Westfield development boosts regeneration of Bradford

Having stalled for a number of years, Westfield’s £275M Broadway development in Bradford is now approaching an important milestone as the 6,800t steel frame is nearing completion.

Located in the heart of the city centre, the development will boost the wider regeneration of Bradford and provide 2,500 new jobs.

On completion it will total 52,900m² of retail and leisure space anchored by Debenhams and Marks & Spencer (M&S) stores, with 1,300 car parking spaces located on the upper levels.

The large braced steel frame is predominantly formed with four grid patterns, a regular 8m × 8m pattern for the retail zones, two slightly larger and different grids for Debenhams and M&S, and a 8m × 16m grid for the car parking areas.

“As with most inner city sites, the logistics of bringing steelwork to site and then erecting it in a coordinated programme has been our biggest challenge,” said Andy Rae, Severfield Contract Manager.

Using a fleet of mobile cranes with capacities up to 250t, Severfield has erected all of the project’s steelwork in a 24 week programme.