This was the second project Beard completed for The Queen’s College and involved the refurbishment of existing student bedrooms to provide ensuite facilities. Bedrooms were arranged over four floors in a Grade I listed building in the Back Quad.
Steve Lambourne the Project Manager was awarded Berkshire and Oxfordshire Construction Manager of the Year 2008 for this project.
Challenges and solutions
The timescale for the project was very tight. All work had to be carried out during the summer holidays so that students could move in at the beginning of term. To ensure the successful timely delivery of the project a detailed programme was created on a room-by-room basis. This was updated daily to ensure that any potential problems were identified and resolved early. Weekly site meetings ensured that everyone in the team was kept fully aware of project progress and work was sequenced so that trades were efficiently managed
and rotated.
Extra resources were brought in to deal with the large amount of timber, furniture and white goods that had to be removed from rooms. Ninety percent of these items were recycled.
The site managers practical knowledge and skills helped the design team to overcome buildability issues. The biggest challenge was the rationalisation of services (which did not run down the building in straight lines). New services were hidden so that they did not reduce floor space nor undermine the historic fabric of the building.
Challenges and solutions
The basement was being used as a storage area for priceless books.To prevent leaks, bund walls were used in the ensuite bathrooms and floor gullies were inserted.
Wet and dry rot and Deathwatch beetle was found while stripping out the building. A specialist subcontractor was immediately employed and construction activity was increased in other areas to prevent delays to the programme.
Access to the site was via a small gate not much bigger than a standard door. Delivery vehicles could not be bigger than a transit van and materials had to be carried in and out of the building via winding narrow corridors.
"Steve the Project Manager always presented practical quality solutions that were extremely cost effective. At all times he was extremely sensitive to the environment in a number of ways. He understood the complexity of working within a Grade I listed building and was calm and reassuring to the college Fellows."
