Blackburn Partnership Centre, Edinburgh

Blackburn Partnership Centre, Edinburgh

Client: West Lothian Council / NHS
Architect:
Cost: £8.2m

Will Rudd Davidson were commissioned by Hub South East to carry out the Civil and Structural Engineering services for this new build partnership centre. The ultimate Clients are NHS Lothian and West Lothian Council and the project value is £8.2m.

The projects have been produced on a BIM platform using Revit which has enabled exchange of information with the other Consultants, and in turn has led to a more coordinated design, with defined design efficiencies across the project, ongoing clash detection, and ultimately a smoother Construction Stage.

Our involvement followed our successful completion of a very similar facility in Dunbar, which was completed on budget and programme.

Project Objectives: This Project was packaged up along with 2 others, North West Edinburgh Partnership Centre, and Firrhill Partnership Centre, for the same Client. This was to achieve a consistency of approach in terms of design and also to provide efficiencies in the delivery of all three projects for Hub (South East). The goal was to provide a new state of the art centre, providing integrated community services, a range of local authority services, libraries, gym halls and nurseries.

Added Value: We carried out a structural options appraisal, exploring the most effective structural form, based on key parameters of a rational structural grid; column arrangements for efficient floor spans, maintaining flexible open plan column-free spaces; efficient services integration.

The Client had the clear objective of standardising the structural forms for the 3 Partnership Centres. However, there were clear differences that we felt set the Blackburn Project apart, and reasons why the structural scheme should diverge from the reinforce concrete frame construction used in the others. Our approach is always to look after our Client needs, but to challenge accepted wisdom. As there were substantial areas of single storey, particularly to the library and games hall, there would be lightweight roofs, and long spans. It was our appraisal that, on balance, a reinforced concrete frame would not be optimal, and we recommended the superstructure to be in steel frame throughout. This was bourne out by our option appraisal, which was then costed and ultimately our recommended alternative structure was selected by the Contractor. Using the latest integrated 3D structural design software we could very quickly consider alternative options that could be costed.

There were reports of mining legacy issues in the area. Through our understanding of the risk-based approach to mineral stability, and targeted coal seam investigation, we were able to rule out the need for grouting stabilisation of the site, saving significant cost to the project.

Images © Alan McAteer Photography