NW firms appointed for Co-op HQ

BAM Construction said 108,298 hours of work has been clocked up so far on the building of The Co-operative Group's new £100m head office in Manchester.

The lead contractor added that the building programme has entered its thirteenth week.

Tony Grindrod, construction manager with the Salford-based contractor, said: "Our project team covers a range of skills and includes planning managers, building services managers, design managers, quantity surveyors, buyers, engineers, site managers and is supported by experts in health and safety, community liaison, quality, environment and education.

"We've engaged sub-contracted firms who will excavate, pile, construct, clad, service, and fit-out this 330,000 sq ft £100 million building. Some of the local companies we're using include piling operators Bachy Solentanche, based in Lancashire, PC Harrington from Runcorn, who are erecting the reinforced concrete frame, and Chester-based Rotary North West, who are delivering mechanical and electrical works for us."

BAM started on the 20-acre site in July this year which is located on Miller Street and is scheduled to be completed by August 2012.

Grindrod added that the construction team is expected to provide work for over 3,000 people during the project and estimates around 700 team members will be working on the project at any one time. He said the project is not yet at its peak but more teams are coming on site to start work on the concrete and steel frame.

Grindrod said: "Technically, the most challenging aspect of constructing the building will be the scale and speed of the build process aligned to the massively challenging external envelope and groundbreaking M&E services within the building.

"We're delighted to be on site and local residents should expect to see a frame for the building coming out of the ground early next year."