Author: barques

Work starts on Moog HQ

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Work has begun on the first phase of a new 250,000 sq ft facility for aerospace group Moog on Wolverhampton’s i54 Business Park.

The new facility will house design, development and manufacturing operations for multiple aircraft flight control programmes.

Moog is moving its Wolverhampton operation from nearby Wobaston Road to the first phase, which is being developed by Birmingham-based Stoford and project managed by Fusion.

Builders McLaren Construction have moved in to pave the way for the new premises, which will be completed in September 2012, safeguarding around 400 jobs.

Fusion in tune with music store

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Fusion has overseen the fit-out of a new music store in Birmingham city centre.

We have already handled design and layout for Guitar Guitar stores in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle, and director Gavin Stephens has now project managed the work at the latest branch at 100 Hagley Road.

Stocking more than 1,000 electric, acoustic and bass guitars plus accessories, Steve Mills, manager of Guitar Guitar Birmingham, said the city was the next logical step for the specialist guitar store.

“What makes us different is that, in addition to the usual Fender, Gibson and Marshall brands, we also offer a range of high-end guitars not previously available in the Birmingham area,” he said.

Fitted out in just two weeks, the store’s distinctive bright orange logo can be clearly seen on the main arterial route into the city.

 

Fusion’s sporting chance

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We are assisting the national governing body for swimming to relocate to a new multi-million pound SportPark at Loughborough University.

Moving to purpose-built headquarters, the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) will be the first to take up residence as part of the university’s aim to create a world-class centre for sporting organisations.

We are providing construction and due diligence advice for the design and development of the new headquarters and will be project managing the fit-out of the facility too.

Fusion director Steven Jelfs said: “This has been a major project for the company and demonstrates our wide and varied client base, which ranges from manufacturers to retailers, and now British sporting bodies.”

Lee Garratt, ASA project manager, added: “For the ASA and British swimming, the move is significant as it brings together a number of offices, which have been based in Loughborough since 1973, under one roof. As such, the new HQ is extrememly high profile highlighting our commitment to the future of swimming and providing support for the town in its bid to be recognised as the heart of sport in the UK.”

Tree house projected completed for Forest Holidays

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Our project management experts have been climbing high in Cornwall and North Yorkshire, thanks to an unusual contract to oversee the design and construction of two fantastic tree houses for Forest Holidays at their Deerpark and Keldy resorts.

Commissioned by Forest Holidays, a joint venture with the Forestry Commission and The Camping and Caravanning Club, the luxury tree houses were completed within five weeks and now provide a unique additional bedroom for a number of the log cabins, which were refurbished earlier this year.  

“Our remit was to assist in agreeing a suitable location for the tree houses and coordinate their design with building control on resolving a number of difficult design issues,” said director Gavin Stephens.

“The fire escape was a particularly difficult issue but it was actually resolved by providing rope ladders from the tree houses, which are very in-keeping with the surroundings.

“We also undertook a value engineering exercise with the contractor to reduce the cost of the scheme with a view to constructing further tree houses at another site in Strathyre, Scotland.”

This was the third project we have been awarded by Forest Holidays, after the building consultancy project managed the fit-out of the national organisation’s new headquarters in Moira in Derbyshire, followed by 25 log cabins across three sites in Cornwall, North Yorkshire and Scotland.

“This was a challenging project and a first for all of the team. A flexible approach and the ability to apply a breadth of knowledge enabled us to create innovative and cost-effective solutions to achieve the desired result for the client,” said Gavin.

Richard Palmer from Forest Holidays added: “We are extremely pleased with the success of this project.  Delivering the  quality of tree house that we desired  within a tight budget was a tall order but they are a  fantastic addition to the log cabins  which are now fully booked for the next 18 months!”

We have now been appointed to provide project management advice on the second phase of the log cabins refurbishment programme and a further tree house at Strathyre in Scotland, all to be completed over the next six months.

Niche retail and new-look space is a successful fusion

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Gloomy headlines make it easy to believe that Britain’s retail sector is in meltdown but even old worn out shopping centres can be given a new lease of life in these tougher times.

That is the prospect for one Coventry neighbourhood, thanks to our efforts combining with developer Stoford, after we teamed up following the launch of the latter’s new niche retail division last autumn.

We were appointed to project manage Stoford Retail’s first scheme, which has just been brought forward on one of Coventry’s inner-city housing estates.

Stoford Retail’s £500,000 investment has transformed Ernesford Grange from a struggling and outdated shopping precinct at Willenhall into a genuine neighbourhood retail centre.

An old Kwik-Save store has been so successfully revamped and redesigned that Tesco Express has already signed a chunky 4,000 sq ft lease.

Other high-profile brands, in the form of Domino’s Pizza and Ladbrokes, have taken adjacent space of 1,400 sq ft and 1,300 sq ft respectively.     

Director Gavin Stephens said that 1,400 sq ft of office space has also been added to increase the location’s desirability.

“Ernesford Grange was a classic failing scheme. Its main anchor, Kwik-Save, had gone into administration, other units were vacant and there was just a negative feel to the place,” explained Gavin.

“It is only two miles from the city centre, so people who lived nearby were going into town rather than use the shops almost on their doorstep.  Now it has started to win back that trade and has become a proper neighbourhood centre.”

Stoford Retail’s Carl Stacey believes the key is to identify locations that are struggling but which would repay investment.

“It’s not about finding a retail scheme that isn’t working and throwing money at it.  It‘s about seeing potential,” he said.

“You need the right advisers and agents, then you have to research the local market in detail to see why retailers aren’t going there and which brands you could attract if the space was of sufficient quality.”

His colleague, Andy Browne, stresses that it is always vital to be prepared to commit significant funds.

“Nothing looks worse, particularly when you are trying to attract residents from the surrounding area, than going into a struggling scheme, sticking up a couple of notice-boards and just giving the place a coat of paint,” he said.

“Everyone can see that nothing has really changed.  In this case, we recognised that the old Kwik-Save unit was too large for the market at 7,000 sq ft, so we split the space into three, creating just the size of unit which Tesco Express wants and two smaller units.”

As Mr Browne points out, the refurbishment also included new external lighting, improved entrance and exit points for the adjacent car park and repaving.

“We see Ernesford Grange as an investment for our property portfolio, so skimping on improvements isn‘t going to help anyone.  We have appointed Shortland Horne as the sole letting agents and they – like Fusion – are doing a very good job” he said.

Stoford is now focusing on another – and much more ambitious – regeneration scheme in Birmingham’s Shard End.

“In Coventry we were creating a local neighbourhood centre.  In Shard End we will be creating a new town centre but the key element remains the same,” said Mr Stacey.

“We have to bring forward the type of retail space the market needs and find the right niche brands to sign up.”

Fusion remodels luxury log cabins

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Fusion Building Consultancy has been getting away to the country, after completing a £1.2 million contract to make log cabin escapes for stressed executives.

It comes after we won the contract with Forest Holidays in a joint venture with the Forestry Commission to refurbish 25 log cabins across three sites in Cornwall, North Yorkshire and Scotland.

The remodelled luxury cabins have been designed to attract stressed-out executives looking to escape to the peace and seclusion of a woodland retreat. Hot-tubs and lakeside views are provided to aid relaxation.

Director Gavin Stephens said: “Our remit was to interpret the designs and make them work cost effectively.

“To appeal to a more discerning market, we had to fit new kitchens, bathrooms and create a mezzanine floor for a further bedroom.

“The level of new specification created many challenges, particularly as the water and electrical supplies weren’t sufficient for the upgrades.  We had to develop some clever ideas to make it all work – whilst at the same time fitting work in between key holiday periods.”

The project, which has taken three months to complete, was the second to be awarded to us by Forest Holidays, after we refurbished the national organisation’s new headquarters in Moira in Derbyshire.

Gavin added: “Being able to understand the whole of a project enables us to create innovative and cost-effective solutions to achieve the desired result for the client.

“This latest contract also demonstrates our ability to work nationally. You could not get more UK-wide than Cornwall to Scotland, but being centrally located in Birmingham means we are well placed to head North or South.”  

Manufacturers are moving on with a helping hand from Fusion

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The demise of the Midlands’ industrial sector has been called so many times over the decades that many observers appear to think it’s happened.

Whilst low-cost rivals from Asia and Eastern Europe are an ever-present threat, a significant number of manufacturers are not only prospering, but expanding.

We have helped a dozen such businesses relocate to new premises in the last year, and have similar projects under way in the region and elsewhere.

“Many consultancies prefer involvement in glitzy moves to swish new Grade A office space, but whilst such work is enjoyable, it’s certainly not as demanding as finding a new home for an industrial business,” said director Steven Jelfs.

“If you’re looking for new premises for a firm of solicitors or accountants in the centre of Birmingham, you’ll usually have plenty of options.

“If a traditional manufacturing business needs to move from one industrial district to another, it will be much harder to find suitable space.”

Our latest industrial client, Birmingham-based MacDermid, exemplifies the challenges.

Its US parent wants it to relocate to new premises but the UK management team needs to retain its experienced and skilled workforce.

“They are based in Bordesley but cannot go out of town as they would be losing touch with their workers and some of their customers and their suppliers,” said Steven.

“They want around 80,000 sq ft of space, so it’s a fair-sized move, but we think we have found them somewhere suitable nearby.”

Our largest manufacturing relocation in the last year involved one of the region’s best-known metal-forming firms, Barton Coldform.

Founded in Birmingham during the 1930s, the business had subsequently moved to Droitwich, but decided to invest in purpose-built premises.

“They decided Stonebridge Cross Business Park was an ideal location but didn’t really know exactly what they wanted,” said Steven. “Stoford did the shell, then we did everything from designing and fitting out the offices, to putting in a canteen for the employees and installing the lighting, power and compressor installations in their warehouses.”

John Houseman, director-general of Barton Coldform, described the firm’s switch to Stonebridge Cross as a textbook study in manufacturing relocation.

“Barton had previously operated from several buildings at different levels, which was very inefficient, but now they are in purpose-built premises of which any plc would be proud,” he said.

“It makes such a difference when companies in our sector are able to invite customers, prospective clients – and even their bank manager – to such impressive offices.”

Houseman says such moves also enable manufacturers to re-engineer their operational structure.

“Typically, they will have been on their previous site for decades, perhaps even a century, and systems will just have evolved. Relocation gives everyone the chance to design both premises and processes from scratch.”

However, Houseman also counsels that such expensive moves must be fine-tuned.

“The chairman of a plc I used to work for always said that new equipment should never be put in old buildings and the opposite is equally true,” he said.

“There have been cases of manufacturers moving to new premises but not investing in kit and not establishing more efficient production processes, which is a disaster waiting to happen. You need advice and you need quality advice.”

Our reputation for understanding the needs of manufacturers has seen our client list spread swiftly from our Birmingham heartland.

Bognor Regis-based JCC Lighting appointed us to manage its relocation for its 50,000 sq ft regional distribution centre in the Midlands, as did Elster Metering to create a new 45,000 sq ft assembly and warehousing base in Stafford.

We have also won work in north-east Lancashire, helping an engineering firm to switch its 80,000 sq ft production centre and 24,000 sq ft office HQ.  This comprises the first stage of development of a 22 acre site, once occupied by Dutch TV tube maker Phillips.

The latter project underlines the need to avoid becoming obsessed by one type of location.

“Ambitious and growing manufacturers often think they need to find a greenfield site for their new premises to make a statement, which works for some people but not for others,” explained Steven.

“We have been successful with Fort Vale Engineering in Lancashire; the site is well positioned for motorway access, only a few miles from their original premises and much better value than a greenfield site, but which they hadn’t previously considered.

“It’s good to have a relocation strategy in outline, but you must always ensure that all the options for your move are then considered, as it is just too expensive a decision to get wrong.”

Lye development boosted by Fusion expertise

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A multi-million pound property portfolio continues to gather pace as Burson Land – a strategic partnership between Black Country-based Stewardson Group and Birmingham-based Zulu Capital – delivers and successfully lets its fifth scheme in the past 15 months on the site of a former OK Diner.

The scheme in Lye, near Halesowen, brings Burson Land’s development investment portfolio to £5 million and has created 4,000 sq ft of retail space signed up by national brand Subway and two other quality retailers.

We were appointed to project manage the scheme, which forms the backbone of Burson Land’s development strategy.

Director Phil Stewardson said: “We have a long history of retail in the Stewardson family and understand what retailers want and how to create workable units that will let quickly.

“Drawing on Fusion’s skills, we were able to maximise the existing space in Lye, which required remediation services, design and build to create three new good-sized units and a prominent new roadside scheme.”

Targeting development opportunities with an end value of between £500,000 and £3,000,000, Burson Land is currently looking at sites throughout the Midlands, having recently secured two sites in the Black Country this month alone, which we are also to project manage.

Mark Burkes set up Zulu Capital in March 2006 following his departure from Milton Keynes-based developer, Frontier. With the backing of the Stewardson Group, which itself has an enviable track record with Stewardson Properties and Stewardson Developments Ltd gaining a joint balance sheet over the past 10 years approaching £12 million, Burson Land aims to build a £15 million investment portfolio, aiming specifically at brownfield sites. 

Work starts on Stoford’s latest office buy

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Work has begun to transform one of Edgbaston’s largest office schemes following its acquisition by Birmingham-based property group  Stoford Developments and GE Real Estate for £1.72 million.

The three buildings at 123-127 Hagley Road – 128,499 sq ft in total – will be brought up to a high specification in a £3million refurbishment programme, project managed by Fusion.

The office development is easily divided, according to the joint agents DTZ and King Sturge, offering opportunities for both small and large businesses.