Cardiff Lane, Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2
Cardiff Lane Headline Facts :
463 reconstructed stone panels, constructed offsite, covering 4,387m2.
Contractor : PJ Walls
Architect : Henry J Lyons
Building Performance Rating : LEED Platinum
Project Category: Commercial
10 The Broadway, Westminster, London SW1H 0DJ
10 The Broadway Headline Facts :
1,311 reconstructed stone panels, covering 13,431 square meters of two of the towers and the podiums of all six buildings.
Contractor : Multiplex
Architect : Squire & Partners
Victoria Square, Woking, London GU21 6DG
Victoria Square Headline Facts:
641 natural stone faced panels, covering 7,600 square meters.
Contractor : Sir Robert McAlpine
Architect : Benoy
32 London Bridge St, London SE1 9SG
London Bridge Headline Facts :
1,500 square meters of GRC panels
Contractor : Mace
Architect : Renzzo Piano
Stephenstown Industrial Park, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin, K32 W665
Techrete Offices Headline Facts :
730 reconstructed stone panels, covering 9,700 square meters.
Contractor : P. Elliot LTD
Architect : James Smyth Architects
Penrose Two, Penrose Dock, Co. Cork T23 YY09
Penrose Two Headline Facts :
179 reconstructed stone panels, covering 2,841 square meters.
Contractor : Hegarty
Architect : Wilson Architecture
The Finer Details :
Situated on the banks of the River Lee in Cork, Penrose One & Two is a commercial development constructed by Hegarty Construction and designed by Wilson Architecture. The buildings enhance the emerging skyline at Cork’s docklands and delivers 250,000 square foot of sustainable, Grade A office space. Situated in close proximity to the historical Penrose House, the buildings designs are based on classical proportions with the intention of embracing and enhancing their historical neighbour.
Techrete was awarded the tender to design, manufacture and install the architectural precast concrete cladding façades for both buildings at Penrose Dock.
Penrose One is organised in three distinct vertical modules with Techrete’s double height vertical mullions elongating the building’s appearance. Structural precast concrete columns rise from ground level to the third floor, cast in three parts and stitched together, creating a grand entrance to the building and further elongating its appearance. The precast concrete façade of Penrose Two also consists of mullions and spandrels and the consistency of both façades provides a framing approach to the original Penrose House.
The chosen mix for the project was Techrete’s C190 with an acid etched finish, with provides a warm soft appearance to the façades.
Cast-in lettering was used on panels for Penrose One and Two providing elegant signage for the two entrances.
Watch Penrose 1 & 2 Video Here :
Video Credit : JCD Group
Penrose One, Penrose Dock, Co. Cork T23 YY09
Penrose One, Penrose Dock Headline Facts
376 reconstructed stone panels, covering 3,603 meters.
Contractor : PJ Hegarty
Architect : Wilson Architecture
The Finer Details :
Situated on the banks of the River Lee in Cork, Penrose One & Two is a commercial development constructed by Hegarty Construction and designed by Wilson Architecture. The buildings enhance the emerging skyline at Cork’s docklands and deliver 250,000 square foot of sustainable, Grade A office space. Situated in close proximity to the historical Penrose House, the buildings designs are based on classical proportions with the intention of embracing and enhancing their historical neighbour.
Techrete was awarded the tender to design, manufacture and install the architectural precast concrete cladding façades for both buildings at Penrose Dock.
Penrose One is organised in three distinct vertical modules with Techrete’s double height vertical mullions elongating the building’s appearance. Structural precast concrete columns rise from ground level to the third floor, cast in three parts and stitched together, creating a grand entrance to the building and further elongating its appearance. The precast concrete façade of Penrose Two also consists of mullions and spandrels and the consistency of both façades provides a framing approach to the original Penrose House.
The chosen mix for the project was Techrete’s C190 with an acid etched finish, which provides a warm soft appearance to the façades.
Cast-in lettering was used on panels for Penrose One and Two providing elegant signage for the two entrances.
Watch Penrose 1 & 2 Video Here :
Video Credit : JCD Group
Techrete Factory Stephenstown Industrial Park, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin
Techrete Factory Headline Facts:
906 industrial sandwich panels, covering 10,600 square meters.
Contractor : Elliotts
Architect : John Smith Architects
1 Southbank Place, York Road, Bishop’s, London SE1 7NW
1 Southbank Place Headline Facts:
563 reconstructed stone panels, covering 7,905 square meters.
Contractor : Canary Wharf Group PLC
Architect : Squire and Partners
Watch our video here :
Video Credit : Gary Britton Photography
The Finer Details :
The redevelopment of Southbank Place in central London comprises 8 new buildings surrounding the quarter’s centrepiece, the Shell Centre Tower. The overall redevelopment once completed, will be home to a mixture of offices, residences and retail space and will integrate with open public areas and pedestrian routes. Techrete were engaged by Canary Wharf Group PLC to design, manufacture and install the precast concrete panels for three of the buildings within the quarter and these were Building 1, Building 4A and Building 4B.
Southbank Place 1 appears to step backwards in three blocks from the ground floor to story 5, from level 6 to level 9 and finally, from level 10 to level 14.
The building features 2 and 3 storey height panels, which were 11 metres long. A major feature of the panels was their extra deep returns on the legs which creates a solar shade and visually achieves the architects design intent.
Self-compacting concrete using Techrete’s C190 mix for a warm off-white colour, was finished with acid etching to lightly expose the aggregate, giving the panels a soft slightly textured appearance. Granite plinths were also utilised in a Kurum Grey finish and these were supplied to Techrete by Savema.
A canopy was created down one elevation of building 1 to create a semi-enclosed space linking buildings 1 and 2. The canope interfaces with the steel work and it was this interface, whilst small in size, was crucial in the overall development of the canope and was incredibly intricate for our draughtsmen to model.
Navigation Square, Albert Quay, Cork City
Albert Quay Blocks 1 & 2 Headline facts:
543 reconstructed stone panels, covering 4,127 square meters.
Contractor : BAM
Architect : Henry J Lyons
The Finer Details:
Designed by Henry J Lyons Architects and contracted by BAM, Albert Quay, Navigation Square, is part of the largest ever office development to be undertaken in Cork. With a prime location in the city’s business district, Albert Quay enjoys panoramic views of the port at the river Lee and the entire development encompassing Navigation Square, provides over 33,000 square meters of office space.
The direction for the project from the outset was for building excellence. As the first Phase of a 2 stage process, a huge degree of coordination was required between all members of the design team, the contractor and Techrete as specialist contractor. Techrete was selected with regard to speed of erection and an ability to provide for quality control of the finishes and jointing which were all obtainable in our indoor factory environment.
The building was required to exist on its own and to then later stitch seamlessly into the larger development. This meant an increased complexity of access, structure and services due to the nature of the highly compact urban site. Regular workshops with Techrete, the full design team and contractor on site meant that a very high degree of coordination was possible.
The installation of this project posed some access difficulties for Techrete and as such, two tower cranes were required to complete the erection process.
The panels had to be lifted over the top of the building using a large tower crane, whilst a smaller mobile crane on the other side used precision handling to manoeuvre the panels into place. The precast element of this project comprised of wedge shaped mullions and rectangular spandrels supported on composite steel deck slabs which are restrained by steel beams. Bespoke steel moulds were created in preparation for the next phase of the overall project, of which Techrete have just completed the installation of the precast cladding.
The inverted ‘T’ shaped spandrels at the 2nd floor create a timeless, elegant quality to the facade. The free standing ‘goal post’ to the front of the building, is almost 10 meters high and is supported with a post tensioned 400 millimetres deep spandrel, spanning about 11 meters. This creates an impressive, grand front entrance to the building.
Techrete’s bespoke white polished panels, are aligned perfectly with the structural columns at the ground floor, also with a white polished finish and are connected to the steel structural columns above.
The project completed before its expected delivery date and allowed a partial handover to an occupier early. Overall this is a carefully considered and dynamic development. Whilst realising the full potential of this particular constrained city site, and whilst respecting the historic setting, this project greatly contributes to the surrounding neighbourhood and Cork as a whole.
XYZ Building, 2 Hardman Boulevard, Manchester M3 3AQ
XYZ Building Headline Facts:
388 reconstructed stone panels, covering 3,836 square meters.
Contractor : McLaren Construction
Architect : Cartwright Pickard
Severn Trent, 2 St Johns Street, Coventry CV1 2LZ
Severn Trent Headline Facts:
386 natural stone faced and reconstructed stone panels, covering 6,270 square meters.
Contractor : BAM
Architect : Webb Gray
Scottish Power, 320 Street Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5AD
Scottish Power Headline Facts:
983 reconstructed stone panels, covering 14,472 square meters.
Contractor : Laing O’Rourke
Architect : Paige Park Architects
Collegelands, Havannah Street, Glasgow G4 0UB
Collegelands Headline Facts:
750 brick faced and reconstructed stone panels, covering 8,500 square meters.
Contractor : Dawn Construction
Architect : Page Park Architects
Clarence Dock, The Boulevard, Leeds LS10 1PZ
Clarence Dock Headline Facts:
442 reconstructed stone panels, covering 5,850 square meters.
Contractor : Shepherd
Architect : Carey Jones Architects
Calthorpe House, Birmingham
Calthorpe House Headline Facts:
400 reconstructed stone panels, covering 5,300 square meters.
Contractor : BAM
Architect : Webb Gray
Ashington Leisure Centre, Lintonville Terrace, Ashington, Northumberland, NE63 9JY
Ashington Leisure Centre Headline Facts:
158 reconstructed stone panels, covering 4,737 square meters.
Contractor : Carillion
Architect : Ryder Architecture
5 Pancras Square, Kings Cross, London N1C 4AG
5 Pancras Square Headline Facts:
146 reconstructed stone panels, covering 1,350 square meters.
Contractor : Kier Construction
Architect : Weedon Partnership
The Finer Details:
This unique building has won many accolades for its design including the RIBA London Regional Award 2015, The RIBA London Sustainability Award 2015, and most recently, the Prime Minister’s Better Public Building Award. Furthermore it has achieved the BREEAM level of ‘Outstanding’.
It was built as the new headquarters for Camden Council and is clad at the lower levels with Techrete precast concrete panels. There were a lot of constraints encountered on site and the ground to 3rd floor cladding had to be installed in advance of the super structure. Due to the site logistics and proposed crane sizes and positons, normal installation hours could not be accommodated on site as these would have blocked deliveries and affected progress on site. There was also site off -loading restrictions.
To avoid these issues, Techrete panels were installed between 7pm and 7am using the site tower cranes. The line and level works were carried out during the day. Another challenge faced was the installation of the circular columns. This proved interesting as they were underslung units and there was reduced headroom available.
As with other projects in the Kings Cross area, there were network rail restrictions which required the downgrading of all craneage by 25%. This problem was alleviated by using mobile cranes where appropriate, although there was some back propping required to the slab during this operation.
A reconstituted stone mix was chosen in an acid etched finish which gives the building a regal finish, allowing it to blend effortlessly with the prestige of the neighbouring buildings and surroundings.
Dublin Landings, North Wall Quay, Dublin 1
Dublin Landings Headline Facts:
470 brick faced panels, covering 5,805 square meters.
Contractor : Walls Construction
Architect : ARROW Architects & RKD Architects
The Finer Details:
Dublin Landings is one of two landmark riverfront buildings developed in the historical, heart of Dublin City. Given the historical tone in the docklands it was important that these two buildings aligned with the nature of the area, this meant that RKD Architects and ARROW Architects would have to coordinate their designs. The elevational design was developed to provide a calm foil next to the lively Central Bank of Ireland facades immediately adjacent. Brick cladding was among choices made to refer to and reflect the palette of historical Docklands materials of the area, and also to present an understated elegance in the finished elevations
Walls Construction enlisted both ARROW Architects and RKD Architects to design a building that would be part of Project Wave. A commercial office and residential redevelopment located in the dock lands of Dublin city. Project wave as a whole will deliver up to 65,000 sq. m of commercial offices and residential opportunity. This phase of Project wave is situated on the forefront of North Wall Quay, alongside some of the most prominent office headquarters in Ireland such as the Central Bank of Ireland.
At an early stage in the project it was decided that the facades would be formed in precast elements, partly for programme and cost reasons but mainly to achieve the highest levels of quality and precision in the expression of the brickwork, through meticulous fabrication of the brick façade on the building to the exacting quality demanded for this prime development. Techrete was chosen by RKD due to their proven ability in the industry and the high quality of product which would suit this prime development area. Techrete designed, manufactured, erected and sealed the architectural precast concrete cladding of the façade on the building. The initial task was to find a façade design that would marry the existing tone of the area which already is filled with high rise buildings some with unique façades. It was decided that brick face façade units would be used to both align with the manner of the area and allow the façade to be prominent. The façade covered 5,805 m² made up of 470 nr. of units. These units consisted of brick faced wall panels, mullions and spandrels. The mullion panels were two storey high and although they were difficult to erect the team were able to use less fixtures.
When deciding to use brick on the façade two European bricks were ordered, this caused complications during moulding because of brick tolerances. The installation of the façade was undertaken with tower cranes and was a relatively smooth operation with the exception of the ESB substation where panels had to be installed with a mobile crane. This elevation was restricted access use due to the close proximity of the central bank. Separately installation was in an adhoc sequence due to the tight programme, EPDM and installation needed to be applied in advance of the panel installation and cranage needed to be sequenced on relevant days with two separate crews.
Visual Control Tower, Dublin Airport
Visual Control Tower Headline Facts:
115 reconstructed stone panels, covering 2,375 square meters.
Contractor: BAM
Architect: Scott Tallon Walker
The Finer Details :
The Visual Control Tower at Dublin Airport is one of the tallest structures in Ireland and it is Ireland’s tallest occupied building. Contracted by BAM and standing at 87.7 metres high, the tower provides clear views for current and future runways at Dublin Airport. Designed by Scott Tallon Walker Architects, the building comprises a 17-storey shaft with a 4 storey control room sitting on top and to help achieve the design brief of an elegant, modern structure, it was essential that the tower shaft displayed no cold joints and that the surface was of an excellent finish.
Techrete were involved on the project with Scott Tallon Walker from the initial concept and design stage of the tower to ensure that their design intent of this unusual project could be achieved. Techrete were engaged to provide and install the curved precast panels for the shaft with feature knuckles arranged in a triangular shape.
Future maintenance was a key consideration for the project and as such, the shaft facade was designed as a rain screen with open drained joggle joints, allowing rain water to funnel behind the panels and drain out at the bottom of the structure, fulfilling the ‘self-cleaning’ intent of the design.
The unusual shape of the shaft and panels required Techrete to design bespoke structural hanging brackets to support the heavy loads of the panels. Multiple curved timber moulds of varying shapes and radii were designed and manufactured to produce the unusual and varying shapes of the panels. The mix chosen for the panels was our popular C190, white mix and panels were given an acid etched finish. A key challenge for Techrete on this project was the limited time to install the panels before the Control Room steel frame was due to arrive on site and be installed.
The Visual Control Tower won ‘Engineering Project of the Year’ at the Irish Building and Design Awards 2019.