Powered by
UK-based developer Elliot Group has unveiled plans to construct three 34-storey residential towers in Liverpool.Designed by architects Falconer Chester Hall, the development, to be located on the northern gateway to Liverpool’s business district, will feature more than 1,000 new homes. The £250M project, set to become the largest single private housing project in the city, will be developed on land acquired from Liverpool investors, the Smith family, on Leeds Street.Elliot Group director Elliot Lawless said: “We wanted to create a statement of confidence for people entering the city.“If our proposals are approved then they will go a long way to helping Leeds Street fulfil its potential as a dramatic gateway along the northern edge of the city centre.”Elliot is now in discussions with Liverpool council’s planning and design officers and expects to submit a planning application in early September.
Finnish construction company YIT has announced that the Mall of Tripla project in Helsinki secured a €300M financial package.The financial package will be provided by a group of banks, including the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB), Danske Bank and Handelsbanken.The €600M shopping mall is set to become the largest shopping centre in Finland in terms of the number of retail spaces.It will have 85,000sq m of leasable floor area for a total of 250 tenants, and a car park with 2,300 spaces. The development will feature new solutions for recycling, water treatment and waste processing, allowing the constructors to apply for a Platinum-level LEED certification. The project is expected to be completed in late 2019.
Wigan Council’s planning committee has approved phase one of the £300M North Leigh Park regeneration scheme in Leigh, Wigan.The long-term plans for the 185-acre North Leigh Park — to be delivered through a private-public partnership between Guernsey-based Long Port Group and Wigan Council — include 1,800 new homes.Phase one will deliver 162 new homes, along with a new access point, green open spaces and wildlife habitat.Additionally, the project will feature a 51,000sq m business park, 19-acres of green infrastructure and a community centre.The approval of the first detailed plans follows the granting of outline planning permission in February 2013.Full remediation of the site is anticipated to take 18 to 24 months and will be completed in 2018.
UK-based developer Ashfield Land has received planning approval from South Gloucestershire Council to construct an £100M office building at Bristol Parkway Station.The 19,000sq m HQ office project, named The Approach, will be developed on the site located off Hunts Ground Road, immediately east of Bristol Parkway Station.Ashfield Land believes that the project’s rail connections will be maximised with the electrification of the Great Western line — which is set to reduce journey times and increase frequency to London and other destinations into South Wales — and the opening of Crossrail in 2017/18. A new link road will also be built offering direct access to the M32.Ashfield‘s land director James Digby said: “Bringing 19,000sq m of excellently-connected office space forward is a strong sign of confidence in the Bristol occupier market. “The area has a strong track record in attracting major organisations particularly in financial services, defence and aerospace. The approved plans maximise the site’s location and public transport connectivity and will offer a stand out scheme for any corporate occupier.”The project is expected to be complete in 2018.
Whaha Capital subsidiary Waha Land has signed an AED426M ($116M) financial deal with Emirates Islamic Bank for Stage 2 of its Almarkaz light industrial real estate project in the United Arab Emirates.The 1.5sq km development is located 25km south of Abu Dhabi city. Stage 2 of the project, to be built in two packages, will include an additional 187,000sq m of premium industrial and logistics facilities, as well as retail and commercial amenities.Package 2a, to be delivered by Ali & Sons Contracting L.L.C, consists of 92,500sq m of industrial and logistics facilities, and retail and commercial amenities. The first buildings will be available for occupancy in June 2017, while the entire package is expected to be complete by the fourth quarter of 2017.Further development will include flexible industrial building sizes, fitted industrial units, warehouse and storage facilities, commercial offices and food beverage outlets.Hazem Saeed Al Nowais, Waha Land’s chief executive officer, said: “Almarkaz has proven extremely popular because of the quality of the facility, and its excellent location as a hub in transport infrastructure.“This success has enabled the project to achieve attractive financing. Building on the success of Stage 1, we are moving ahead with our planned development, which aims to meet the needs of the Abu Dhabi manufacturing and logistics market in addition to SME’s.” Almarkaz’s Stage 1 comprises 90,000sq m of industrial and logistic units, which are already fully leased.
Strabag’s Swiss subsidiary has secured an €100M contract for the construction of an office building and a production building for Siemens in Zug, Switzerland.The contract, awarded by Siemens Real Estate, will be executed on a design and build basis with Strabag AG Switzerland serving as the main contractor for the project.The office building will be constructed using building information modelling (BIM), which guarantees a level of security in terms of cost, design and scheduling.The seven-storey facility will offer 31,700sq m of space on every floor for mechanical/electrical, seminar and conference rooms, as well as an underground car park.The four-storey production building will include production halls, laboratories and offices on 24,000sq m of floor area. An automated transport and storage system will be included on the basement level.STRABAG’s CEO Thomas Birtel said: “BIM.5D is the future of building. The aim of BIM is to digitally collect, combine and link all relevant data associated with the entire building lifecycle. This creates a building data model that basically is a giant synchronised database.“The model simulates for all involved how the building will change as construction progresses, which materials will be required in which quantities at what time, and what consequences could arise from late changes to the design.”Both buildings are to be completed in June 2018.
Skanska in a joint venture with Gates Construction has secured a $200M contract from Lee Memorial Health System to expand and refurbish the Gulf Coast Medical Center in Fort Myers, Florida.The project will include the creation of 34,000sq m of new space and about 4,500sq m of renovations. It will also involve three additional floors, as well as many horizontal expansions. Furthermore, the development will include a parking facility which will be able to accommodate 1,300 vehicles.Work on the project will commence in June 2016 and is set to be completed in February 2021.
Oxfordshire’s Vale of White Horse Planning Committee has approved Mace’s planning application to redevelop the former West Way shopping centre in Botley, Oxford, UK.The project, called West Way Place, is set to become a mixed-use retail centre, which will include 140 new homes, a 122-bed Premier Inn, 321 car parking spaces and a 1,325sq m Co-Op store.The development will also involve the construction of 262 university-related student rooms, a new Baptist church, and a new community centre incorporating a public library.Mace’s development director Huw Griffiths said: ‘The West Way Place planning consent is a genuinely community-led proposal shaped by an eight month public consultation which included four meetings of a Community Liaison Group, a series of Community Workshops and a public exhibition. “This consultation enabled community views to be fed into the proposals, guiding the plans at every stage of the design process. “We are particularly pleased that development at West Way Place will be phased so retailers will be able to continue trading throughout the redevelopment. “Mace are proposing a direct let leasing model for the student accommodation but also have interest from Oxford’s two Universities. Retail tenants will include a mix of new and existing tenants.”
Consultancy company Atkins has won a contract to help Old Oak and Park Royal project to become one of the most sustainable urban developments in the UK.The London-based project will include the construction of over 25,500 new homes with a capacity for 65,000 jobs.Atkins is working with Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) and its cost and project management consultancy, Faithful+Gould, to develop environmental sustainability targets for the project.The sustainability targets will be based around urban form and public space, transport, energy, waste and materials, water and green/blue infrastructure themes.Sean Lockie, Faithful+Gould’s sustainability director, said: “Old Oak and Park Royal is a massive opportunity for London to do things that haven’t been done before. “It means creating a vision, which sets out clear goals, such as being healthy to live in, flexible over time, affordable, comfortable, and being energy and resource efficient, and then taking a systematic approach to delivery. “We’ll need to come up with some new business models to achieve this but in doing so we have a great opportunity to make a real difference to people’s lives.”Atkins will deliver the final sustainability report to OPDC in September 2016.
A Salini Impregilo-led consortium has won a $955M contract from Kuwait’s Public Authority for Housing Welfare to build an urban residential development in Kuwait.The contract forms part of the South Al Mutlaa Housing Project and includes the construction of 12,000ha of residential development about 40km northwest of Kuwait City.Upon completion, the project will provide accommodation for 400,000 residents. The project will also see the construction of 150km of roads and related structures, numerous art works, lighting infrastructure, water distribution, rainwater gathering and sewage systems, and other civil works.
GE Aviation has started construction on two adjacent factories to mass-produce Silicon Carbide (SiC) materials in Huntsville, Alabama. Estimated to cost more than $200M, the two factories will be constructed on a 100-acre site. One of the plants will produce silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic fibre, while the second will use this SiC ceramic fibre to produce the unidirectional CMC tape necessary to fabricate CMC components.GE Aviation’s vice president Sanjay Correa, who leads the industrialization of advanced technologies, said: "GE Aviation is creating a fully integrated supply chain for producing CMC components in large volume, which is unique to the United States."The new factories in Alabama are vital to this strategy. We are deeply gratified by the tremendous local, state, and national support for this effort."Construction work is expected to be complete by the first half of 2018, with production set to commence on that same year. Once fully operational, the plants are anticipated to employ up to 300 people.
Developers Capital & Centric and Henry Boot have submitted plans to Manchester City Council for the first phase of a £200M mixed-use project in Manchester, UK.The project, designed by architects Mecanoo and Shedkm, will be located off Aytoun Street on a 2.3-acre plot of land acquired from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2014.Subject to planning consent, the residential-led mixed-use development in central Manchester will feature its own 'secret garden' as part of an innovative design.Phase one of the development will include about 500 private rented flats across two 12–16-storey buildings, featuring retail and leisure space at the ground floor level.The project will also include the refurbishment of the existing 1960s former Aytoun Tower, including a roof village of timber Dutch townhouses.Plans for the second phase, which will involve the redevelopment of the listed Minshull Mill and Minto & Turner Mill, are to be submitted later this year.Adam Higgins from Capital & Centric’s said: “We have worked closely with Manchester city council and importantly, the local community to create this exciting scheme, which will rejuvenate this area of our city that has been neglected for too long.“The ‘secret garden’ concept is pivotal to our vision to create a vibrant new bohemian destination for the city.”
Oman Tourism Development Company (Omran) has announced that it will facilitate the development of Oman’s first world-class family waterpark in Muscat.The project has been developed by six graduates of the National CEO Programme (NCP) — an initiative by the public private partnership taskforce (Sharaka), under the benefaction of the Diwan of Royal Court.The team has worked on the development for one year, spending 5,000 hours on the elaboration of a detailed business plan, including financial modelling and stakeholder research.James Wilson, CEO of Omran, said: “Omran’s mission is to seek and support projects of national significance that can help position Oman as a leading global visitor destination. “We actively look to support develop and grow national capacities to develop and manage these projects, which is why we are fully committed to collaborating with the NCP. “Based on extensive market research carried out by the NCP team it is clear that there is significant interest from the younger generation in Oman and as is the case at other successful Waterparks in our neighbouring countries it is a significant driver of family based hotel occupancy.”
Sewell Group has unveiled plans for the construction of a new business park in Yorkshire, UK.Sewell is partnering with telecommunications company MS3 Networks and developer Chiltern Groupon proposals for the development.A pre-application consultation has been undertaken with East Riding of Yorkshire Council and a project team has been appointed to prepare an outline planning application to submit later this year.Early proposals for the project include a mixture of space for businesses operating in key strategic sectors for the region, a further/higher education space and associated accommodation, an energy centre and a data centre. Rob Cawkwell, Sewell’s project director, said: “It is at the very early stages and we are very keen to engage with all stakeholders, as well as ensuring good dialogue with both East Riding of Yorkshire and Hull local authorities.“This is a strategic site for the Humber Estuary, which is the first of its kind in Yorkshire, bringing together businesses, data, energy and education all in one place.“We are in it for the long haul and we are committed to local labour, with a proven track record of investing in the region to create economic and social impact.”
Pfizer has started construction on its new $200M biologics clinical manufacturing plant in Andover, Massachusetts. The 16,300sq m five-storey facility will enable the production of complex biologics and vaccines. According to Pfizer, the new facility is designed with five independent manufacturing suites to support its complex and diverse biologics research effort.The plant will implement flexible design to fully enable next generation manufacturing strategies, use the latest single-use bioreactors and disposable process technologies and provide clinical manufacturing options with the lowest cost and greatest flexibility for efficiently driving important clinical drugs to patients.Senator Barbara L’Italien said: “This five-storey building will add 75 new permanent manufacturing jobs and 200 temporary construction jobs to Pfizer’s Andover campus, already home to 1,200 employees.”The plant is expected to be operational by January 2019.
German automaker BMW has broken ground on its new $1bn production plant in San Luis Potosí, Mexico. The new facility will build the BMW 3 Series Sedan, starting in 2019, and balance out production capacity at BMW Group Plant Rosslyn in South Africa, which will build the new BMW X3 instead of the BMW 3 Series in the future.The project will comprise a body shop, a paint shop and an assembly plant. BMW said that the new plant will feature an innovative production system and comprehensive sustainability standards.Once operational, the facility will have a production capacity of up to 150,000 units annually, creating at least 1,500 new jobs in the region.The plant will operate using 100% CO2-free power, as it will have a solar-powered network on the site.According to BMW, the plant will have the lowest water consumption per vehicle manufactured in the production network. This will be the company’s first paint shop to produce zero process wastewater, as the water needed for the painting process is reconditioned and recycled.
Legal & General Capital has unveiled plans to collaborate with Newcastle City Council and Newcastle University to help construct and finance the £350M Newcastle Science Central development.The development will be located in the UK city’s Accelerated Development Zone, adjacent to Newcastle United’s football ground, St James’s Park, and to the north of Newcastle train station.The project will include the development of 47,000sq m of office space and 450 new homes. Legal & General Capital’s £65M initial investment will help create more than 19,000sq m of Grade A office space.Rachel Dickie, Legal & General Capital head of urban regeneration, said: “The delivery of Newcastle Science Central will help support the wider Newcastle economy and we are delighted to be working with Newcastle City Council and Newcastle University to deliver this major regeneration scheme.“Providing an excellent match for our long-term money, this public and private sector partnerships model demonstrates that we can unlock major regeneration projects that support the economic growth prospects of the UK by closing the funding gap, as well as delivering strong financial returns for our shareholders and policyholders.”The project is expected to create more than 4,000 jobs in the region.
Plenary Properties Merced (PPM) has been selected by The University of California, Merced, as the winning bidder for its next phase of the $1.14bn campus development.PPM will design and construct the new facilities as a single, fast-track project and ensure major building systems operate effectively over the 39-year term of the contract.The new facilities will be constructed in a 219-acre site that currently supports the existing campus and its 6,700 students. The four-year project is expected to almost double the physical capacity of the campus by 2020.The project will support Merced’s environmental sustainability objectives, as the campus has been recognized as one of the greenest in the country by the US Green Building Council.Furthermore, the developer will be responsible for raising the required private financing as part of the public-private partnership.Construction is set to commence in September 2016 with the project’s first phase scheduled for delivery in 2018. The remaining facilities are scheduled to be completed in 2020. The project is expected to create over 10,000 construction jobs in the region.
BASF Shanghai Coatings has begun construction on a new €140M automotive coatings plant in Shanghai, China.The new plan, to be located at the company’s existing site at the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park in Caojing, will expand the existing automotive coatings plant, which started production in 2014.BASF’s president and chairman for Greater China Stephan Kothrade said: “With the expansion, we continue to invest in local production to get even closer to China’s automotive industry.“As the leading chemical supplier to the automotive industry, BASF will take an active role in developing this rapidly growing business, based on our local production network, innovative power and market knowledge.”The plant is expected to commence operation in the fourth quarter of 2017.
Swedish construction firm NCC and Region Örebro County have agreed on the design and implementation of a new hospital project in Örebro, Sweden.The construction company was commissioned to build the new university hospital in October 2015.Both parties have agreed on a contract worth SEK1.5bn ($180M) and have worked together to plan the project and prepare detailed system documents. The new facility, known as the H building, will replace existing premises that no longer adhere to the current requirements. It will feature residential care, outpatient care and surgery for areas including ear, nose and throat (ENT), dermatology, anesthesia and emergency care clinics. NCC’s Building head in Sweden Henrik Landelius said: “NCC has extensive experience of building major hospitals, which we will utilize in this project. A partnering project such as this means that, at an early stage, we can plan together with the Region to obtain the best results.”The project is aiming to achieve Sweden Green Building Council (SGBC) Gold certification.
With 11 websites and newsletters covering all the key areas within the construction industry, World Construction Industry Network is the leading global construction information resource. READ ABOUT US
PRIVACY POLICY
World Construction Network | www.worldconstructionnetwork.com is a product of GlobalData. Copyright © 2022 GlobalData. All rights reserved. 
