Construction Method Statement

Construction Method Statement for the new

WELCOME BUILDING

at the

City of Bath College

City Of Bath College Welcome Building Construction Method Statement

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INTRODUCTION

Cowlin have been awarded the contract for the Welcome Building, City of Bath College, a

prestigious project in the Centre of Bath, at the corner of Avon Street and James Street West. The

project will start in March 2011 and is due to be completed in October 2011.

The purpose of this Construction Method Statement is to demonstrate our intended method of

carrying out this task under close consideration of all relevant aspects, i.e. adjoining public

footpaths, traffic flow for both Avon Street and James Street West and a live College environment.

Upon Cowlin starting on site, we will take over an existing site compound from the Enabling Works

Contractor (Emery Bros), who will have demolished the existing Kings building. The crushed

material from the demolition works will be used for the piling mat to reduce the amount of stone

that has to be imported to site. Key operations for the superstructure of the project will be PILING,

GROUNDWORKS, STEELFRAME, COMPOSITE CONCRETE SLABS AND BLOCKWORK.

Site Set Up

The extent of the site compound will be as shown on APPENDIX 1. Full protective hoardings and

screens will be put in place to the full perimeter of the site.

We have been granted permission by Highways to extend the site compound along James Street

West to the demarcation of old and new paving slabs, leaving app. 2m of footpath open. However,

at present we do not envisage utilizing this area, other than for the Entrance gate. Should this area

be required at a later stage we will liaise with both, Highways and the Tree Officer before

extending the compound. We do understand the importance of protection to the Willow Tree at

the corner of Avon Street / James Street West and will therefore arrange any access and egress in

a way to ensure that the 2No gullies that are feeding the Willow Tree remain unobstructed and

that no potential damage or contamination can occur.

Access / Egress

Following discussions with the BANES Highways supervisor we will set up 2No main delivery

entrances as described below.

During the superstructure works the main entrance will be via Avon Street, where we intend to

utilize the current footpath as a lay by for deliveries. This lay by will be equipped with 2No gates


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that will allow driving in and out with the flow of traffic to ensure the continuation of the one-

way-bus-route in Avon Street. To achieve the above we will remove the existing bollards and ramp

down the kerbstones as necessary. Furthermore we will establish a second site entrance in James

Street West, which will be the main access and egress point for the second part of the project.

Deliveries

The main delivery to and from site will be Lower Bristol Road A36 and the 2No afore mentioned

entrances in Avon Street and James Street West (APPENDIX2).

Whilst we cannot completely eliminate the use of articulated lorries during the superstructure

phase, we will encourage all suppliers and subcontractors to use smaller delivery vehicles to

reduce the need for extensive manoeuvring in and around site. In addition we will endeavour to

time major deliveries either before or after the peak of rush hour traffic.

We fully accept the priority for buses in Avon Street and for pedestrians on the footpath of James

Street West. All vehicles entering or leaving site will therefore be supervised by a banksman /

traffic warden.

Frequent visits of a Road-sweeper will ensure that footpaths and roads are kept clean throughout

the project.

Contractors Parking

There will be no subcontractor parking on site or on the City of Bath College property. All

subcontractors will have to park in public car park or pay and display areas. We will include this

condition in all our subcontracts and encourage public transport and/or shared transport to and

from site.

The lay-by in Avon Street will be used as an offloading area for small items and tools during the fit-

out-stage of the building. We will assist our contractors by giving them the opportunity of setting

up small lockable containers on site for safe storage overnight.

Demolition & Enabling Works

This is not part of Cowlins scope of works and will be carried out by Ohters.


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Piling

We propose to carry out the piling in 2 stages. Starting at the lower level along Avon Street and

then providing a higher piling mat with battered edge to overcome the level difference of app.

1200mm. The piling mat will be designed by our Piling contractor and checked and approved by

our temporary works department. All Piling will be carried out in accordance with the Avon Act.

On completion, the piling mat will remain in place and will be trimmed appropriately to form the

working platform to carry out the ground works, drainage and ultimately the ground floor slab (NB

the ground floor slab is designed as being suspended and therefore does not rely upon the

substrate for support).

Ground works

The ground beams will be constructed by site excavation through the fill material and then

Pecafill permanent shutters placed as necessary to minimise the amount of concrete required.

Similarly, the drainage and various service ducts will be excavated through the site fill and

positioned prior to final trimming of the stone to form the ground floor slab. The drainage design

will be developed in conjunction with Wessex Water to provide any necessary attenuation storage

in the area defined by gridlines C, E, 1 & 2.

Frame

Upon completion of the pilecaps and groundbeams the steelframe will be delivered to site. The

erection sequence will be established based on stability criteria. The frame construction would be

facilitated by use of a self erecting tower crane positioned on the East side of the building

footprint. The various deliveries of the steel frame, the composite decking sheets, reinforcements

and the ready-mix concrete, will be via Avon Street and off loaded and positioned by use of the

crane.


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Cladding & Roofing

The various specification cladding elements on the building (Masonry, render, curtain walling, Zinc

etc) will be undertaken by use of a traditional full height independent scaffold to the perimeter of

the building.

The materials for inner leaf and internal wall construction will be distributed by forklift from the

small storage area to the East of the building footprint. Because of the limitations on size of

storage area the materials will be procured and delivered on a just in time basis.

Similarly, roofing materials will be loaded to the roof by use of the telescopic forklift. Loading bays

will be constructed at each floor level.

The vertical Brise Soleil to the Western Avon street elevation will be installed by use of

powered access equipment after the scaffold has been dismantled.

Liason / Communication

Throughout the project Cowlin will maintain a high level of liaison and communication to all

relevant parties to ensure that the project can be delivered with the least amount of disruption to

neighbouring buildings and the public in general. Our Site Manager Stefan Thiel is looking forward

to this project and will be happy to discuss any issues that may arise during the construction. We

will issue contact details for the site compound immediately after completion of the set up.


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APPENDIX 1: SITE COMPOUND PLAN

City of Bath College Welcome Building

Contractors Compound

Site Boundary Hoarding

Pedestrian Entrance

Access & Egress for Vehicles Works. Pavement Priority to Pedestrians

Access & Egress for Vehicles During Super

structure Works

Deliveries through Avon Street

Blue shaded area not part of initalset up but may be used later for egress gate

Existing College


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APPENDIX 2:

City Of Bath College Welcome BuildingProposed Delivery Routes

Lower Bristol Road A36

St Jamess Parade

A 367

Avon Street

Delivery Access

Delivery Egress

Site

Documents

Construction Method Statement