Refurbishment
Penthouse, Knightsbridge, London, UK
Project Brief
We were appointed as lead structural engineers on a £4.5m project to refurbish an existing 660m² penthouse overlooking Hyde Park in Central London, UK. The scope involved the full strip out of the existing penthouse, removal of several walls, vanity units, alterations to an existing octagon structure, and installation of 4no. skylights within the existing roof structure. Our client was a property fund and our scope included us working on the project from initial concept to full handover. LSY provided structural surveys, structural design and BIM services over a 3-year project program.
Challenges
The existing building below was fully occupied at all floor levels prior to the construction program commencing. The was no existing structure exposed within the existing apartment. We initially requested previous archive information for the property from building control, but it was unavailable. Therefore, LSY had to co-ordinate targeted opening up works to confirm the existing structure with the building management team for the building and our client. This enabled us to develop a structural tender package which allowed the client to attain accurate construction costings for the project.
Process
Access to the building was from a hoist attached to the side elevation. We decided that light weight material would be essential for the structural design elements and decided to use timber and steel beams with splice connections due to the challenging logistics of getting materials onto site.
We were able to co-ordinate with the main contractor after the strip out phase was complete; some changes were able to be made to the design. Reducing the overall steel tonnage and removing certain steels on the project aided the construction program. When the full strip out was complete, we were able to advise the client to collate all the information about the existing structure exposed as an as-built survey which would aid them in the future if they decided to alter the building structurally.
Outcome
The project was completed within the program, increasing the original specification of the property from a 1980s décor to a modern penthouse apartment in one of London’s most desired locations. The overall value of the property has since increased significantly and LSY’s services have led to future projects with the client, architect, and main contractor on the project.
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