BIG PROJECTS FOR BIG NAMES - RECENT COMPLETIONS IN MANUFACTURING, FULFILMENT & DISTRIBUTION
BUILDING MEGGITT'S SPECIALIST MANUFACTURING FACILITY
Innovation is at the heart of international aerospace defence and energy engineering group Meggitt Plc and Winvic’s design, construction and fit out of the £44 million industrial facility at Ansty Park in Coventry followed suit.
We used 1,775 tonnes of rolled steel, 17,500m3 concrete foundations, 30,500 sq ft glazing and 108,000 sq ft cladding on this 495,000 sq ft manufacturing and testing unit that was completed in just 56 weeks. Contracted by Manse and Opus Land in October 2018, we handed the facility over in January 2020. Sustainability was a priority and we’re delighted the project has achieved A+ EPC and BREEAM ‘Very Good’ ratings. We installed 167,000 sq ft of photovoltaic panels, a rainwater harvesting system and a bespoke local air extraction and heating system in the manufacturing hall. Access for early fit out began in September 2019, which saw the completion of a complex enhanced base build with CAT A, B and C elements and Category A office fit out. The 73,500 sq ft office space, Meggitt’s global headquarters, is over two storeys and is completely glazed, complementing the full-height glass atrium area that has striking 3x1m floor tiles. The elevated design specification includes aesthetics such as elegant glass area dividers in the open plan offices and unusual colour coordinated, wall to floor tiles and meets practical requirements like the high-spec professional kitchen and restaurant, which can cater for over 700 people.
Dave Roberts, Operations Manager
“From pre-construction discussions to the final elements of the complex fit out, this project has been a great example of partnership working between a main contractor, client and end-user; it has been a joy to work closely with Manse Opus and Meggitt and to share the same visions of quality, commercial viability and first-rate design. It’s not only an attractive manufacturing facility, inside and out, but it is also environmentally efficient and cost effective to operate due to thousands of feet of solar panels and a rainwater harvesting system. After practical completion and handover of the structure in March 2020, we then also installed Meggitt’s specialist machinery and we exceeded expectations in the industrial sector once again.”
HELPING OCADO RETAIL TO FULFIL CUSTOMER ORDERS
With retail and distribution efficiency more important than ever since lockdown and the resulting changes in consumer behaviour, Winvic worked hard to meet Covid-19 restrictions and still deliver this automated online Customer Fulfilment Centre on time so Ocado Retail, a joint venture between Ocado Group and M&S, could meet growing demand.
We started work on site at SEGRO Logistics Park Purfleet (SLPP) in December 2019 and handed over the 304,000 sq ft temperature-controlled facility with chilled, ambient and frozen insulated chambers in August 2020. It has been awarded a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and an A EPC rating. The £36 million scheme for client SEGRO Plc comprises earthworks, incoming services and roads, the construction of a three-storey car park and creation and full fit out of 31,000 sq ft ancillary offices over three storeys within the multi-temperature warehouse. Winvic is also undertaking the £17.5 million fit out works contract directly for end-user Ocado which includes mezzanine floors, the MHE facility and specialist mechanical, electrical, sprinkler, ambient, frozen, battery charge and refrigeration installations. Utilising BIM, we worked closely with various stakeholders on programming and coordination, including a specialist mechanical handling contractor that installed Ocado’s cutting-edge, robotic packing system, to sequence and meet early access dates in the programme. While we have worked with Waitrose and M&S previously, and have a long-standing relationship with SEGRO, it has been a pleasure to deliver our ever-improving quality of service and product – responsibly, ethically and safely – to them as a group.
DESIGNING A COMPLEX FRAME FOR CO-OP’S REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION CENTRE
Located at the 50-acre Symmetry Park in Biggleswade, this facility with multiple temperature-controlled chambers was completed in January 2021, becoming one of the most sustainable RDCs in the country.
Targeting ratings of BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and EPC A, we started construction of this £70 million base build and fit out project in March 2020. As featured in New Steel Construction, the 357m x 144m x 18m frame with four equal 36m spans is impressive; we used over 2,500 tonnes of steel in total, the heaviest beam weighs 4.6 tonnes and the largest beam measures 17.6m in length. Due to the layout of the building comprising ambient, chilled and frozen sections and the requirement for maintenance walkways and gantries over these zones, the most efficient design resulted in 18 separate portal steel frames. Furthermore, while earthworks continued around the building’s footprint, cranes and MEWPs were positioned inside the structure, which is not usual, and we changed the steel frame erection programme accordingly.
The scheme delivery also comprises an attached two-storey main office totalling 31,000 sq ft and vehicle maintenance building as well as civils and infrastructure works such as off-site service upgrades, incoming services, car parking and service yards.
Ian Evans, Project Manager for the Co-op distribution centre
“Ordinarily the steelwork erection for the distribution centre would have utilised the ground outside of its footprint, but as we were still doing earthworks, cranes and MEWPs has to be positioned inside the structure and the build programme was changed to suit. Also, the portal frame design needed to change along the length of the building so 18 distinct sections were designed, manufactured and constructed. This was primarily due to various maintenance walkways and gantries, the number of which varied depending on the internal zone and layout below.”