CASE STUDY
Crawley Police Station, Crawley, 2016
Roofing, Fascia and Soffit Works to an Occupied Police Station, Requiring Contractor-Designed Scaffold Solution
Contract Value: £300 000
Completion: May 2016
Budget: Delivered to budget
Time: Delivered on time
H&S: No accidents/incidents
Defects: Zero Defects
Description
Roofing, fascia and soffit works to an occupied Police Station in Crawley, West Sussex.
Key Challenges
The site had to remain occupied at all times. We always minimise disruption on occupied premises, but with the vital services provided by this client, it was even more imperative that we ensure vehicular access, minimise impact on parking, and avoid naked flames during the roofing works over the custody suite due to safety concerns for those occupying the suite. It was also important to ensure our works did not create opportunities for crime.
The Challenges Met
We liaised with Sussex Police Authority representatives working at the station on a daily basis to get a clear picture of their busiest times so we could identify and avoid these, minimising our impact on station functions.
We ensured the use of minimally invasive construction methods along with low-percussion tools to reduce nuisance to neighbouring residents and the station's clerical teams.
To minimise our impact on station car parking, we devised a phased scaffold system. While working on one scaffold, the next would be being constructed. We would then move to the new scaffold, and the previous would be dismantled and the next built. This concurrent working enabled us to scaffold only relatively small areas at a time, and progress around the circumference of the building without occupying much car park space. We also utilised van pooling, arranged for large delivery vehicles to arrive at our warehouse so our smaller delivery vehicles could deliver items just-in-time, and liaised with Crawley Borough Council to suspend a nearby public parking bay to allow us to utilise that, rather than permanently occupying a space within the station grounds.
To address safety concerns regarding the use of naked flames above the custody suite, we used a hot air gun system as a safer alternative.
We also took measures to minimise security risks caused by the scaffolding, such as using raised first-lifts on all scaffolds to prevent climbing, and ensuring that all ladders were safely stowed.
