Project Description

POWERCLAD®scaffold sheeting & fence sheeting.

Kings Cross Return to Glory

Fundamental to the Olympic Games redevelopment programme designed to showcase London at its very best was the £500 million refurbishment of Kings Cross station.

Initiated in 2007, the project spanned 5 years with completion in March 2012, four months ahead of the Games.  With a stringent success criteria including maintaining a fully operational rail timetable throughout the works, the scale and the scope of the project posed numerous challenges.

Designed by Lewis Cubitt in 1852, the Grade 1 listed building had grown tired and its former glory overshadowed by neighbouring St Pancras.  With the design integrity fiercely protected by English Heritage, the challenge of uniting the modern transport efficiency required by record number of rail passengers with the elegance of the original Victorian design was safeguarded by Kier Construction.

Perhaps the most heralded of its design elements, the iconic barrel-vaulted glazed roof at Kings Cross required a complete overhaul implicating a temporary roof structure on a scale previously unseen across Europe.  To deliver the ambitious roofing project, Kier co-ordinated the services of Norford Scaffolding and the Combisafe UBIX roofing structure.

With passenger safety and comfort a primary consideration, another critical element of the temporary roof solution was the sheeting.  Satisfying the broad and rigorous criteria Powerclad KR110 from Yorkshire based Industrial Textiles & Plastics (ITP) was selected.  Offering exceptional light transmission while being comparable in tensile strength to some heavier PVC grades the site was able to retain a 24 hour rail schedule.

Managing Director at ITP, Marc van der Voort explained “Our Powerclad Keder Sheeting is manufactured on full-width material without welded seams to provide a stronger sheet.  This, in conjunction with its light transmission properties singled it out as the optimal material for this challenging project”.

“In addition to supplying our Keder Sheeting, we were proud to be involved in the work on the internal platforms for which we provided our Powerclad Side Sheeting”.

London undoubtedly triumphed with the success of the Olympic Games, and for its part in the capital’s regeneration project, Kings Cross station’s majestic return to glory clearly claimed the gold.

Powerclad Keder 1100 Kings Cross Station

Project Details

PROJECT

Kings Cross Station

LOCATION

London

MAIN CONTRACTORS

Kier Construction

SCAFFOLDING CONTRACTOR

Narford Scaffolding

Powerclad Keder 1100 Kings Cross Station Aerial
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