Construction at Everton Stadium to ramp up in 2023 as focus shifts to internal fit-out

Construction of new Everton Stadium

Everton FC says work on its new £500m Bramley-Moore Dock stadium is set to enter a transformative phase this year, with work ramping up on the internal works.

Rapid progress has been highly visible at the waterfront site as concrete and steelwork have seen the 52,888-seat project take shape.

But the next phase of work will be largely hidden as the focus shifts on internal development, and the race is on to make the build watertight to allow tradesmen to begin work in installing hundreds of miles of piping, wiring and the internal fittings.

The club’s chief stadium development officer, Colin Chong, said: “I think we should just warn spectators that in 2023 it will look like things are slowing down from an external perspective.

“A big milestone that people will want to see is the east stand steelwork that will fill in the gap between the north and south steelwork. However, it will slow down externally, although internally it’s going to be a hive of activity.

“In real terms, the fit-out is starting in January, when we will start putting all the wires and piping in.

“People won’t notice it as much, as it’s internal, but it’s equally as important to the stadium development as the roof going up.”

As with the external concrete and steel components, much of the internal walls are pre-manufactured in factory conditions and transported to site in just-in-time slots for installation.

All mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) systems in the stadium will be manufactured off-site in the Oldbury (West Midlands) factory of Laing O’Rourke’s specialist MEP business, Crown House Manufacturing.

The six-foot high modules and an innovative product called Techwall, will be delivered to site, lifted into place, connected and commissioned, in an approach that helps save time and energy.

Mr Chong added: “There are life-safe systems, resilience to be planned, and all the toilets on the concourses will be coming in in modules, pre-manufactured.

“The pipework will arrive pre-manufactured, tested in the factory, and be offered up and connected, so there are less connections throughout the whole building. There’s less welding, so less risk of fire and it’s the modern way of building things.”

He said: “Again, we’ll be working on all four concourses simultaneously, along with the hospitality lounges starting, probably in March.”

The skeleton of the dressing rooms is already in place, in the west stand.

“We ramp up with people and we’ll end up with 1,000 people there next year and probably up to around 1,400 on site the year after.

“There’s a whole host of things going to happen next year, but not a lot of people are going to notice it because it’s going to be hidden.”

The new stadium is due to complete before the start of the 2024-25 season

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