OUR WORK
XSCAPE – MILTON KEYNES & CASTLEFORD
Xscape, Milton Keynes is the ultimate entertainment destination offering a unique combination of extreme sports and leisure activities, it boasts country’s biggest indoor REAL snow slopes, Europe’s first purpose-built body flying tunnel! , rock climbing walls, bowling, multiplex cinema, gym and a fitness centre, numerous bars and restaurants and urban retail outlets all under one roof.
Atom Consultants were commissioned by steel fabricators Severfield plc. to design the structural steel frame for this Faulkner Browns Architects designed superstructure aimed to resemble an icy-blue, snow-capped mountain. 400 tonnes of structural steelwork was required to be erected each week by the principal contractor Sir Robert McAlpine.
The simple and distinctive geometric shape, which provides an envelope around the building takes a form of a slice cut off a cylinder at an angle of 9.6 degrees. The main feature inside the building is a real snow ski slope, perched high above the cinema, and draping down at 10 and 15 degree angles towards the ground floor. The shape of the building and the layout of the facilities inside meant that there was very little repetition in the element being designed.
Each of the cinemas required large uninterrupted spaces, hence a regular column grid could not be maintained throughout the building, and required large transfer beams and trusses to take up loading from the roof, ski slope and cinema lids to a regular 7.5 m grid within the shopping mall area. The complexity of the project exhibited itself in the set up of the structural members (well over 10,000 in total) and the choice of the section sizes. BIM was used throughout the project, and ultimately 30% reduction in tender estimate of the steel tonnage was achieved (out of a total of 5,000!), making this project an echelon of an efficient design, proving to be very cost-effective for the client Capital & Regional.
Xscape Castleford in West Yorkshire near Leeds, is the second generation of Xscape developments, establishing the brand as a firm destination for extreme sports and niche-market retail expereince. This 36,000m2 scheme, with a 38m tall front façade houses an large atrium to house various retail and eating establishments, an of course the all- important 170m long real snow ski slope. Atom Consultants played an integral part in the design of the structure for Xscape Castleford working alongside the contractor Shepherd (now Wates) for the steel fabricator Billington Structures.
SPORT & LEISURE:
OTHER PROJECTS
Aquatics Centre – London
London Aquatics Centre,comprising a 50m competition pool, 25m diving pool and a 50m training pool, was erected for the London 2012 Olympic Games. The challenge to Balfour Beatty, the contractor, was to construct a building which meets the needs of Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA)
Blythswood Square Hotel – Glasgow
Blythswood Square (part of the PH Hotels) is an award winning, splendid 5-star spa hotel in Glasgow City Centre. Atom Consultants acted as Project Managers & Structural Engineers for the extensive refurbishment of this Grade B listed townhouse building.
Rhinefield House Hotel Brockenhurst, Hampshire
Rhinefield House Hotel is located deep within the New Forest National Park in Hampshire. Featuring an infamous Alhambra Room, inspired by the Moorish built Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, this Hand Picked Hotel will embrace you with a warm welcome and keep your mind in zen mode during those long walks in their 40 acre grounds.
DOCKLANDS LIGHT RAILWAY STATIONS, LONDON: BECKTON CONTROL CENTRE, SHADWELL STATION & STRATFORD INTERNATIONAL CENTRE
Atom Consultants, at the forefront of latest technology, created an asset registry for interactive geospatial maps for several of the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) metro stations owned by Transport for London (TfL), such as the Stratford International Station and the Shadwell Station.
Abu Dhabi International Airport, UAE
The new Abu Dhabi International Airport’s Midfield Terminal Building in ADIA, UAE, built to accommodate up to 27 million passengers annually, is truly impressive in both design and build:
Great Yarmouth Power Station in South Denes
Great Yarmouth, in South Denes, is one of a new generation of highly efficient, gas–burning power stations, with the capacity to generate 400MW of electricity.The station was commissioned in 2002 and is one of the UK’s most modern stations, powered by natural gas using the latest generating technology – combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT).
C.A.S.P.A.R Apartments – Leeds
This Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s scheme in Leeds was set to prove that it is possible to develop an award-winning apartment block for the private-rented sector, then let it at below market rents and still make an attractive return on investment without any subsidy. The Leeds scheme was the second in a development blueprint programme called CASPAR – City-Centre Apartments for Single People at Affordable Rents.
Cleveland Clinic – Abu Dhabi, UAE
Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, on Al Maryah Island, UAE, is a unique and unparalleled extension of US-based Cleveland Clinic’s model of care, specifically designed to address a range of complex and critical care requirements unique to the Abu Dhabi population. The facilities at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi combine state-of-the-art amenities and world-class service standards.
Logoplaste
The Portugese privately owned rigid plastic packaging manufacturer Logoplaste’s product list includes bottles for the Lucozade and Jose Cuervo drinks brands, and for detergent Fairy liquid.