A successful partnership between Rydon Construction and Gilberts Blackpool has been established, following the specification of bespoke solutions for the National Composites Centre.
Neil Spurway, project manager at Rydon Construction, explained: “It’s the first time I have personally worked with Gilberts, and I wouldn’t hesitate to use the company again. They delivered a complex project efficiently, cleanly and, bearing in mind the complexity of the job, without a huge song and dance.”
Rydon turned to Gilberts to design and manufacture the ventilation louvres for part of the National Composites Centre – the research and development facility that collaborates with customers from all sectors to solve the most complex engineering challenges.
The louvres were needed to allow optimum ventilation with appropriate levels of weather protection in the building, which will accommodate workshops, offices, and plant, including huge compressor units. However, any penetration of the building cladding system would have invalidated the warranty.
Gilberts worked closely with Rydon to develop a bespoke fixing system for the louvres that secured the banks direct to the building structural steelwork with special angled cleats.
Further complexity to the project was the size and shape of the WGK75 louvre banks. Panel lengths up to 7.5m long and 5.7m high with standard performance louvre blades fixed at a 75mm pitch, varying in lengths between 1.4m-2.3m were manufactured, supplied, and installed by Gilberts.
More than 200 mullions plus mitring of all blade sections on the abutting corners were needed to create the 310 plus metre long screen along two façades at high level. Gilberts also supplied and installed a series of removable panels and three separate louvre double doors at low level to facilitate access.
