A giant new Marks & Spencer’s distribution centre in Castle Donington, capable of storing twelve jumbo jets, has achieved a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating with the help of Kingspan Multibeam and Multichannel, Kingspan Insulated Panels’ Structural Products & Systems.
The East Midlands Distribution Centre (EMDC), designed by architects Isherwood McCann, stands at over 25 metres tall and helped create around one thousand jobs when it opened in April. The centre is also one of the most environmentally efficient distribution operations in the country.
Robin Orgill, Operations Manager from main contractors Winvic discussed the construction: “This was an extremely ambitious project and the key challenge for us on-site was to ensure that we met the tight construction deadlines, while also delivering a building which met the standards required for BREEAM ‘Excellent’.
"The Kingspan Multibeam system had been successfully installed as part of another M&S distribution centre in Bradford and this gave us confidence that, combined with the Kingspan Multichannel sections it could deliver the structural performance we needed, on schedule. Consequently we were able to complete the construction of the steel framework, including over 60,000 m2 of the Kingspan Multichannel and Multibeam products, in a period of just 10 weeks.”
Kingspan Multibeam is a purlin and rail system which is suitable for bay spans of up to 15 metres. This system can also typically be installed with fewer components than other systems, allowing a quicker and more efficient assembly process. Kingspan Multichannel sections are designed to complement the Kingspan Multibeam system, providing a lightweight, robust construction which is suitable for a wide range of structural applications, including horizontal cladding support, door and window trimmers, wind bracing and mezzanine floor beams.
Kingspan Insulated Panels’ Structural Products & Systems have been awarded a Gold Standard under the Steel Construction Sustainability Charter (SCSC) and both Multibeam and Multichannel were able to contribute towards the centre’s BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating. The products are designed to deliver maximum structural performance from a minimum amount of steel content, and are packaged using recyclable low carbon mild steel banding, biodegradable paper labels, and ethically sourced softwood bearers. The EMDC site also contains a range of other environmental and ethical solutions, including Europe’s largest solar wall, as part of Marks and Spencer’s “Plan A” commitment to become the world’s most sustainable retailer by 2015.
The design, detailing and ordering of components from Kingspan Insulated Panels’ Structural Products & Systems is straightforward with the use of its brand new Toolkit 8 Design Software. The software provides Kingspan Multibeam and Multichannel design solutions to both British Standards (BS) and Eurocodes (EC). It offers purlin, rail, eaves beam and parapet post solutions.
