Skinners Hall – London
Introduction
In May 2022, Inner City Scaffolding was successful in tendering a landmark project for their long standing client Rooff Ltd, The Skinners Hall located off Canon St in London. Rooff is a London-based, family-run construction company with over one hundred years in the trade, an ideal suitor to the project.
The Skinners Hall
The Skinners Hall is the main building of The Worshipful Company of Skinners, which is listed as both number #6 & #7 (alternating yearly with The Merchant Taylors) of the Great Twelve Livery Companies in the City of London. The Worshipful Company of Skinners was developed by the medieval trade guild of furriers and incorporated in 1327 by Royal Charter. There are approximately 1300 members at present.
The Project
The Skinners Hall renovation is a multi-million-pound overhaul of this Grade I Listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument protected by Historic England legislation. This monument is scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 as amended, as it appears to the Secretary of State to be of national importance. The project started in May 2021 and is expected to run for approximately 24 months. At present, the project is currently 60% complete from a scaffolding perspective. Protection from the elements is key within this scheme, therefore bespoke guttering has been produced along with large scale complex temporary roofing and lifting structures, which both repels and collects rainwater, transporting it to a series of prescribed destinations, preserving the exposed parts of the scheduled monument during the works cycle.
Key Deliverables
1380m2 Plan of HAKI System 750 AL Roofs
Foundation and support scaffolds below roofs covering 8500m3, weighing approximately 250 Tonnes
2000m2 of timber decking, based on 3700m of scaffolding lifts
28,000m of scaffolding tubes
30,000 Scaffolding Couplers
1500m of Aluminium Beams
Approx. 100m network of Type 27.00 Niko Aerial Runway System, including high end pneumatic switches
Tender
ICS tendered the project with Rooff against other key bidders. However, what made us different was our recognition that the scheme was logistically challenged and required a different approach from conventional schemes. Working with Rooff, we proposed a detailed scheme in principle, complete with full 3D modelling and aerial route path for lifting apparatus, which provided an alternative from the traditional logistical approach provided, and ultimately value engineered what has become the cost-effective working model and scheme awarded to ICS and our client.
Challenges
Location- The building is in central London, opposite a busy train station. This presented more complex health and safety risks to workers and the public; therefore, an innovative approach was needed to ensure all risks were covered. Being adjacent to the River Thames means the building is prone to higher winds, therefore this had to be overcome during the design phase.
Logistics- Again, due to the location of the building the movement of materials had to be planned carefully to ensure minimal disruption to the public. Due to the listing of the monument, extra caution had to be taken during the movement of materials.
Listed building status- The Skinners Hall is a Grade I Listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument, meaning all construction-style works must be approved before taking place. A detailed request is required to be submitted to Historic England, which is sent to a Sectary of State for approval.
Minimal reliance on the building as a supporting structure whilst providing complex canopied weather protection- Due to Skinners Hall being a Grade I listed monument, ICS had to take an innovative approach to erect the scaffolding. Ben Ramsey as Inner City’s lead Director during the pre-construction phase, worked alongside our key design team to purpose an economical and practical approach, ensuring the scaffolding was equal parts safe and in line with the design code, plus Heritage England requirements.
Access scaffold facilitating a bespoke multi-point continuous 1-Tonne SWL lifting structure-
Due to the size of the building and complexity of the project, a bespoke 1-Tonne SWL lifting structure was conceived and installed. This enabled materials to be transported without compromising the integrity of the monument or safety of workers on site. This is approximately 100M worth of network, with pneumatic switches all suspended from engineered combinations of roofing structures.
Ending
With only 40% of the scaffolding project primary works remaining, ICS are proud to be at the forefront of innovative solutions as a key provider on the scheme. In recognition, special thanks go to Ben Ramsey as the lead from ICS, along with Matt Wright and the ICS site team, plus to our valued client Rooff, extended thanks to Tony Pearce, Karl Patten, and Mike Moxon, along with the ultimate client, Skinners’ Company, our combined thanks go out to Paul Grinham.