B&K Structures Supplied CLT Panels for The Construction of a London School Gym

Timber build specialist B&K Structures has supplied cross-laminated timber (CLT) panels for the construction of a London school gym and three classroom blocks. The modernisation work at Preston Manor School was undertaken by Kier Construction and combined X-Lam CLT from B&K with glulam beams of varying spans to support specific parts off the building. In total the buildings used 860m3 of CLT panels and 26m3 of beams. The project had to be completed to a tight deadline and budget and the contractor, architect HLM and structural engineering consultant MG Partnership looked at a range of options before choosing B&K's wood solution. The structure was largely prefabricated off site, and the combination of CLT and glulam enabled the architects to include large spaces with wide spans. The environmental appeal of the timber components, particularly the embodied carbon, also helped steer their choice, given the design team was aiming for a BREEAM Excellent rating. "Everything was precision cut so that also enabled us to achieve very good airtightness, which was critical to energy performance and the BREEAM rating, " said HLM project architect Philip Grant. The new buildings are finished externally in a mix of larch cladding and render, while inside a lot of the X-Lam has been left exposed to reveal the structure. The panels are a blend of three, five and seven lamellas thick (66-341mm), and comprise PEFC and FSC-certified European softwood. And, says B&K, they can meet 30 and 60-minute fire resistance standards "easily". Source: ttjonline