Lyons O’Neill were appointed for the Structural and Civil design of a new production facility training centre development situated in Gatwick. The development houses specialist flight simulators which are fixed to the 7.5 x 7.5m “motion pads”. Due to the dynamic loads during their operation these pads are structurally separated from the suspended piled ground floor slab ensuring no transmission of vibration. Understanding the Customer’s operational needs was a key consideration when defining the loading envelope the structure would encounter. Workshops and existing facilities visits were essential to get the loadings right. Construction work includes two approximately 500t braced steel frame class 2A buildings and the installation of associated parking, landscaping and access. Both buildings make use of composite floor construction on a primary 12m / secondary 6m beam grid. Precambered composite cellular beams have been specified for the main primary spans to limit deflections.

Due to subcontractor availability and programme Lyons O’Neill were asked by Willmott Dixon to progress this scheme as a Steel alternative despite it being conceived by the Client as an RC Structure.  We developed alternatives which benefited from the flat slab approach of the concrete solution but benefited from the speed of the steel frames.  By using a Westok Ultra Shallow Floor Beam system we were able to present a flat soffit whilst creating bespoke beams to work within the concept zoning. The fact that the beams are formed from individual Tee sections meant pre-cambering could easily be achieved allowing us to span the 8.5m spans with economic beam weights. Due to the high level of fenestration within the elevations we opted for a portalised solution which gave a bracing free space. LABC Building Excellence Awards 2017 – Regional Winner, Best Large Commercial Project (South East Region)

The site is right in the middle of the community and all of the buildings ground floor is opened up to the public. The new HQ for the non for profit Phoenix Community Housing Association is not only an office space but also is a gathering place at ground floor. This area is occupied by a range of social enterprises including Lewisham Plus Credit Union, a community cafe and training kitchen, along with a number of low cost business units. Lyons O’Neill helped to achieve the BREEAM excellent rating by reusing the existing basement areas for the attenuation tanks and crushing the existing structure on site and using it in the ground improvement process.

York House Windsor serves as the council offices for the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (RBWM). The project involves the refurbishment and roof top extension of the existing building to create a modern civic building with increased floor space. By quickly gaining a good understanding of the existing structure, Lyons O’Neill were able to influence the solution at the early stages and ensure the additions and alterations were going to be practical to construct and suit the tight project programme. The new level 2 floor and rooftop extension has been designed to be lightweight to minimise additional loading on the existing foundations, whilst still providing an open floor space and adhering to overall building height restrictions. The prestigious site location in Windsor provided some unusual access and security challenges for the project team – the rear the building shares a party wall with the grounds of Windsor Castle and Her Majesty the Queen. Directly opposite the building is Victoria Barracks where the New Guard and Marching band depart from before marching up Sheet Street to Windsor Castle for the changing of the Guard.

Adur & Worthing council are developing an old car park site near the Civic Centre. The development will be the first undertaking by the council in a number of years. Working with our partners Willmott Dixon, we developed a scheme that would deliver a flexible development that would suit the needs of prospective tenants. A composite steel frame with piling was used. Particular care needed to be taken with construction sequencing and vibration as the site lies adjacent to the main Network Rail line serving the town. Delighted that our project for Adur District and Worthing Borough Council is a finalist for the Constructing Excellence Awards.

This project saw the conversion of a vacant elderly person care centre into a high spec office space for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to accommodate its Children and Adult Services unit. The new space is located in three bays below the ‘West Way’ main arterial road into London, adjacent to the Ladbroke Grove Tube Station. Key to the design of the new hub is that the construction works are to be kept away from the road structure wherever possible and contact between the two is to be minimised. Any construction which does touch the road structure must therefore be approved not only by Planning and Building control, but also by Transport for London (TFL).

The design of a central screen within the lobby of the Ministry of Sound night club was our challenge. The screen is formed of 11 frames that come to site prefabricated with the Microcables already attached. Each frame has 2 rows of 2.5mm diameter Microcables supported top and bottom that are arranged in a rhythm of colour. The top member is bolted to steel channel that is already fixed in place prior to frames coming to site. The bottom member of the frame is bolted to the existing balustrade which is cut down in height and the cables are tensioned in sequence to the correct tension. The wires can easily be replaced if required.