Tm cs birmingham new street

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case-study

new street station

birmingham

modern

TM

stone, metal & mesh cladding

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The new look Birmingham New Street Station was unveiled in the Autumn…and Network Rail were so pleased with the metal & stone cladding that they see it as a model for future redevelopments.

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/RESEARCH New Street’s makeover took eight years to complete and cost £750m. With a footfall of 35 million passengers per year - making it the busiest building in the UK outside of London - the project was about as high profile as it gets.

The stakes were high for all the partners involved; headed up by Network Rail who manage the station and principle contractor Mace.

When it came to re-cladding the walls of the platforms, the overhaul threw up many complications for Simco the cladding and framing sub-contractor charged with renewing the façades.

The original building was Victorian and there have been ongoing changes since then, including a major “brutalist” renovation in the 1960s.

This meant that there were many different kinds of surface to fix the new cladding onto, as well as other features of a modern railway station to work around, as Nathan Barnes of Mace explained: “There are a considerable amount of sensors and equipment mounted to the walls together with rainwater pipes running down columns requiring access panels. In addition to this finding signage and louvres required careful coordination. There’s a myriad of things you have to consider!”

Initially Network Rail wanted to use a glass cladding system on the platforms, but the project partners realised that it would have been difficult and expensive to make a glass system fit around the intricate design features on the platform walls.

The cladding subcontractor Simco suggested the Taylor Maxwell (TM) genius metal façade system, because its flexibility makes it ideally suited to complex designs.

Graham Smith, Simco’s Managing Director, explained: “The genius cladding system is very adaptable, and there is a very fast turn-around for deliveries from Taylor Maxwell.

“With many other systems, you have to order a month ahead, then it comes on to site and they either fit or they don’t - you can’t reshape them.”

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/GUIDE Nathan Barnes agreed that the genius metal cladding was the right choice for the platforms: “The system was ideal, it is a very old building but the flexibility of the backing structure overcame the issues of having a number of different substrates to fix onto and the lightweight nature allowed it to be fixed back to the old walls without the need for structural enhancement. The panels were adaptable enough to fit around services and the system flexible enough to enable the works to be phased in noncontinuous areas. It resolved all the issues that we would have had with the glass system.

“We looked at some other options but the genius panels worked better with the existing structure, and was more cost effective so it made sense both for us and Network Rail.”

Cladding the parapets in the station also brought challenges.

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The design concept specified a granite finish, but the project team had difficulty finding a product to suit the design intent.

Again, they consulted Simco, who recommended using a 20mm thick generix Lite granite stone cladding system supplied by TM. “Network Rail were again happy that the generix system was robust enough and sufficiently flexible in terms of the various substrates on the project.” reported Nathan Barnes.

There were also further complications due to the requirement of a pitched angle to the tops of the parapet walls.

“Taylor Maxwell and Simco had to come up with a solution for the steeple copings. They managed to fit the generix Lite fabricated panels with a bespoke metal backing and it worked very well.” continued Nathan.

/PROVIDE

“The clients are over the moon.” said Graham Smith.

Because of the complications on the project, there was extreme time pressure on getting the cladding installed.

“Network Rail is now saying the specification on the platforms is what they would like for projects going forward on their other stations.”

Graham Smith added: “Our timeframe for the works were delayed so we were left with a shortened period to install.

But the customer service from TM was problem-free, and everything was delivered on time.

We’ve used TM for dozens of projects, they are our go-to supplier.”

The end result of this prestigious project shows the benefit of an experienced installer and a responsive supplier working in partnership to solve complex design issues and meet exacting deadlines.

Nathan Barnes added: “Network Rail is looking to use the genius system on other platforms again because of its flexibility and ease of installation: it just worked.

And the generix Lite granite stone cladding is one of the first things you see as you approach the station from the Bullring and the town centre, it looks great and it has transformed the area.

Some people said the old station was dark and dingy - but now it’s light, clean and modern-looking.”

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what is generix? generix is a cost effective portfolio of ventilated rainscreen faรงade solutions which offers a range of natural stone faรงade panels. generix comprises of two systems, generix lite and generix plus. generix lite is a cost effective solution which uses a 20 and 30mm natural stone panel with a 90 degree horizontal kerf. The panels are secured to the generix lite vertical rail using the patented one piece four way stainless steel clip attached by Tekscrews. Neoprene strips eradicate wind rattle and assists impact resistance. generix lite 5262 adhesive is also applied for additional impact performance.

natural stone rainscreen cladding systems

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generix

generix plus is a unique system which can support up to a 40-50mm thick natural stone panel. The horizontal edges of the panels can be manufactured at either 90 or 45 degrees.

This permits the use of an open horizontal joint, which is more effective than a closed joint system for air and thermal movement.

The panels are secured to the generix plus vertical rail using the patented two piece stainless steel clip, this is achieved by using the generix plus bending tool. The system also benefits from neoprene strips which eradicates wind rattle and assists impact resistance.

/key features of generix • Fast track construction • Universal substructure • Varied panel options • Cost effective • Certified to the latest industry standards • Flexibility in design

Sizes:

Panel sizes for both systems are dependent upon the type of stone and location, please seek advice from a TM representative.

Tests: Testing of the raw material • generix lite has been tested to the latest CWCT Standards at Wintech Engineering which included compliance with the NHBC Technical note TN76.

• generix plus has 60 year durability to BRE Digest 346 Part 7 and Ultimate destruction test to 5625 pascals.

Tiles should be positioned next to the area to be clad and each tile is then supported off the base clips.

Press firmly in position, select an intermediate clip and secure using the specified Tek Screw.

Repeat the process until complete…simple.

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feeling inspired? contact your nearest facades solutions provider Taylor Maxwell Glasgow 3000 Academy Park, Gower Street, Glasgow, G51 1PR Taylor Maxwell Edinburgh 1a Clerk Street, Loanhead, Edinburgh, EH20 9DP Taylor Maxwell North East Unit 16, Bankside, The Watermark, Gateshead, NE11 9SY Taylor Maxwell Leeds Unit 1 Bramley Grange, Skeltons Lane, Leeds LS14 3DW Taylor Maxwell Manchester Carlton House, 18 Albert Square, Manchester, M2 5PE Taylor Maxwell Nottingham Units 7 & 8, Castlebridge Office Village, Kirtley Drive, Castle Marina, Nottingham NG7 1LD Taylor Maxwell Birmingham 6080 Knights Court, Solihull Parkway, Birmingham Business Park, B37 7WY Taylor Maxwell Cardiff 13 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9HA Taylor Maxwell Bristol Taylor Maxwell House, The Promenade, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 3NW Taylor Maxwell Barnet Cosmo House, 53 Wood Street, Barnet, EN5 4BS Taylor Maxwell Witham The Matchyns, Rivenhall End, Witham, CM8 3HA Taylor Maxwell Leatherhead Ashcombe House, 5 The Crescent, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 8DY Taylor Maxwell Winchester Winchester House, Basingstoke Road, Kings Worthy, Winchester, SO23 7QF Vobster Cast Stone Co. Ltd. Newbury Works, Coleford, Radstock, BA3 5RX

Head Office Taylor Maxwell House The Promenade Clifton Bristol BS8 3NW

T: 0203 794 9377 E: info@taylor.maxwell.co.uk

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