Engineering consultancy wraps up work on 12-storey city apartment scheme
Structural and civil engineering consultancy, Dudleys, has completed works on a £34m residential development on Sweet Street in Leeds city centre, for its client Oakapple Group.
Pin Yard is a 12-storey build to rent scheme of 216 units comprising a mix of studios, one, two and three-bedroom apartments.
The building incorporates a resident’s gym, lounge, co-working spaces, a basement car park and private gardens.
It is on a former warehouse site, next to the headquarters of Jet2 in the South Bank area.
Oakapple Group speculatively purchased the site, gained planning consent in 2019, and secured forward funding from Grainger plc, the UK’s largest listed private landlord. The scheme is now handed over to Grainger to operate rentals within its BTR portfolio.
Working alongside architects The Harris Partnership and main contractor Tolent plc, Dudleys has consulted for the duration of the project on all civil and structural engineering matters.
These include reinforced concrete design details, surface water attenuation and highways alterations.
The scheme used Light Gauge Steel Framework (LGSF), a new and advanced method of construction which is a much lighter, more energy efficient and robust structural solution that is particularly suitable for volume housing and high-rise buildings.
Paul Brownlow, director at Dudleys, said: “As a local consultancy, we are very familiar with the regional landscape and built environment to be able to provide strategic and practical guidance throughout the build programme.
“The project was not without its challenges due to the tight site constrained by two main roads as well as delays caused by the pandemic.
“We have worked with the delivery team to complete a scheme of exacting standards, using advanced techniques, that we are very proud of.”
Phil Taylor, chairman of Oakapple Group, said: “It’s certainly not been easy, but despite everything we have all had to face over the last 12 months we continue to work together as a team.
“We will definitely look to negotiate further projects with Dudleys.”
Leeds-based Dudleys employs a team of 20 engineers and operates in all key real estate sectors including residential, industrial, commercial, retail and education.
