Case Study - Laidlaw hat-trick of health and education projects in Hastings
The new Hastings Station Plaza is a £71m mixed residential, educational, office and retail development on the site of the old goods yard next to the new railway station. Designed by Hopkins Architects and built by Laing O’Rourke, its large, light-filled, glazed atrium is part of 22,000 square metres of study space and social zones for the new £65m sixth form and further education college. 4 BREEAM 'Excellent' 6-storey buildings are linked by the atrium.
Laidlaw Solutions supplied over 450 Orbis Timber laminated and painted doorsets for use throughout the project, together with a range of factory-fitted Orbis Commercial ironmongery. The variety of door colours, coded for each of the 6 floors, is immediately evident upon entering the atrium. Many were installed with PVC edging within an aluminium glazed partitioning system.
The Hastings Primary Care Centre, located within the Plaza, was a further element of the project to which Laidlaw scheduled doors and ironmongery. Facilities such as Dexa scanning, X-ray, ultrasound and dental services have been combined with a walk-in centre, retail pharmacy and six GP practices. Laidlaw supplied 190 internal doors and glass internal timber screens together with external timber doors, those leading from the basement into the car park having standalone digital locks.
The scale of the Station Plaza development is reflected by the fact that it also houses IT suites, a gym, performing arts and dance studios, an art gallery, coffee shop, hair salon, restaurant and audio-visual / media facilities. Intended to create an impressive, vibrant gateway for Hastings, it connects the re-opened station with the rest of the town and wider coastal region. The development had a high sustainability agenda and aimed to create a socially inclusive environment which included affordable housing.
Laidlaw’s involvement in Hastings’ regeneration has extended to the development of the Ore Valley campus of the new Sussex South Coast College. The College is linked to that at Station Plaza and works with local secondary schools to provide the International Baccalaureate and vocational courses for year 10 and 11 students. Around 170 primed Orbis doorsets and Orbis Commercial ironmongery were again supplied.
Major Projects manager Dave Manley concluded, “Laidlaw’s involvement in these key education and health projects provides further proof of our experience in handling diverse and complex doorset schedules. The time line for fitting out is always very tight so the supply of integrated doorsets provides the perfect answer for both the main contractor and the installer.”