The first phase of the development on the North site of The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), Sutton. We acted as Contract Administrator for the Enabling Works Contract which involved the preparation of the site for the new development including the removal of 2,200+ lorry loads of bulk excavation.
The new development includes a five-storey building to provide laboratory and office space, and a two-storey service building with associated external areas for a service yard between the buildings, a new piazza and car parking.
The main building is used by the Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery (CCDD) and includes a plant room at lower ground floor and four floors of biology and chemistry laboratories and associated offices. The building is a reinforced concrete (RC) structure with 325mm thick flat slabs supported on precast concrete columns and walls onto an RC raft onto chalk formation. Due to the sensitivity of the laboratory equipment the floors have been designed to meet VC-A footfall vibration criteria outlined in The Concrete Centre Design Guide.
A steel frame ancillary services building has been constructed alongside to provide services to the CCDD building and future phases of works.
We were appointed at the end of Stage 3 and following our review of the design we instigated structural improvements: thinner floor slabs to the main building and a change to precast concrete walls and columns to help speed up the construction time and achieve good quality finishes; changes in the floor structure of the services building to reduce floor depths and reduce steel sizes; and refinements to the reinforcement within the concrete to provide significant cost savings.
The site is underlain by chalk which has very good infiltration properties. The surface water discharges to the ground using a combination of cellular soakaways and permeable paving.
Completed 2020.
