A case study on a mixed use housing development
Dudley House was built as part of Westminster Council’s programme to deliver 22,000 new homes by 2040. It provides 197 much needed homes to rent for working people in Westminster. The 22 storey tower development also encompasses a new 9 storey secondary school, the tallest in the UK, along with a community church and retail unit.
Structa was appointed by Westminster Council to provide structural and civil engineering support at an early stage in the project. We subsequently worked with appointed contractor Wilmott Dixon to deliver the detail of the scheme on a small 0.4ha site in a constrained urban environment.
The building was designed by Architect Child Graddon Lewis, and shortlisted for a host of accolades. The scheme was a finalist in the Architects Journal Architecture Awards, British Construction Industry Awards and Construction News Awards.
How did we contribute to this successful build?
We needed to give careful consideration to neighbouring property. A survey of the boundary and nearby features identified a Victorian sewer running directly alongside the site, for which we implemented robust protection measures.
The engineering of the building accommodated a sports hall in the basement of the development and a sports pitch on the roof. We used a post-tensioned concrete slab to minimise the thickness of the transfer structure above the basement. This protected headroom for the sports hall and provided space for distribution of services. Slip cores were used to form the main cores and speed up construction of the reinforced flat slab concrete frame building.
As part of Wilmott Dixon’s team, Structa worked alongside Architect Child Graddon Lewis to develop the scheme from concept to a fully detailed building in BIM Level 2. Before construction commenced, the building finishes, structure and services were coordinated in a full 3D digital model.
Grenfell Tower impact
During the design period for the building, the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower occurred. This prompted Wilmott Dixon and their core design team to modify the cladding design of Dudley House to ensure no combustible materials were present. The wider design team and supply chain worked effectively together to achieve an excellent standard of practical completion. Zero significant defects were recorded.
The resulting completed development makes for a building of integrity, functionality and purpose. One which contributes great value to its community today and will do for long into the future.
