Leeds

WysePower’s temporary services ensure success on the fast-track construction of a giant warehouse near Leeds

Contractor ISG turned to WysePower for its proven ability to deliver temporary site services for a project to construct a giant warehouse for a major online retailer to an extremely challenging construction programme.

Initially, power was provided by temporary generators while a new permanent substation was constructed. WysePower coordinated the connection to the new substation. Electrical power is distributed to site from WysePower’s 2000 Amp main board via 25 mains distribution units, 54 welding socket outlets (for the concrete grinding and polishing machines), and 60 strategically positioned 10kVA transformers to supply small power.

In addition, as the project progressed, WysePower also had to provide over 50 additional electrical supplies to allow the occupier to commence early fit-out of completed spaces as they were progressively handed over.

WysePower was also responsible for the supply of power to the huge site village. At its peak, this comprised 80 site cabins housing site offices and welfare facilities along with a large canteen for the 1200-strong workforce. The village was the location of WysePower’s full-time project supervisor’s office.

One of the most challenging aspects this project was the timely provision of 720 temporary floodlights to illuminate the warehouse interior. The floodlights are attached to the 35m high steel columns that form part of the building’s supporting structure.

Clusters of four floodlights, one on each face of the column, had to be progressively attached to 45 of these columns as the floors were constructed. The floodlights are positioned to be at high level on each floor. In total, four clusters of four floodlights had to be systematically installed on each of the columns.

WysePower had an extremely short time window in which to install the floodlighting. The construction programme was produced for speed: as soon as a steel column and its associated structural beams had been installed, the programme called for ribbed steel decking to be fitted to enable work to commence on construction of the concrete floor above. Without the provision of artificial light, installation of the steel deck prevents natural light from reaching the floor below, plunging it into darkness and preventing further work from taking place.

Communication and coordination were essential. To keep the project on programme, WysePower had to coordinate the lighting installation with the steelwork contractor and its safety netting installers. It has to be ready and able to move in swiftly the moment each element of the structure was completed so that it could fit a lighting cluster before the decking installation commenced. “Good communication, on the ground site coordination and a proactive approach was essential to ensure the successful installation of the temporary lighting on such a fast-tracked project,” says Robert Brown, WysePower’s Leeds Regional Manager.

Communication was also key to keeping the project on schedule as completed areas of the warehouse were progressively handed over to the future occupier. Robert explains: “To ensure the site remained live, we had to continually adapt our service routes in order to avoid the areas that were progressively being handed over.”

Alongside the interior lighting, WysePower was also responsible for provision of external lighting to the car park, entrance turnstiles, site perimeter and access walkways. To simplify the installation, WysePower used the company’s WyseBase system to support the 6m high external lighting columns, rather than cast column bases in the ground. “Using WyseBase to support the lighting columns was the most cost effective solution for this project because it allowed these columns to be moved and the lighting reconfigured easily to quickly respond to a rapidly changing site” explains Robert.

WysePower were also responsible for the water supply to site, including a supply to the concrete batching plant. All the floors in the giant warehouse are constructed using concrete, so continuous operation of the batching plant was critical to meet the programme. To ensure water was always available, WysePower installed an additional 20,000 litre capacity storage tank.

Thirteen months after work commenced on site, construction of the warehouse is now complete – an impressive feat given the scale and complexity of the scheme. Robert says: “We committed to having the temporary services in place to meet the project timescale and we achieved it, which enabled our client to meet their construction programme.”