Steel Windows Playing a Part in the Regeneration of Regional Hotspots

Contract awards on major regeneration and infrastructure projects have seen ‘hotspot’ pockets of construction emerge across the UK as investment in house building, infrastructure and commercial shifts away from London and the South East.*  Midlands, Northern and Eastern powerhouse cities such as Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle have seen a huge surge in activity, but another region that’s fast climbing up the list is the Bristol area.

Well located only 90 minutes from London and Heathrow Airport, Bristol boasts one of the fastest growing and busiest airports in the UK and a strategically located deep water port.  Recognised as a world class centre of research and innovation, with four universities in the immediate area, the Bristol and Bath region generates £32bn per annum and consistent economic growth of three percent year on year over the next ten years is predicted.^#

As well as a number of new build projects set to dominate the city’s future skyline, numerous older buildings are undergoing renovation and development as part of the bid to invest in and regenerate the city and Clement Windows is proud to have played a part in some of these.

Take the new YMCA hostel in Bristol, a fine example of an old and neglected building that has been brought back to life as an important part of the new Bristol landscape.  After many years of being out of use, the Grade II listed former police HQ (CID) building, on Bridewell Island in the centre of the city, has been renovated and is now styled as a boutique backpackers hostel with a difference – a great place to stay in the middle of the city, the income generated by the backpackers funds beds for young people in crisis.

John Perkins Construction carried out the work along with Ferguson Mann Architects and assistance from the Bristol County Council Conservation Team.  The Heritage Lottery Fund part funded the £1.8 million project.

Preserving the beauty of this property, which dates back to 1928 and is still known to many locally as the Old Bridewell Police Station, was paramount although it was vital that the completed building offered a modern specification for 21^st century living.

Clement Windows Group was selected to provide the new steel windows.  Crafting replicas of the originals but with high performing, energy efficient, krypton gas-filled glass insulated units, the new fenestration met the brief exactly.  The Clement W20 range coupled with genuine T bars and elegant fenestra joints in RAL 9010 white, in a semi gloss finish was specified.  158SFKL ‘Brook’ handles together with spring catches and restrictors in a satin chrome finish were added to complement the windows.

The project was nominated for a heritage award by the National Federation of Builders (NFB).

Rob Yeandle of John Perkins Construction said:

“The YMCA required a commercially viable 99 bed hostel where 10 per cent of the available beds could be given up to vulnerable young homeless people.  The strong relationships built early on in the process with Clement Windows resulted in a conversion that embraced the history and heritage of the old building and blended new materials with old to create a stunning finished project.”

Not as old, but another prominent example of a Bristol building that has recently been revitalised is The Pithay, now known as Programme, which has been transformed into a stylish new hub for businesses looking for an inspiring place to work.

In the heart of the city, this immense building, originally built in the 1960s, was starting to look tired and in desperate need of refurbishment.  After being acquired by Resolution Property in 2016, a plan was developed by Buckley Gray Yeoman Architects based on Resolution’s ambitious brief to revitalise the building.

Clement Windows Group was chosen as the preferred supplier to manufacture and install the 510 new steel windows required.  Clement was particularly thrilled to win the job because it was Chief Executive Peter Clement’s father who was part of the team that had installed the original Clement windows back in 1966!

EB24 steel windows, only available from Clement, were specified for the project.  Quite unusually for a refurbishment project like this, the architects had the freedom to change the colour of the windows.  The new frames were polyester powder painted in RAL9004 signal black in a matt finish, while the originals had been white and this was resulted in a fresh look and to modernise the building as a whole.  The new windows are fitted with 24mm argon filled insulated glass units, which are far more thermally efficient than the original single pane windows and are operated by 195SFKL ‘Lodsworth’ handles and stays in a satin chrome finish.

Programme now provides 180,000 sq ft of sympathetically modernised workspaces for Bristol, featuring fully refurbished open plan office environments across seven floors.

As Liz Barnard of Programme commented:

“Constructed in the 1960s and one of Bristol’s landmark buildings The Pithay had become tired, dated and lacked purpose. A plan was developed to revitalise and regenerate the building, transforming it into a commercial hub. The refurbishment of the façade required great sensitivity given the surrounding Conservation Area and Listed Buildings. The steel windows from Clement provide the perfect solution – modern double glazed, thermally efficient versions of the single glazed originals which incidentally they supplied when it was first built!”

And the urban renaissance continues – it was recently announced that Bristol’s Grade II listed ‘Generator’ building has been given the green light by Bristol City Council to be converted into new offices for creative, media and tech businesses and the Bristol Old Vic, subject to a massive heritage refurbishment in recent months, is due to reopen this autumn.  The rise of Bristol as a key city in the South West and beyond continues!

* Source: The Regional Construction Hotspots in Great Britain 2017 report from Barbour ABI and the Construction Projects Association

^# Source: Bristol City Council, www.bristol.gov.uk

For more information about Clement and how we can help with you restoration project, contact us. We’d love to hear from you.