High-rise and column-free
Manchester’s latest commercial development is a 12-storey, column-free London-spec office
block at 125 Deansgate. Martin Cooper reports.
The twin cities of Manchester and
Salford are currently experiencing
a commercial sector boom as a
number of high-rise office blocks
are either being built or have recently been
completed.
Some of the commercial projects
previously reported on in New Steel
Construction, which highlight the city’s
buoyant sector, include No.1 Spinningfields
(See NSC Nov/Dec 2016), the Embankment
(See NSC June 2016) and 8 First Street (See
NSC Nov/Dec 2016).
Another development, which is under
construction, is 125 Deansgate, a £70M
12-storey scheme comprising 10,500m2 of
Grade A office space and 1,100m2 of flexible
retail space spread over ground and first
floor.
Main contractor for the job is Marcus
Worthington, working on its biggest ever
scheme in terms of value. Meanwhile, its
sister company, Worthington Properties,
forms part of the joint venture main client.
Aiming to achieve a BREEAM ‘Excellent’
rating, the building will feature a doubleheight
reception foyer along its main
Deansgate elevation, while the upper levels
will provide column-free, flexible and
adaptable office accommodation for either
sole occupiers or multiple tenants.
Paying homage to the industrial
characteristic of Deansgate with its
red-brick Victorian architecture, the
contemporary building will be clad in
deep, crafted terracota piers to help shade
the building and articulate its tripartite
proportions.
According to Glenn Howells Architects,
the delicate language of the red clay tiles
and a strong vertical expression creates a
striking, yet complementary, addition to
the family of buildings at this important
intersection, including the centerpiece
Grade I Listed John Rylands Library.
The building will also act as a catalyst
for the transformation of the surrounding
public realm including Lincoln Square and
the adjacent Brazennose Street.
Structural steelwork is the material of
choice for most of the city’s commercial
developments, and 125 Deansgate is no
exception as this scheme comprises a
composite design incorporating steelwork
supporting metal decking and a 150mmdeep
concrete topping.
“We did look at other framing options,
but we went with a steel frame as it is the
best way of achieving the column-free longspan
London-type specification we wanted,”
says Marcus Worthington Senior Project
Manager Paul McCormick.
“Flexibility also played a role in our
decision as the completed project may
accommodate multiple tenants who may
want to link floors with internal staircases.
A steel frame with metal decking will
allow us to cut and carve new openings if
required.”
The design of 125 Deansgate also
includes cellular beams, the majority of
which were designed and fabricated by
Billington, as the team wanted to integrate
all of the M&E services into the structural
void in order to maximise the floor-toceiling
heights.
Work on the project began in early 2017
with a six-month demolition programme
of two buildings that previously occupied
the site.
The construction team then installed
the new building’s foundations, concrete
basement substructure and the main
concrete core.
All of this preparatory work enabled
Billington Structures to begin its steel
erection programme in April this year,
with a completion date set for next month
(October).
All of the steelwork is being erected
via the site’s one tower crane as no single
member weighs more than 10t, which puts
the entire steel piece count within this one
crane’s capacity.
“This is a typical city centre site with very
little room for material storage as the entire
footprint is being utilised. Logistically,
steelwork has proven to be the best option
because it can be delivered to site and then
erected almost immediately,” adds Mr
McCormick.
The largest steel elements are located
near the bottom of the building, as a row
of continuous transfer beams form a ring
around the building at second floor.
This series of plate girders, each up
to 12m long and weighing 9.5t, forms
the building’s feature two-storey high
pedestrian colonnade that runs along the
majority of the Deansgate elevation. It also
forms the larger column-free façades on the
other three sides of the building.
“The upper perimeter columns are
typically spaced at approximately 3m
intervals, but below second floor we only
have columns every 9m in order to create
large open spaces. Consequently, the plate
girders are acting as transfer structures,
supporting up to two column lines that
end at second floor,” explains Fairhurst
Commercial
FACT FILE
125 Deansgate,
Manchester
Main client:
Mancap (joint venture
between Worthington
Properties and Revcap
Architect: Glenn
Howells Architects
Main contractor:
Marcus Worthington
Structural engineer:
Fairhurst
Steel contractor:
Billington Structures
Steel tonnage: 2,000t
125 Deansgate has
been designed a a
London-spec office
scheme
24 NSC
September 18
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/Sustainability#Understanding_BREEAM
/Multi-storey_office_buildings#Flexibility_and_adaptability
/Composite_construction
/Steel_construction_products#Decking_for_floors
/Braced_frames
/Multi-storey_office_buildings#Flexibility_and_adaptability
/Steel_construction_products#Cellular_beams
/Fabrication
/Service_integration
/Service_integration
/Construction
/Construction#Steel_erection
/Construction#Steel_erection
/Construction#Tower_cranes
/Fabrication#Handling_and_transportation
/Steel_construction_products#Plate_girders
/Facades_and_interfaces