concrete shear walls predominantly located around
the stairs, lifts and risers within the central area of
the building.
An interesting feature of the building is its 6m ×
6m column-free corner zone that incorporates the
ground floor entrance.
“To achieve this, we designed the structure above
to act as a series of Vierendeel trusses at each floor
level,” explains Ms Dawson.
masonry panel sections which connect together
in sequence to create a weaving effect. Careful
consideration had to be given to the connection
details, sequencing of
installation of the façade
system and building
movements due to
temperature and lateral
loading.”
NSC 23
“Meanwhile, the façade comprises precast
Nov/Dec 19
The steel frame has a cantilevering entrance
choice, AHMM Senior Architect, Dan
Farmer, says it is all about refining Salford’s
industrial heritage and creating a 21st
Century warehouse as an office space with
character.
“The steel frame is the real driver for this
project and having an exo-skeleton meant
that we were able to highlight the steelwork
and dispense with the usual clutter that
surrounds many buildings.
Having so much exposed steelwork
meant a lot of attention has been paid
to the connection design and the paint
specification. All of the steel frame’s bolts
are countersunk as they were considered
to have a more aesthetic look, while the
majority of the steelwork will be repainted
late in the programme to ensure it has the
best possible finish.
The exo-skeleton is not just an
architectural and aesthetic feature, the steel
beams and columns around the perimeter
are load-bearing and structurally-integral to
the scheme.
Also, known as Plot B3, Three New Bailey is
a seven-storey building that will provide
14,500m2 of office space.
The BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rated office block is
situated adjacent to Salford Central station and will
have secure parking accommodated within disused
railway arches. The entire building has been fully let
to HM Revenue and Customs.
Although this building is not as tall as its
neighbours, it is a long rectangular structure
measuring almost 100m in length, which allows it to
have significant floorplates.
“In the early design stages, we reviewed several
options and a steel frame proved to be the most
efficient way of achieving the long spans which
were required to minimise the number of internal
columns within the floorplate,” says Cundall Principal
Engineer Clare Dawson.
To this end, the scheme contains only five
centrally-positioned internal columns creating two
15m-wide spans that run the length of the building.
These two long spans are created with a series
of Westok cellular beams that integrate all of the
building’s services within their depth.
Stability for the frame is derived from reinforced
Allowing the external steelwork to
be even more of a stand-out feature, the
internal floorplates and façade are set-back
800mm behind the skeleton.
Beams that penetrate the façade have a
thermal break inserted into their length to
negate any effects from the weather. The
thermal breaks, which are bolted between
two steel members and are hidden within
the façade’s depth, arrived on site already
installed within the steelwork as this process
was undertaken by steelwork contractor
Severfield during its fabrication programme.
Based around a 12m × 12m grid pattern,
the building has minimal internal columns,
allowing the office floorplates to have the
desired long uninterrupted and flexible
spans.
Fabsec beams, used to integrate the
building’s services within their depth,
The precast panels will
attach to a series of brackets,
which were welded to the
perimeter beams by EvadX
during the fabrication
programme.
Three New Bailey is due to
be complete by early 2021.
support metal decked flooring. The
underneath of the decking will be left
exposed within the completed scheme,
along with the services and duct work,
adding to the overall industrial look.
Stability for the building is derived from
a steel braced core. The decision to go for a
steel core instead of a concrete one was all
down to availability as Integra Consulting
Engineers Director Rory Harris explains.
“At the time, there were a number of
concrete projects underway in the region
and we thought there could be material
availability issues, so we went with a steel
core.
“It was a similar price in the end, but had
the advantage of being erected along with
the main steel frame.”
Two New Bailey is due to be completed
in mid-2020.
Commercial
Third on the block
FACT FILE
Three New Bailey
Plot One
Main client:
The English Cities Fund
Architect:
Make Architects
Main contractor:
Bowmer + Kirkland
Structural engineer:
Cundall
Steelwork contractor:
EvadX
Steel tonnage: 1,340t
Steel cores provide the
stability
The glazed façade
sits inside of the
exoskeleton
/Braced_frames
/Simple_connections
/Facades_and_interfaces
/Thermal_performance#Thermal_bridging
/Fabrication
/Concept_design#Floor_grids
/Service_integration
/Service_integration
/Steel_construction_products#Decking_for_floors
/Concept_design#Structural_options_for_stability
/Concept_design#Concrete_or_steel_cores
/Construction#Steel_erection
/Design
/Long-span_beams
/Steel_construction_products#Cellular_beams
/Trusses#Vierendeel_trusses
/Welding