New Mansion Square masonry and stone support project
Battersea Power Station is a large regeneration project in south London, being built in several phases due to the sheer scale of the project. Phase 4a, the latest phase of this large project, will provide 386 new homes for shared ownership and affordable rent. The £120 million development will also include a new NHS medical centre and flexible workspaces for local entrepreneurs.
The Ardmore group’s involvement in the scheme focuses on seven blocks of up to 18-storey residential blocks, arranged around a garden square called New Mansion Square.
Products Used
Challenge
Award-winning architects Patel Taylor have been inspired in their facade design by London’s classic redbrick mansion blocks. Where residential blocks tend to be uniformly designed, Patel Taylor made subtle changes to each story, meaning each level has a unique design.
The facade itself was designed by Ardmore to consist of stone and brick elements.
The general concept was that there was a stone band that went through each level, that would support the masonry. Originally, there were two suppliers to deliver the façade, one for the stone support and stone delivery and CFS, both designing and delivering the masonry support.
This proved quite a challenge in terms of coordination of the project, given two different suppliers were providing different types of brackets, especially since each level was slightly differently designed.
Solution
To simplify the delivery of the project, CFS were asked to tap into their masonry support knowledge to apply the same design principles to the stone support. This also helped to solve one of the design concerns as when the stone was supported by masonry support, the cavity became less congested on the slab face.
CFS were also able to coordinate with several suppliers to provide the stone components and support for the facade in time as they were needed. In some areas brackets were not needed, so close collaboration between all suppliers was needed to ease the pressure for storage at the construction site.
It also helps that CFS's masonry support brackets are adjustable during the installation.
Results
The Ardmore group now works closely with CFS, where CFS is brought in early in the project to deliver the design of the masonry support in collaboration with the Ardmore group.
CFS also offers initial design meetings outside of the project to discuss the possibilities and if there could be challenges to consider, such as the placement of the fire barrier. This also gives an opportunity to discuss requirements and design considerations that could possibly make the masonry support cheaper to deliver.
Since the Battersea Power Station Phase 4a project, CFS and Ardmore group established a process that means that the projects are planned seamlessly.