Speed, safety and the ability to work in partnership with other suppliers are among the key characteristics of Harsco Infrastructure’s involvement in a major college refurbishment project in London.
Working on behalf of the main project contractor, BAM Construction, Harsco used its CUPLOK® multi-purpose steel scaffold to provide an access system to all facades of the Westminister Kingsway College – a further education college which offers academic and vocational courses for 14-19 year olds and adult learners, and houses the UK’s leading School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts.
Harsco also undertook all the design, surveying and calculation work required for two temporary roofing structures which were constructed using HAKI’s roofing solution, HAKITEC® 750. Having worked with HAKI many times in the past, Harsco was ideally placed to complete this aspect of the project and present the client with a single, integrated solution that allowed the refurbishment work to proceed as efficiently and safely as possible.
The project involved the re-pointing of brickwork, refurbishment of the Victorian roof structure and chimney stacks, the repair and replacement of windows, the replacement of ventilation equipment and the erection of a new steel-frame building to house new services.
“This meant installing the scaffolding during term time when students are around, which made the project more challenging, especially as the college also runs courses during the evenings,” comments Harsco Design Engineer, Adam Samain. “The nature of the college and the fact that there was a primary school adjacent to it, meant that safety was, as ever, a crucial consideration, so we made extensive use of protection fans and sheeted scaffolding to prevent any dropped item incidents.
“Things were further complicated by the fact that access was via a courtyard in the central part of the college. In one area we were unable to affix any support on top of a low-level roof, so we designed a beamed gantry deck which was supported from brackets bolted into the brickwork. This then supported the internal access scaffolds, which in turn supported the HAKI temporary roof structures.”
The HAKITEC® 750 allowed the client to refurbish the roof coverings despite any adverse weather conditions, and along with the Harsco roof scaffolds it also meant that the chimney stacks could be refurbished safely. A lack of space on the ground meant that the site cabins, scaffold loading and storage deck areas that were required had to be lifted off the ground and housed on a CUPLOK® scaffold gantry.
Harsco’s CUPLOK® is a fully galvanised, multi-purpose steel system scaffold for general access, shoring and vertical load support duties. It features a unique node point design which allows up to four components to be connected in one fastening action. The speed of erection which this provides was a significant benefit for this time-critical project. Other advantages included the relatively small number of CUPLOK® components required, which simplified the process of scheduling the right equipment on site, plus the fact that CUPLOK® eliminates the need for ledger braces which gave clearer working areas on the scaffolding platforms.
