The mechanical and electrical (M&E) works designed and built by G&H Building Services has played a key part in Sewell Construction winning a prestigious award.
The restoration of Leeds City College’s historic Printworks building saw Sewell Construction win the Committed to Heritage and Refurbishment category in the Committed to Construction in Humber and West Yorkshire Awards 2016.
Run by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), the awards were held at New Dock Hall in Leeds on Friday, April 22.
The renovation of Print Hall Building 1 in the Grade II listed former Alf Cooke Printworks unlocked an unused facility for educational use while preserving the industrial character of the building.
Working closely with Sewell Construction, G&H Building Services managed an M&E installation of key elements including an underfloor heating system, air conditioning, gas fired boiler plant room, heat recovery ventilation systems, radiators and radiant panels and specialist, feature lighting.
Senior Contracts Manager at G&H Building Services, Paul Cuss, said: “It is tremendous news that Sewell Construction has won this major award as the CIOB is one of the leading organisations in the industry.
“Building conservation through sympathetic refurbishment is vitally important to preserve the rich heritage of buildings found in the UK and we are delighted to have played a part in the scheme.
“The challenge from an M&E perspective was to make the building function at its best for the end users – the students and staff using it on a daily basis.
“Equally, we had to show great consideration and respect to ensure the services – especially the mechanical features in the open voids such as those in the large atrium – were in keeping with the history of the building and the rest of Sewell Construction’s work.”
Mark Dodgson, Project Manager at Sewell Construction, said: “G&H worked closely with our design team throughout this project and can be incredibly proud of their contribution to what has turned out to be an award winning scheme.
“Our architect was extremely keen on retaining as many of the existing features, and to have exposed soffits throughout, so G&H’s installation had to be carefully coordinated as everything was on show.”
Jason Challender, Director of Physical Resources at Leeds City College, said: “We’re delighted to have won this prestigious award for our Printworks hall.
“It’s testament to the hard work that has gone into this refurbishment.
“The state-of-the-art campus houses specialist vocational subjects, including hairdressing and beauty therapy, catering, hospitality and food manufacture, which relocated from the former Thomas Danby Campus.
“The Sewell team has worked closely with us to formulate robust proposals that satisfy our requirements.
“The next phase of the Printworks development is currently underway and is expected to be completed by spring 2017. We’re looking forward to seeing the results.”
The project was also shortlisted in the awards’ Project of the Year under £5 million category.
Sewell Construction and G&H Building Services are looking ahead to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Awards in Harrogate on May 13, in which the project is shortlisted in the Building Conservation category.
Read more about our work in this project here Leeds City College Print Hall
