The restoration and refurbishment of the Grade II Listed building for the University of Nottingham provides a central hub for education and event space, helping to meet the university’s goals for a dynamic, open, accessible and welcoming place, whilst still respecting the Grade II Listed architecture.
In 2022, the 32,500 sq. metre site was purchased by the University of Nottingham to form a new modern and welcoming city centre campus, whilst paying homage to the site’s rich history. Built on a former railway goods yard and located next to the Nottingham Canal, the site is famous for Nottingham’s Crocus meadows where cow keepers pastured their cows and is now known as Castle Meadow Campus.
Originally designed by Hopkins Architects and Arup in 1994, the building provided office space, a creche and catering facilities for the Inland Revenue, under the largest tensile roof structure in the UK.
G F Tomlinson were appointed to carry out the refurbishment and restoration of the Grade II Listed Central Building to extend the life of this architectural city landmark, which sits in the heart of the new campus. The scheme recognises
G F Tomlinson’s long working relationship with the university, being the 19th project delivered to date.
The University required a construction partner who could successfully navigate the link between the client, designers and local authority partners, who awarded the building its Grade II Listed status after the University had purchased the site. At only 30-years old, it is one of the youngest buildings to achieve a listed status. This presented additional challenges to ensure the heritage requirements were met, whilst adhering to the original refurbishment needs. G F Tomlinson’s strong experience of delivering heritage projects within the region, including the Grade I Listed Nottingham Castle transformation which sits at the back of the site, helped the university to navigate this.
G F Tomlinson worked with the local authority, on behalf of the university to determine protection requirements and essential repairs and replacement of key elements within the building.
A key challenge for the project was the replacement and refurbishment of the PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) tensile roof structure. The roof spans approximately 4,500 sq. metres – the equivalent to the size of seven tennis courts and is said to be one of the most complex roof structures in Europe. G F Tomlinson carried out a 140-point due-diligence exercise to determine the volume and quality of the original design information and the risks involved for the design and works.
Arup’s design presumed a full replacement was required, however following extensive surveys of the steel, tensioning rods and façade, G F Tomlinson were able to provide an affordable solution where much of the structure and façade could be retained. This approach allowed for a total of £785k in client cost savings, 22-weeks in time and 135.3tCO2e carbon reduction by refurbishing parts of the asset rather than wholesale replacement as favoured by the legacy design team.
As a unique structure, with no other design like it anywhere else in the world, coupled with the lack of original design information, the structure required an alternative design approach. G F Tomlinson appointed a new designer from Australia, who had the knowledge and capabilities to provide an approved design. Originally built using Polish steel and not British Standard, G F Tomlinson appointed a local steel supply chain member to design bespoke elements to join the existing structure to new elements. A specialist rope access subcontractor was appointed to carry out all replacement works. Watch the roof replacement drone footage here:
https://bit.ly/4jU3PmK
The building’s entire framework has been carefully refurbished to preserve its structural integrity and historical significance, which began with the removal of the building’s glass elements. 900m2 of glass removed was refinished and reinstated, providing a client saving of £265k.
Temporary rigging was installed to stabilise the frame, with birdcage scaffolding weighing 60 tonnes and standing seven metres tall, covering a platform area of 945 sq. metres. Sections of the roof were removed in sequence, starting with the North and South sections, followed by the main roof Central section with its three floating Oculi and finally the East and West. Structural strengthening, including additional welding and the replacement of worn components, including over 5,000 bolts was carried out before the placement of the new fabric.
Repainting of the structural frame and refurbishing of key components was undertaken and all existing aluminium rain screen cladding which spans 780m2 and 510m2 of curtain walling was refinished and resprayed, saving £320k and 8-weeks on the programme.
The installation of a new glulam mezzanine floor enhances the building’s functionality and was designed to work with the existing structure and remove potential water penetration points, including demountable components to enable ease for future maintenance.
The final stages of the structure restoration included the reinstalment of 15 tonnes of existing glass, which was complemented by an additional four tonnes of new glass within the façade, designed to meet modern building standards. This, along with the installation of a new central glass roof box ensures plenty of natural light into the building.
A substantial number of tiles to the existing raised access floors were set to be replaced. These were not a standardised size and due to the retained services and the existing coffers to the existing first floor concrete slab, it was not feasible to change to a standard 600mm x 600mm grid, without significant cost uplift. To mitigate this, early in the process G F Tomlinson sourced original size tiles from a building in Canary Wharf which was undergoing refurbishment. These were brought to site early to avoid losing the supply and stored safely.
An alternative specification for the worktops to the three bar areas, kitchen and reception were found which provided a client saving of £36k.
A series of monthly meetings, site tours and training days with the university’s maintenance team were incorporated into the overall programme, 8-months prior to completion. This ensured understanding and compliance of the building’s systems and sharing of information to allow the maintenance team to effectively manage the building, with all training filmed for future use.
Located within the city centre, with a public right of way maintained at all times, the building is located directly adjacent Brown Jacobson Solicitors and university offices. Regular liaison on progress, plans and over-sail crane movements was communicated to the building-users, with progress reports and plans shared via monthly progress meetings, community noticeboards and letter drops.
Working alongside another contractor, who were managing two adjacent sites,
G F Tomlinson coordinated all deliveries and visitors for all three sites via their entrance with logistics shared and agreed between both contractors via formal weekly meetings and daily liaison.
G F Tomlinson arranged a collaboration event with the adjacent contractor for the Forum for the Built Environment and ProCon Nottinghamshire members and guests to showcase the new campus. The event included insightful presentations, along with a demonstration of the university’s Projection Augmented Relief Model to display the innovative use of digital tools in urban planning and development. This was followed by a guided site tour and talk of the redevelopment, with the project and event promoted publicly via the local press and social media.
G F Tomlinson provided £3m of social value added during the scheme – 25% against the project budget. A bespoke Social Value Action Plan was collated, with key objectives agreed with the client and wider project team.
Training and skills opportunities for local students were provided via on-site talks, tours and 82 work experience placement days. Local primary school Year 6 pupils were provided with a presentation and site tour to help support their ‘mock degree’ for construction and engineering. A Continual Professional Development event was held on site for two teachers from the construction department at Lees Brook Academy, to help support their knowledge of the construction curriculum.
The G F Tomlinson team supported the local community with regular group litter picking around the city centre and also donated 10 dual sided benches from the former changing rooms to a local football club. In support of their chosen charity – The Aortic Dissection Charitable Trust, the G F Tomlinson Site Manager took on the epic Lake District Ultra Challenge – a 100k continuous loop of hiking, with an elevation of up to 2500 metres across the Southern Lakes, raising £700 for the charity.
The completed project creates a strong sense of arrival at the campus and breathes a new lease of life into the building, providing flexible event space to support 200-seat banqueting use, meeting spaces, restaurant, café, kitchen area, interactive dining experience and a winter garden. The building was complimented by an extensive public realm package of paving and street furniture. This was designed to be in keeping with this state-of-the-art, high profile building.
Design and Construction Programme Lead, James Hale of the University of Nottingham, said: “G F Tomlinson bring a collaborative approach and open communication style to each project they deliver and their attention to detail and focus on quality is first rate. As with all projects, circumstances can change and challenges may arise, but G F Tomlinson are able to adapt and respond to these quickly, whilst still fulfilling the project’s vision and our requirements. Their exceptional level of service goes beyond just site, with technical expertise in design and commercial management.”
