worktops, sinktops, doors and splashbacks have been chosen for the modern Café Bar at The Hepworth Wakefield art gallery in West Yorkshire, for their contemporary and accurate appearance as well as their hygienic qualities associated with food service. The stunning building is formed of ten different sized trapezoidal blocks constructed using pigmented, self-compacting concrete and recently listed in The Times ‘Top 50 Galleries in the World’. The continuous stainless steel worktop installed behind the main serving counter of the Café Bar incorporates sinks, plinth, cupboards doors and splashbacks, all in brushed satin stainless steel.

Washroom's off-site service allowed the design to be carefully fine-tuned prior to installation on site for this prestigious office refurbishment project. Washroom's full height Alto toilet cubicle doors were specified with a real wood veneer finish, stained to match the solid Douglas fir timber panelling in the reception area. The bespoke polished cast concrete vanity units feature integral waste bins and Tego hinged mirror units above. For the new staff shower and changing room area Washroom's full height Alto FENIX shower cubicles were installed along with Z style Forza SGL lockers.

The outstanding qualities of Sandtex Trade High Build Textured Decorative Coating deliver a long-term solution for the protection of buildings, capable of ironing out surface level imperfections at a stroke. Ideal for covering fine cracks and regulating repaired and uneven surfaces, this advanced masonry product offers exceptional coverage and flexibility, providing both a decorative and protective textured coating with the reassurance of 15 years’ durability, independently certified by the British Board of Agrément. Along with a long-lasting finish, the paint is formulated to maintain its good looks with anti-carbonation properties which protect concrete and metal from atmospheric erosion.

The UK’s second busiest airport, Gatwick Airport, is also home to a rail station which handles in excess of 20 million passengers annually – making it one of the 10 busiest stations in the UK outside of London.Network Rail are currently managing a redevelopment project at Gatwick station, which is being delivered by Costain. Part of this project is a new concourse for the station.The redevelopment of the station includes improvement works to create a larger, more accessible interchange between the station and airport. As part of the upgrades to platforms 5-7, Costain worked with Sika waterproofing products and Hanson for the concrete mix to ensure the rebuild was robust and would offer significant longevity.

"You can hear it and feel the difference as soon as you walk in and start to talk"Due to new hybrid working we installed VC kit that better enabled remote calls and meetings for staff. When in-person colleagues around the meeting table would be in conversation with each other, audio would often cut out for those joining remotely, no matter how many speakers and microphones we had in the room. Generally, this was a poor meeting experience for those joining online and we had received feedback about this from our staff. Ceilings in the room are high with concrete beams and so this was probably contributing to the issues. 

Ultrascape's BS 7533 compliant mortar paving system has been used to deliver a modern and stylish forecourt outside Swindon railway station. The redevelopment has transformed what was previously a heavy traffic dominated area, into a prestigious pedestrian focused arrival space which features seating, planting, lighting and a millennium clock. Work was carried out by specialist civil engineering contractor, Britannia Construction and included the installation of 500 tonnes of high quality natural granite and Pennant Sandstone using Ultrascape's Pro-Bed HS fine bedding concrete, Flowpoint rapid setting grout and Pro-Prime slurry primer.

The nineteenth-century Ox Barn was formerly home to the oxen that once ploughed our fields. State-of-the-art agricultural architecture in its time, the clients worked meticulously to preserve the extensive beams, soaring arches and original Cotswold stone rubble walls.A contemporary counterpoint to the original barn features, our versatile Iron Grey floor beautifully reflects the rich timber while the satin finish smoothly complements the rustic textures. Over 350 m2 of our polished concrete was installed in just one week.Now, it’s a jaw dropping restaurant with a spectacular bar and a seven-and-a-half metre Charvet open kitchen.

A decorating contractor has praised Dulux Trade SmartShield+ after they were able to transform the exterior of a block of flats with the new product. The residential building in Loughton, Essex, had been suffering with the effects of water ingress and pollution over the years which has damaged both the exterior of the building as well as leaking inside. Cracks had appeared to the render of the building causing the water to leak into the fabric of the building. Contractor Armour Hart Group Ltd were tasked by The Square’s management firm Moat Homes with maintaining the cyclical decorations and associated repairs to the building and on identification of the issues consulted with partners Dulux Trade. Following an inspection from Dulux Trade the contractors agreed to use a specification containing Dulux Trade Plus SmartShield+ Exterior Clearcoat on the stonework to deliver the job. The first task was the cleaning and repair of the render and decorative edging after they had become infested with moss and lichen and this was adding to water ingress throughout the building. Both areas were cleaned and repaired before the waterproofing coating of SmartShield+ was applied to the decorative stone work throughout the property. Due to the specially formulated Dulux Trade Plus SmartShield+ the substrate was able to breathe and dry out after the repairs and coating had been completed. The pediment detail to the front of the building had also picked up grime over the years - and had been saturated during bad-weather and so repairs and cleaning of this area was also performed. Dulux Trade carried out inspections throughout the process and all of the cracks were repaired, sealed, coated and then painted to bring the whole building back to life. Armour Hart Group Ltd made the final checks to make sure the coating was waterproof - and were happy to report Dulux Trade Plus SmartShield+ passed the test. Phil Long at Armour Hart Group said; “Dulux Trade has supported us throughout this project so we were able to provide the best maintenance job possible to our clients. “Years of water damage was really starting to affect the building both aesthetically and physically - so it was important we targeted it properly. Cleaning the areas first really revealed the extent of the damage. It was so valuable to us to be able to use SmartShield+ as a coating - and then carry on working on other areas while it dried and sealed the exterior of the building.” Steve Plowman, Technical Support Manager at Dulux Trade said: “We’re glad we have been able to see this project through with Armour Hart and had such great feedback from them on how the product is working. SmartShield+ is a great product that really stands the test of time.” For more information, visit: www.duluxtradepaintexpert.co.uk/content/dulux-trade-plus-smartshield

630 Sash Windows Restored at Grade II Listed Liverpool LandmarkKEY FEATURES: COMMERCIAL, GRADE II LISTED, SASH WINDOWS, LARGE DEVELOPMENT, RENOVATION, VENTROLLA PERIMETER SEALING SYSTEM (VPSS), VICTORIANThe Grade II* listed Port of Liverpool building was built in the early 1900s and makes up one-third of the “Three Graces” based at Liverpool’s Pier Head, a UNESCO World Heritage site.It was extensively damaged during the Blitz in 1941, and in 2008 we were proud to form part of the major internal and external restoration project, worth £8.5 million, by (then) owner, Liverpool’s biggest commercial landlord company, Downing.The building is home to some of the most prestigious companies in Merseyside, including Rathbones Investment Bank, and is one of the largest projects ever undertaken by Ventrolla.The 630 windows were renovated and upgraded by Ventrolla using the Perimeter Sealing System (VPSS), thus draught-proofing the windows, as well as renovating all the rotten exposed timbers and replacing timbers where necessary. The VPSS system has been independently tested (Class 3 of BS 6375-1) to withstand winds of up to 71mph, something which will come in useful against the harsh sea winds experienced by this building.A spokesperson for Ventrolla, said:“At Ventrolla we are committed to renovating historic buildings in a way that allows them to retain their character and be energy efficient. The Port of Liverpool Building is a striking landmark on the Liverpool riverside and we are delighted to play our part in its regeneration.”Ian Orton, a Director of Downing, said:“Ventrolla’s work is part of a £10 million restoration programme that Downing is undertaking to restore the Port of Liverpool Building to its former glory and enhance its appeal as a contemporary office space.”Now owned by Amtrak Real Estate (who purchased the building in 2015), the Port of Liverpool building remains an iconic part of the docks in Liverpool, the design of which was the result of a competition for local Architects to submit designs for the new building in 1900 and the first prize was £300. The winning design was created by Sir Arnold Thornley and F.B Hobbs in collaboration with Briggs and Wolstenholme.The building has also had more than its fair share of fame, being used as a film set in several productions, including The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes & Foyles War (TV series).Ventrolla offers a bespoke renovation service for timber sliding sash and casement windows as well as timber doors. Ventrolla has its central office in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, with additional offices throughout the UK and Ireland.

Fed up of renting in London, Joe and Lina decided to build their own on a tiny 38m² plot of land in East London. With a budget of just under £200k they set about delivering Joe’s innovative concept for a six half-floor house with floating concrete slab, designed to maximise the space into a 83m² home, all whilst being filmed by Channel 4’s Grand Designs. However, things soon went south…Within weeks of the project beginning in October 2015, rogue contractors had performed a disastrous basement excavation attempt contrary to the Structural Engineer’s instructions, leaving unsupported banks of earth falling in beneath the street and shutters bursting inwards under the weight of the concrete.This first attempt, described as “spectacularly shambolic” by Kevin McCloud, more than doubled Joe and Lina’s budget for the excavation from £48k to £100k, and caused months of delays in order to get the project back on track.Having already contacted Newton Waterproofing Systems to consult on the poor workmanship, Joe and Newton soon determined that if he were to save his home and get it out of the ground, he would need a specialist contractor to actively communicate, collaborate and listen to him as both the engineer and client.MJ Rooney Construction came on board as contractors in November 2015, and following discussions to determine exactly what was required, modelled the entire project in 4D to ensure that all potential difficulties were solved before work began.With the right lines of communication in place, work recommenced in late January 2016, with the first challenge being to make safe a 3.5 metre high bank of unsupported earth with sheet piles, before creating a new and waterproof structural shell of reinforced concrete.With the shell of the structure in place, Newton and MJ Rooney’s next challenge was a much more welcome one, as they created a bespoke waterproofing solution to accommodate Joe’s ingenious design for a suspended reinforced slab that acted as both a floor and a prop force against the lateral pressure from the basement walls.This entire slab rested on brackets designed by Joe and his structural engineer, insulating it from the external walls by ensuring minimal contact, and only making contact through insulated blocks with enough compressive strength to take the vertical loading. The design also created a cavity around the slab that can be fully insulated, allowing the slab to be used as a thermal mass inside the building without having to insulate the entire external envelope.Working closely with Joe, a solution was devised that enabled the continuity of the waterproofing behind the brackets without compromising the structural design.

DescriptionSmet Supported Partner, B Team Shopfitters machine applied the LIDL External Render System onto Poroton blocks externally using as Base Coat: Bauprotec 850 M – Lightweight Lime Cement Render and as Finish Coat; Mineral Finish Coat K.  As Key Coat: Change of substrate concrete/steel pillar/Poroton block or mass concrete and insulated plinths: Bauprotec RHS Multi-Purpose Render with the addition of Bauprotec SLP for plinths.The Internal Render System specification onto Poroton blockwork consists of a base of Coat: Bauprotec 850 M, Lightweight Lime Cement Render, sponge floated in warehouse areas, and skim finished in sales areas. Key Coat: Change of substrate concrete/steel pillar/Poroton block: Bauprotec RHS is used.The LIDL render spec, available from SMET consists of:Bauprotec 850 M is a factory-produced Lightweight Lime Cement Render, specially designed for machine or hand application produced to EN 998-1: 2010 and is CE Marked.Bauprotec RHS is a CE Marked, factory-produced highly polymer-modified render specially designed for hand and machine application produced to EN 998-1: 2010.Mineral Finish Coat – K is a CE marked, factory-produced mineral-based, high-quality finish-coat render, specially designed for hand and machine application to EN 998-1, 2010.Bauprotec SLP is a CE Marked, factory-produced Lightweight Sand & Cement Render specially designed for hand and machine application produced to EN 998-1: 2010.The special render properties; lightweight, low thermal conductivity, high yield, and Smet Supported Partner superior technical backup, are key factors in choosing SMET. SMET is committed to delivering consistently superior quality, German-made Render Systems to Lidl Plastering and rendering/plastering contractors across the UK and ROI.  If you’d like to speak to us about your Lidl job – contact SMET.All LIDL spec SMET Render System products are available directly from Smet Building Products Ltd, which ensures the contractor has a superior level of technical backup in the machine application of the LIDL specification.Related DownloadsTDS CASEA Bauprotec 850 M – Lightweight Lime Cement RenderTDS CASEA Bauprotec RHS – Multi-Purpose RenderTDS CASEA Bauprotec SLP Tanking and Plinth RenderTDS CASEA Mineral Finish Coat – KSMET Render and Plaster Product Selector

Third Space has opened its sixth and most luxurious health club in London with spacious training areas, state-of-the-art facilities, tranquil yoga studio, 20m adult pool, cycle amphitheatre and special facilities for youngsters.Free Weights AreaTVS Group’s heavy-duty, interlocking SPORTEC® Style Tiles, custom-produced black and grey-flecked finish perfectly completemented the gym’s colour scheme. Installing a layer of SPORTEC® Team Cup-X flooring beneath the tiles provided extra protection for the concrete subfloor and will further reduce noise and vibrations, while TVS proprietary rubber ramped edges created a neat transition with adjacent gym areas.Stetching AreaTo offer comfort and durability for the club’s large stretching area, TVS Group installed its SPORTEC® MotionFlex product, a fine-grained polyurethane puzzle-mat. It is ideal for fitness applications involving floor-based movements and wellness activities. The interconnecting tiles are simple to install and neatly shaped to suit most flooring schemes while their elegant dark grey colour set the calming mood for this part of the gym.Athletics-Based Track AreaTVS Sports Carpet was selected for the track as it offers excellent grip underfoot, especially relevant for speed, agility and quickness drills. The durability of the surface also allows athletes to push or drag a sled, helping to further develop their muscular strength and endurance. The track was supplied in a cool, oceanic navy blue and white colour scheme.Main Gym AreaThe expected high usage of the main gym area meant the flooring had to be sufficiently resilient. To achieve this and to ensure a perfectly level flooring finish across the gym, TVS Group first laid a dense rubber shock pad over the concrete substrate. It was overlaid with a covering from the highly wear resistant SPORTEC® Purcolor range. A light grey finish was chosen to reflect the sophisticated look and feel of the club.The StudioIn the studio, where high intensity training will take place, TVS Group opted for a highly elastic shock-absorbing underlay overlaid with a wear-resistant performance layer called SPORTEC® Color. The combination will protect the concrete substrate below while offering a comfortable and safe surface above for those involved in a diverse range of training activities.Other Fitness AreasIn other areas of the gym TVS Group supplied and installed a variety of high performing acoustic underlays, helping reduce noise and vibrations caused by treadmill running and other high impact activities in the studios.

Leading UK utility contractor, Telent, have used UltraCrete’s superb ironwork installation materials to repair and install a CW1 access cover in Sutton Coldfield.BackgroundAs part of their ongoing commitment to maintaining the UK’s national utility infrastructure, Telent have used UltraCrete’s latest product innovation Mortar Buoy® to repair a chamber and install a CW1 ironwork access cover in the West Midlands.The ChallengeLocated on a busy junction, it was crucial that the repair and installation of the CW1 cover was carried out quickly to minimise disruption to motorists. With a reputation drawing on decades of experience in the design, build, support and management of the UK’s critical infrastructure, it was imperative that Telent used reputable installation materials that had been tried, tested and proven to work in the road network.The SolutionUltraCrete’s independently tested and approved ironwork installation system was specified by BT Openreach to complete the project.The new CW1 cover was installed using the Install Plus method. To begin, Mortar Buoy® was inflated in the existing chamber to prevent debris falling into the cavity and causing potential damage to the network. Once inflated, the team were able to use Mortar Buoy® as internal shuttering and repair the damaged chamber using QC10 F rapid strength flowable concrete.QC10 F, part of UltraCrete’s range of high specification concretes, is rapid setting fibre modified concrete for backfilling around manhole frames and gullies and for surface repairs.To complete the installation, Mortar Buoy® was used as a dam and Envirobed® CD534 Flowable was poured around the edges of a chamber for a permanent installation.Specially formulated for utility reinstatements, Envirobed® CD534 Flowable high performance bedding mortar is BT LN550 and LN320 compliant and offers superior compressive, tensile and flexural strengths in just 3 hours.Mortar Buoy® is a ground-breaking, innovative, inflatable access frame that acts as a dam, allowing for a flowable mortar ironwork installation in seconds – revolutionising traditional methods.Enhance your specification and upgrade your reinstatement with UltraCrete Mortar Buoy®.ResultsThe project took place on a mild winter day in December 2021. The work was completed without delay and with minimal disruption. Using Mortar Buoy® instead of a traditional damming mortar increased the speed of the installation, reduced costs and made the install less labour intensive for the team.On the performance of Mortar Buoy®, John Doherty, Area Supervisor for Telent commented: “Mortar Buoy® makes life much easier versus traditional shuttering for both chamber repair and bedding the ironwork. It is also much faster.”

ForFarmers is a market leading international feed company that offers feed solutions for conventional and organic livestock farming.Project/doors:21 Hart Doors across 4 sites including Speedor Super, Speedor Storm and Speedor MiniThe challengeDue to the contents of the building, regular industrial doors were not acceptable as they had to be left open, allowing pigeons to enter the building, resulting in damage to the produce.The solutionThe front elevation of the building had to be sealed to prevent vermin egress while also allowing truck access in a fast and safe way. Speedor high speed doors activated by vehicles allow for efficient movement in and out of the building.The successThe doors, installed at feed intake tipping bays, improve aesthetics of the facility, prevent ingress of wildlife into the building and dust being blown over adjacent properties. Speedors do a tremendous job when required for fast open/close cycles at locations such as this where tipping feed can create dust for example. We designed taller and narrower doors – 7.5m high x 3.2m wide – to accommodate the dimensions of the tipping trucks and overall the installation works very well for a happy client

Metalline’s glazed in Ultima aluminium insulated panels have provided a specialist touch to the recently completed Weybridge Business Park in the Borough of Runnymede. The commercial office park features a number of office buildings that have been refurbished as part of a redevelopment for Standard Life Investments. The bespoke glazed in panels which feature on the window surrounds to the 1st and 2nd floors were coated in PPC golden beach metallic and feature a fluted design that met the architects vision for the external envelope of the building. The aluminum outer face was fitted with extruded box sections to give the fluted appearance. The aluminium section was then sealed using specialist rivets designed by Metalline for this specific application. Each of the 2 metre panels were then vacuum bonded using Metalline’s new 6-metre vacuum bonding press. Ultima panels are traditionally specified in aluminium with either an anodised finish in natural silver, bronze, black or blue-grey or in a range of polyester powder coated RAL and metallic colours. They can also be provided with a noncombustible A1 fire rated core. Alternative facings such as perforated aluminium, stainless steel or can be incorporated to create a truly bespoke panel.