Construction News Awards 2012


Project under £10m JUDGES’ COMMENT


“Collaboration between client, designer and contractor enabled this at-risk scheme to be delivered on time and on budget”


Supported by


Warings Contractors was awarded a contract to build the 10-storey Cornerstone House hostel in Croydon for the YMCA after its bid specifi ed the building would be complete within 58 weeks to meet a funding deadline. The site measured just 30 m by


17 m, with 70 per cent of this space set to be taken up by the new building. In addition, Cornerstone House was to be fl anked by two 10-storey towers with a wall to the rear, making access very tight. Warings proposed a hybrid


solution with the ground and fi rst fl oors using a reinforced concrete frame, but with the top eight fl oors delivered as 161 completed modules. This reduced the mass of the


FINALISTS


● ARDMORE CONSTRUCTION ● BAM NUTTALL ● CONNECT PLUS SERVICES ● GALLIFORD TRY ● MANSELL CONSTRUCTION ● SAXON WEALD AND OSBORNE ● THOMAS VALE CONSTRUCTION


34 | 12 July 2012


building enough for the contractor to use pad foundations rather than piles, saving time and reducing noise and dust. Warings achieved further


time savings by relocating a plant room from a basement to the rooftop. Fewer vehicle movements


and site operatives were needed following these alterations, further adding to the safety


WINNER WARINGS CONTRACTORS FOR SOUTH LONDON YMCA FOCUS


benefi ts of a modular build. This approach also increased


the planned storey height to 2.7 m, allowing extra internal height and more light. Lifts could be increased from 10 to 12-person capacity at no cost, and corridors made wider. Furniture was delivered to


the factory and installed into modules at ground level, saving the cost of hauling it up stairs at fi t-out stage. The project is BREEAM


Excellent, with photovoltaics, a district heating scheme, triple glazing and sustainable urban drainage system paving. Cornerstone House achieved


its time deadline and came in £170,000 under budget. There were no disputes,


strikes, outstanding claims, lost time accidents, reportable incidents or near misses on the project. The building has had visits


from a dozen interested groups to look at the modular approach and how it might be applied to similar schemes.


Judges Tim Byles, Neil Henderson, Angus Palmer


GUY SHEPHERD CONTRACTS MANAGER, WARINGS


Our radical proposal for a modular alternative to a reinforced concrete frame building shortened the


construction period to just 43 weeks, allowing South London YMCA to meet its cut-off date to secure a £6 million grant from the HCA. The residential portion is made up


of 161 modules weighing six tonnes each. These upper eight levels came from the factory fully fitted out with white goods, kitchens and even furniture, meaning 80 per cent of the building could be assembled on site in just three weeks. The elevations and floor plan


remained identical and the planners could not spot a single difference in our alternative design. But the reduction of our impact on the community was immense, with 50 per cent fewer deliveries, operatives, noise, dust and waste and a programme shorter by five months. The project achieved less than


one per cent construction waste and the building is entirely recyclable.


www.cnplus.co.uk


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