A focus on… residential
Article posted on: 25 June 2024
PRS, BTR, affordable, general needs, extra care, supported living, retirement living, IRCs, PBSA – the list goes on. Understanding the nuances between each housing type is of critical importance as an engineering consultant however the bottom line is always about creating healthy sustainable homes, in the context of site-specific solutions, which build thriving communities.
As engineers, our team understands the impact we have on the communities around us at a local level, and environmental considerations at a larger scale. This applies to every project we bring our skills to, which covers the list mentioned above and more.
Our pre-planning services appraise housing sites for potential engineering constraints. We’ll identify likely issues to ensure the scheme moves through the planning process smoothly. Advice in the form of geoenvironmental services offer a broad spectrum of environmental disciplines to our clients. Contaminated land management, ground investigations, subsidence and noise impact all ensure that subsequent design work responds appropriately to any complications or risk identified.
High density, urban sites usually bring with them engineering challenges, often dictated by neighbouring developments. Our towering city centre structures are changing the skyline, from the two awe-inspiring towers of Embankment Exchange in Salford, whilst across the Pennines the 40-storey PRS development Kings Tower in Sheffield, and in central London the award winning 27-storey modular tower Mapleton Cresent. An urban regeneration scheme across four infill sites for the London Borough of Hounslow incorporates Passivhaus design. The £37million project features the use of structural MMC, concrete frames and pile foundations, designed within a BIM environment and to achieve LETI standards.
Specialist services take their form in various guises in the business and structural timber engineering is a significant part of our story. Being skilled in the design of traditional timber frames, along with Structural Insulated Panel construction methods and glulam structures, our work at Fielden Street and Laurieston, both in Glasgow are both hugely successful examples of timber kit housing developments. Timber kit provides an excellent structural solution whilst being the ideal framework to produce the most environmentally responsible buildings. We have a dedicated team to deliver this, and we also provide a full timber kit detailing service. Offering our clients off-site fabrication allows for speed of construction and accuracy during delivery stages.
Affordable housing remains a key focus for us, crossing both general needs and extra care provision. Work has just started on 89-new affordable homes on Laystall Street in Manchester for Great Places Housing Group, and projects in Scotland, predominantly across the southwest territories, provide a high proportion of our work for our Glasgow and Prestwick offices. Although new build developments in the sector have generally slowed down in recent months our work in decarbonising housing stock is certainly increasing. With the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund: Wave 3 applications now live, continuing to improve the energy performance of social homes regardless of the next political party in power surely must be a priority.
And talking of politics, we are once again immersing ourselves in Housing 2024 as the event rolls into Manchester this week. With an undertone of political unrest, and housing being one of the key battlegrounds between the major parties, it will certainly be an interesting few days. Come and share your housing thoughts during the week with our two directors, Gordon Megahy and Daniel Singh, who will be attending the conference and will be in-and-around Manchester Central for the duration of the event.
