Active was appointed as main contractor to undertake the demolition and enabling works package for the former Grupo Antolin Building, a BMW/Mini factory used to produce and inject car foam to motor vehicles through its production line. The structure was removed to ground bearing slab in order for CC Cousins to construct an overflow carpark for the newly built flagship Primark Retail Unit.
Land Securities’ mandatory sustainability and environmental target, whereby more than 90% of the building was to be recycled into renewable resources, were met by Active through choosing an alternative route of demolition by unbolting and dismantling the frame piece by piece, to be re-erected for an end consumer.
The structure was a portal frame with a constructional steel front office block with a gross internal area of 6,835 square meters.
Removal of all out buildings, 1,500 square meters of the office first floor slab, windows, mechanical and electrical equipment, soft furnishings and internal walls and partitioning allowed the soffit to be netted prior to a complete declad and dismantle of the frame. Along with the frame and cladding panels, all suspended ceiling tiles, air conditioning units, raised access flooring, roller shutters and windows were removed from site for re-use.
With an eight-week programme and restrictions to on-site traffic due to an adjacent live shopping complex, the project was highly challenging, however completed to a high standard of safety and within the programme schedule.
