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Tag: construction

East Midlands Airport: Freeport Development

Posted on by David Priestman

In a recent announcement, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves highlighted the importance of the East Midlands Freeport development, emphasizing its role in driving economic growth and job creation. She stated: “Economic growth is the number one mission of our Plan for Change. This investment will create thousands of new jobs, strengthen the UK’s position in advanced manufacturing and logistics, and boost the economy.”

East Midlands Airport (EMA) is advancing its Freeport plans with a new industrial logistics and manufacturing park, unlocking $1.3bn (£1bn) of investment. Located south of EMA, the site will offer tax and customs reliefs, attracting investment and fostering growth in life sciences and advanced manufacturing. EMA is seen to be the UK’s most important airport for express air cargo which enables seamless trade between UK businesses and the rest of the world, helping to support the regional and national economy.

A planning application has been submitted, with potential for 2,000 new jobs, £132m annual economic growth, and £9m in business rates. EMA’s strategic location and strong transport links make it the UK’s top express freight airport. Air cargo volumes are projected to grow by 54% by 2043.

EMA’s cargo operations have already attracted businesses in aeronautical, automotive, retail, pharmaceutical, and logistics sectors. This new development will further cement its role in global trade and innovation.

Sustainability is central, with adherence to the UK Green Building Council’s net-zero carbon framework. During construction, carbon emissions will be measured and reduced, and operational buildings will meet EPC A+ energy efficiency standards.

Steve Griffiths, Managing Director of EMA, emphasized the significance of this step, stating: “This is an exciting step forward for growth in and around the airport. Our unrivaled cargo operation continues to act as a catalyst for investment, and we look forward to building on its success.”

Tom Newman-Taylor, CEO of East Midlands Freeport, echoed this sentiment, highlighting the transformative impact of the Freeport’s tax sites: “This is a positive first step in realizing the full potential of the Freeport, creating thousands of jobs and unlocking billions in investment.”

Paul Weston, Regional Head, Prologis UK said: “Our partnership with MAG aims to realise the full potential of this strategic hub for international logistics.

“Our shared vision is to leverage the Freeport status and central location of EMA to create a high-impact gateway that drives economic growth, innovation and employment opportunities across the Midlands. By bringing our expertise in logistics developments to the table, we are confident that our partnership will unlock significant benefits for both the local community and the broader UK economy.”

This development underscores EMA’s critical role in driving economic growth and innovation, positioning it as a key hub for logistics and advanced manufacturing in the UK.

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Next phase of St. Modwen Park Burton Commenced

Posted on by David Priestman

St. Modwen Logistics, one of the UK’s leading logistics developers and managers, and a Blackstone portfolio company, has commenced the final phase of activity at St. Modwen Park Burton, which will see the delivery of five high-quality logistics units totalling c. 400,000 sq ft.

Earlier this year, Blackstone announced that from July 2024, St. Modwen Logistics’ portfolio of assets will become part of Indurent, a new pure play UK logistics champion. The business will have more than 200 assets totalling 26 million sq. ft of logistics space.

The buildings at St. Modwen Park Burton range from 38,000 to 175,000 sq ft in size and will be built to St. Modwen Logistics’ industry-leading Swan Standard, a holistic set of guidelines to ensure sustainable construction. All units will be rated BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and will obtain either EPC A or A+ certifications. In addition, each building unit will offer Grade A office accommodation, vehicle charging points and rain water harvesting as standard, whilst units B79 and B173 will come equipped with rooftop solar PV to offset the operational energy usage of the office space.

This most recent phase of development will bring the total space at St. Modwen Park Burton to just under 1 million sq ft, with completion due early next year. Existing customers at the scheme include Hellmann Logistics, London City Bond, Keylite Roof Windows and Supply Technologies. St. Modwen Park Burton is also part of a larger 175-acre mixed-use scheme being delivered by St. Modwen, which includes more than 600 new homes as part of the urban extension to the south of Burton. The development also includes a retail centre as well as a large 160-acre woodland which is accessible to businesses on the park and the local community.

The quality and flexibility of units on offer will support both growing local businesses and blue-chip manufacturing and distribution companies looking to take advantage of the scheme’s fantastic transport links. The scheme offers direct access to the A38, with 90% of the UK population within a four-hour drive. 1,500 jobs will be created at the site, rendering it a key employment hub for the region.

Winvic Construction Ltd is the principal contractor for the scheme, having delivered other high-quality new units at the nearby St. Modwen Park Derby and St. Modwen Park Tamworth. St. Modwen has appointed the Birmingham offices of Knight Frank and Savills to market the units.

Rob Richardson, Development Director at St. Modwen Logistics said: “Having already successfully delivered more than 600,000 sq ft of prime logistics space at St. Modwen Park Burton, this latest phase of activity will further support local businesses and inward investors in accessing the industrial workspace and warehousing they need across Staffordshire.

“The site’s exceptional sustainability features and prime location, accessible to 90% of the UK population within 4 hours, make it an ideal logistics scheme for a diverse range of occupiers.”

Danny Nelson, Director of Industrial, Distribution and Logistics, added: “We’re delighted to be working with St. Modwen Logistics yet again to deliver five industrial facilities in Burton. Our companies have built a strong relationship over many years due to our aligned sustainability and quality values; the design ensures the offices will be operationally Net Zero Carbon and we will achieve at least 10% Biodiversity Net Gain. The team is looking forward to the 44 weeks of construction and handing over the scheme in February 2024.”

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Ground Broken on Logistics Gateway Development

Planning Granted for Extension to Major ‘Golden Triangle’ Logistics Park

Posted on by Will Priestman

Prologis UK, a leading owner, investor and developer of logistics property, is bringing to market an additional 159,000 sq. ft. of space to the logistics ‘Golden Triangle’ through an expansion of Prologis Park Coventry. Planning consent has been granted to deliver either a single unit or two-unit scheme on the site, depending on customer demand.

Located five minutes from M6 J3 and within 15 miles of five different motorways, Prologis Park Coventry is a highly sought-after location for businesses within the automotive and wider logistics sector. The scheme provides a unique opportunity for prospective customers to take full advantage of Prologis UK’s build-to-suit offering and secure prime logistics space in one of the UK’s most desirable locations.

Planning Success

This latest investment follows a string of other recent planning successes for the business, including at Prologis Parks Luton, Hemel Hempstead and Croydon. Once complete, the scheme at Prologis Park Coventry will bring the total value of assets under Prologis management in the Midlands to over £3 billion and the business’ Warwickshire footprint to over 3.4 million sq. ft., spread across its holdings at Prologis Park Ryton and Prologis Park Coventry.

Maria Bailey, Head of Planning at Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council, added: “It is our foremost priority to support activity which will directly provide a net benefit to our region. The granting of this planning application means that there are more chances than ever for the local community to pursue roles within a stable and progressive industry. Supporting the growth of businesses, and attracting more commercial activity to the area, will secure the delivery of a valuable employment site and bring inward investment and jobs to the borough.”

Success at Prologis Park

Planned with employee wellbeing in mind, the scheme is located opposite Coventry Country Park with connecting access routes for employees and the community. Another key feature of Prologis UK’s PARKlife offering, landscaped communal areas have been drawn up in the planning designs.

With the opportunity to be neighbours with major companies such as IFCO, Halfords, DHL, Parcel Force and Co-Op, the unit will be delivered to Prologis UK’s high sustainability standards, targeting an EPC A and BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating, as well as being net zero carbon in construction.

Caroline Musker, Head of Planning at Prologis UK, said: “This multi-million-pound expansion of Prologis Park Coventry will help to activate growth of local businesses and generate further inward financial opportunities. We pride ourselves in our expertise in providing agile spaces that deliver scalable groundbreaking solutions. Delivering flexibility through our two permissions at this scale means we can be adaptable to the market and the requirements of prospective tenants.”

Busineses at Prologis Park Coventry are supported by a highly skilled labour pool and potential talent base that is ideally suited to the logistics and distribution operations, across a wide range of sectors.

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Construction consultancy expands across Europe

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Privately-owned construction consultancy Lysander has announced a major expansion across five European markets as it seeks to satisfy continued demand across the industrial, logistics and commercial sectors.

New offices are now operating in Frankfurt, Madrid, Paris, Milan and Rotterdam adding to the company’s existing German presence where it opened in Berlin and Munich in 2020.

In the UK, Lysander has steadily grown its footprint to include offices in central London, Godalming, Northampton and Newcastle. The wider European expansion was a natural next step as Chairman James Duckworth (pictured, centre) explains: “Since launching 21 years ago, Lysander has grown an enviable portfolio of clients and projects across the UK, Ireland, EMEA and Asia. Client relationships have expanded and strengthened as we have grown, and it made sense to invest in the long-term potential of our existing and future relationships.

“There continues to be significant demand for experienced, commercially astute technical advisors across the industrial and logistics sectors, and we’ve already seen the positive impact that investing in the German market has made since our initial launch there two years ago. We’re delighted to be further expanding our European presence with some of the very best, most experienced leaders from across the fields of project and cost management.”

Lysander has successfully delivered complex, market-leading projects for some of the best-known developers, online retailers, automotive manufacturers, data companies, financial institutions and logistics operators in the world.  Lysander’s track record includes repeat work with clients such as Amazon, GLP, Google, Microsoft, BlackRock and Scannell Properties.

In the UK, Lysander was appointed as Project Manager on Amazon’s LCY3 facility, a four-storey, 2.3 million sq ft warehouse which boasts the largest PV roof installation in the UK.

Commenting on Lysander’s future growth, Joint Managing Directors, Tim Roles (pictured, right) and Richard May (pictured, left) said: ‘’We are very excited about the future for Lysander. We have worked hard to establish a strong understanding of our clients’ businesses, their ambitions and the challenges that they have faced, whilst they also move into new markets. We are very much aligned with them and will continue to bring our experience, pragmatism and positive attitude to their projects to ensure successful outcomes.

“It is a testament to the Lysander team that we repeatedly work with some of the most sophisticated occupiers and developers in the world. Demand for project and cost managers with a deep and extensive knowledge in the industrial and logistics markets in particular shows no sign of abating, and we will continue to be a trusted advisor to our valued clients.”

Stromag clamps help build autobahn bridge

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The replacement A40 Neuenkamp Duisburg Bridge, currently under construction in Germany, will support the future prosperity of the industrial Ruhr region by widening this crucial highway over the Rhine. The landmark project is being supported in part by Stromag, which supplied retractable rail clamps to fit the KM Kümsan overhead cranes lifting the large prefabricated bridge sections into position.

The original A40 Neuenkamp Duisburg Bridge was completed in 1971. Designed to carry 30,000 vehicles a day from the A40 autobahn, in recent times the bridge has had to cope with up to 110,000 a day, including a large quantity of trucks . With this increased usage, and following multiple structural repairs, Germany’s motorway authority has embarked on a €340m project to replace the aging bridge with a new eight lane 802m-long cable stayed bridge. When complete, it will be the longest in the country. The 71m-high structure will offer the capacity to carry up to 150,000 vehicles a day with a design life of up to a century, helping to support future economic growth in the area.

The need for cranes

An innovative construction method has been employed to minimise disturbance to road and river traffic. The first span of the new bridge will be built alongside the original, with prefabricated sections moved into position across the river. The original bridge will then be dismantled and replaced with a second span. Finally, the first span will then be ‘slid’ sideways to sit closely to the second span. This allows road traffic to continue to cross the river during the project.

This construction process relies on the use of large prefabricated steel sections which are assembled and lifted into position by overhead cranes running on rails. Leading crane manufacturer KM Kümsan Cranes, together with project developer OVM Engineering GmbH, was ordered to provide four 50t, 32m span capacity gantry cranes to support the bridge building production process. To ensure that the cranes stayed in position on the rails during operation and parking, the OEM contacted Stromag to provide retractable rail clamps for reliable braking performance.

A rail clamp expert

Rail clamps, also known as storm brakes, generate holding force at the crane rails to prevent uncontrolled movement of the crane due to gusts of wind. It is imperative that rail clamps offer reliability, a stable brake friction coefficient and can operate in a wide variety of conditions.

Stromag, a leading brand of Altra Industrial Motion Corp., is a global provider of power transmission solutions to the crane sector, with a specialty in heavy-duty braking technology. The business provides a range of storm brakes to meet varying overhead crane requirements, offering the capability to provide bespoke designs to meet specific needs.

Ünver Ünlü, Business Development Manager at Stromag, adds: “We recommended oversized RRBS retractable rail clamps with in-built Hydraulic Power Packs (HPUs) to KM Kümsan for use on the cranes. To adhere to the bridge construction schedule, it was important that we could provide the multitude of clamps within a tight schedule. We were able to deliver the customised units to KM Kümsan ahead of time and exactly to specification, ensuring that construction work could begin smoothly.

“Our rail clamps offer high power density in operation, with forces ranging from 100kN to 1200kN. Frictions pads are designed and arranged to provide a stable brake friction coefficient across a range of temperatures, which ensures consistent performance in varied environments.”

Tailored designs

“Rail clamp designs are tailored to offer up to 50mm vertical and horizontal float to meet the needs of curved rails, which means an optimum solution for each application,” Ünver continues.

“For retrofit projects, we even can dial in float to accommodate rails that have become squashed and ‘mushroomed’ over prolonged use. We also have the ability to manufacture rail clamps with special bolt patterns to fit crane OEM designs. This flexibility to provide designs that are specialised to maximise performance means our rail clamps offer the utmost reliability across varying operating conditions.”

Stromag provides proof of performance for all its rail clamps thanks to extensive in-house testing of designs. The rail profile of each project is replicated in brake tests, ensuring accurate results. This ensures rail clamps will operate exactly as intended once installed.

With construction work on the A40 Neuenkamp Duisburg Bridge expected to be completed by 2026, soon cars and trucks will be able to cross the Rhine easier than ever before, helping to safeguard the future economic growth of the Ruhr industrial zone.

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