- Location: Buxton, Derbyshire
- Project Duration: 40 weeks
- Project Value: £46 Million
- Main Contractor: Imtech
- Client: Vinci Construction UK
- Owner: High Peak Borough & Derbyshire County Council Heritage Lottery Fund
- Services Used: Mechanical & Plumbing
The Project
The Crescent was the centrepiece of the Fifth Duke of Devonshire’s plans to establish a fashionable Georgian spa town in Buxton. The grade 1 listed building is one of the most architecturally significant buildings in the country. The redevelopment and restoration secured a significant investment of circa £50 million in Buxton and put the town back on the national and international map as England’s leading spa town. The project created more than 140 permanent jobs, 350 construction-related jobs and many more permanent jobs indirectly through new spa-related businesses, boosting the local economy by over £4.5 million. The Crescent and Thermal Spa Experience and development of the Pump Room also provided new indoor attractions for residents, visitors, groups, and schools.
The redevelopment included an 80-bedroom 5* spa hotel occupying most of the Crescent and which will incorporate the magnificent Assembly Rooms and a thermal natural mineral water spa in the Natural Baths. The project also featured six retail units on the front ground floor.
Objective
Having been empty and unused for many years, the Hotel & Spa restoration and redevelopment was a significant project. It presented considerable construction challenges for the main contractor, Vinci, and the specialist contractors involved in returning this magnificent building to its former glory. Although the building suffered from many years of neglect, it retained many original and important features which required careful consideration whilst undertaking the project work.
Solution
It was partly due to the specific challenges of the project that Imtech, the M&E services provider, decided to incorporate the Aquatechnik Safety System into their solution for the heating and potable water distribution system. The system’s unique features satisfied the project’s challenges due to its ability to meet the demands of long pipe runs with minimal joints, along with easy and quick installation. The wide-bore fitting system provided improved flow rates over other similar systems, ensuring the associated energy costs were minimised. The PEX-Al-PEX multilayer system offered long life and durability with excellent warranties to give the client and public-sector bodies piece of mind.
The existing structure of the building, along with the work required to comply with modern building standards, posed challenges for Imtech, which ordinarily would’ve been extremely difficult to overcome. Utilising the multilayer pipe, which was available on coils (with no re-coil/memory when straightened) up to 32mm diameter, enabled the routing of the pipe to be made with minimal disturbance to the existing structure. Although the pipe is flexible enough to facilitate this, due to its 5-layer composition with a fully welded aluminium centre core, it retains sufficient rigidity to prevent excessive expansion usually associated with a non-metallic pipework system. The modular and close coupling feature of the Safety system’s fittings enabled fast and simple transitions between the levels and directions of pipe runs, saving both time and space.
Summary
Product Specification Manager, Richard Skinner supported Imtech and the project throughout, with installer training and regular site inspections, helping with reports to assist Imtech with their comprehensive quality control process. Richard was delighted to report, “the project progressed extremely well, with a very high standard of installation and attention to detail having been made by Imtech and the engineers involved in the installation of Aquatechnik’s Safety system.”
