Yorkon brings modular retail building to interbuild

Award-winning off-site specialist and Portakabin subsidiary, Yorkon, is to bring a retail building to Interbuild in October this year, demonstrating cutting edge off-site technology and the latest developments in steel-framed modular building.

The building will comprise two 14m long modules and will be fitted out off site as a convenience store, complete with curtain walling, checkout, gondolas and pre-installed terrazzo flooring. It will be transported to the NEC in Birmingham by road and installed at ‘The Village’ – a new show feature which will explore different approaches to off-site construction for commercial and public sector applications.

The modular store at Interbuild will also be the official launch of the new high performance concrete floor option from Yorkon. This new innovation in modular building has been developed to provide a robust floor construction for high traffic areas and heavy, variable loads. It will achieve a point load of 7kN and a UDL (uniformly distributed load) of up to 7.5kN/m2 – believed to be the highest floor performance currently available for a modular building.

This latest option for the Yorkon modular system allows terrazzo tiling to be pre-installed, with all the speed and quality benefits of off-site construction. It also offers enhanced acoustic performance and further improved energy efficiency because of the greater thermal mass of concrete. The option has already been used for two superstore extensions for Sainsbury’s in Norfolk and Nottinghamshire – the first time the retailer has used pre-installed terrazzo flooring.

Other new developments for the Yorkon modular system include:

• a wider range of glazing, cladding and roofing options
•a new suite of ‘greener’ design options for the use of renewable sources of energy, reduced energy consumption and waste, lower carbon emissions, and greater recyclability
•a new design tool to help architects and contractors work with off-site construction.

The developments are part of Yorkon’s commitment to pushing forward the boundaries of modular building, and combine innovative design and construction technology with all the advantages of off site fabrication.

http://www.yorkon.co.uk/

For further PRESS information, please contact:

Joanne Bridges, PRO – Yorkon
Bridges Communications
Tel: 01489 570898 Fax: 01489 570888
Email: jbridges@bridgescommunications.co.uk


Editor’s Notes

1. The Yorkon approach to off-site construction offers a number of clear advantages over site-based building methods:

- enhanced thermal efficiency and greater sustainability
- waste reductions of up to 90 per cent
- programme times reduced by up to 50 per cent
- greater cost control
- less risk for the client – more than 96 per cent of Yorkon projects have been completed on time and 94 per cent on budget over the past five years – well exceeding construction industry averages
- less disruption
- safety improved by up to 46 per cent
- earlier occupation
- guaranteed quality
- greater design flexibility

2. Off-site construction involves the manufacture of steel-framed modules in a controlled factory environment, using production line technology, whilst the foundation works are completed on site. The modules are delivered to site by road where they are craned into position in just a few days ready for the final stages of fitting out.

3. If you wish to publish a telephone number for further information, the number for Yorkon is 01904 610990. Please do not print the agency’s number.

Yorkon completes new £5M Ward Building at Walsall Manor Hospital

Off-site construction specialist and Portakabin subsidiary, Yorkon, has completed a £5.5m contract for Skanska to manufacture and fit out a new 136-bed ward building at Walsall Manor Hospital – a week ahead of programme.

The project was part of the advance works package for the £140m redevelopment of the hospital to be completed by Skanska Innisfree under the Private Finance Initiative, replacing outdated buildings with state-of-the-art facilities to enhance patient care.

The four-storey ward building comprises 104 steel-framed modules, which were manufactured off site in York by Yorkon and craned into position in three phases to minimise disruption to the hospital.

It provides modern and spacious accommodation to facilitate improved quality of care and to help with the control of cross infection. Facilities include a combination of six-bed wards and single ensuite bedrooms, nurse base stations on each floor, treatment suites, ward kitchen, offices, day room and relatives room.

Commenting on completion of the new ward building, Sue James, Chief Executive of Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust, said, “We are extremely proud of this new facility which will vastly improve the experience of some of our more vulnerable patients, by providing facilities that are fit for the 21st Century.”

Mike Thompson, Technical Director at Skanska, said, “This project went very smoothly, with excellent relations and co-operation between the Trust, Skanska and Yorkon teams. The modular approach brought programme benefits to the project as we were working to a tight deadline for completion. The building was also manufactured in a controlled environment which has quality benefits.”

Building off site offers many advantages for the construction of new healthcare facilities. Programme times are reduced by up to 50 per cent, allowing earlier completion and occupation to the benefit of patient care, and disruption to staff, patients and the local community is significantly reduced because the building is manufactured off site. The Yorkon modular system allows a high degree of design flexibility internally and externally, and buildings can be expanded without decanting.

www.yorkon.info



For further PRESS information, please contact:

Joanne Bridges, PRO – Yorkon
Tel: 01489 570898
Fax: 01489 570888
jbridges@bridgescommunications.co.uk

Editor’s Notes

1. Further benefits of off-site construction for healthcare projects include:

- few vehicle movements to site
- construction work is safer, quieter and cleaner
- quality is improved and future maintenance is reduced
- delivery on time and on budget is guaranteed
- thermal efficiency is improved, for lower running costs and reduced carbon emissions
- the approach helps to address the shortage of skilled labour affecting the construction industry
- costs are controlled and material wastage is reduced.

2. Off-site construction involves the manufacture of steel-framed modules in a controlled factory environment, using production line technology, whilst the foundation works are completed on site. The modules are delivered to site by road where they are craned into position in just a few days ready for fitting out.