Category Archives: News

A Visit from Nigeria

nigeriavisit-newsREIDsteel were pleased to host a tour of our five acre site for the Director of Bridge Design of the Federal Ministry of Works, Mr. Aniete O. Effiony.

He was accompanied by our the Managing Director, Mr. Charles Orie of our Nigerian partners, Johnsons Construction Co. We welcomed the group with Mr. Graham Crouch, consultant at Crouch Waterfall and Partners.

For yet another wonderful talk about the unique steel design engineering we complete at REIDsteel, we thank our staff; Tim Cook, Commercial Manager; John Harrison, Structural Engineer; Roger Bennett, Design Engineer and Andy Davies, Production Manager.

Joseph Ash Galvanizing Ltd

josephash-news01Founded in Birmingham in 1857, Joseph Ash is one of Britain’s longest running galvanisers. REIDsteel have worked with Joseph Ash for a number of years and we were pleased to welcome them to our five acre site in Dorset.

Rob Nelson, Technical Manager at Joseph Ash Galvanising gave an illuminating presentation to explain galvanisation to our team of draughtsmen and designers right down to “steel chemistry”.

We were impressed to discover that not only do Joseph Ash galvanise our large and robust steel structures, but also delicate works of art such as sculptures by Sophie Ryder.

Thank you to Rob who improved our knowledge of designing steel fit to be dipped into the molten zinc of the galvanisation bath.

Springside Industrial Units, Trinity, Jersey

springside-news01REIDsteel have a history of working in the Channel Islands and were delighted to be given the opportunity to design, fabricate and erect 2 new Industrial buildings in Trinity, Jersey.

We had been involved in the planning and pricing of the project for over 5 years before we were chosen to complete the building envelope and worked with the main contractor, F Nicolson and Sons, architects, J Design and consulting engineers, Ross Gower associates.

REIDsteel were also chosen to construct the 2 structures due to the client owning the original units adjacent to the site supplied by REIDsteel in 2000 and being impressed by the lack of repairs and maintenance needed due to the quality of the building provided.

Working with the client’s team enabled us to design the steel structure to allow a specific floor area and clear height as well as detail in the architectural features of the buildings, near 3m overhangs at the eaves with cantilever tubular struts and floor to roof, brick piers which were to be tied back into the structure.

The interface between cladding and steelwork was detailed and ordered in house from leading UK suppliers to offer a 25 year guarantee of both composite roof panels and double skin wall cladding.

Detailing the cladding in house also give Reidsteel a great advantage to design and supply the glazing and personnel doors. REIDglazing provided powder coated aluminium windows and steel doors with glazed port holes.

All materials were scheduled and shipped logically from our site in Christchurch ensuring our experienced erection team were never held up waiting for materials and could complete both buildings in fewer than 18 weeks much to the satisfaction of the client and the end users who were ready to move in.

In addition to steelwork, cladding, gutters and glazing we were also responsible for applying the intumescent paint to the steel work and providing a fall restraint running line system. Something that allows the end users to access the roof via a lanyard and carry out roof maintainance.

REIDsteel and Zulal

zulal-news01REIDsteel are proud to have recently supplied three Water treatment plants to Libyan Contractor Zulal Water Technology.

We supplied the steel frames, composite cladding, glazing, doors, roof extraction vents and a 5-tonne overhead crane to each building.

The installation of all REIDsteel supplied components were assisted by experienced supervisor Rowland Phillips.

The Gialo plant was completed in only nine months, on a full turnkey basis. The plant is producing excellent quality of water and should provide the people at Gialo field with a reliable supply for many years to come.

REIDsteel Helps New Forest Ice Cream Structure for Growth

newforesticecream-news02New Forest Ice Cream, one of the UK’s fastest expanding ice cream brands, is celebrating production starting in its brand new purpose built Lymington headquarters that was designed in close conjunction with Christchurch-based REIDsteel.

A family firm launched 30 years ago that now supplies over 2,500 outlets across the UK, New Forest Ice Cream was approached by REIDsteel when it outgrew its old premises and was struggling to find a suitable new building in the New Forest area.

newforesticecream-news01The new 2,000m² premises provide state of the art ice cream production facilities plus bright and modern office space. A dominating feature of the new building is the giant freezer which occupies around one third of the internal footprint of the new building.

REIDsteel worked closely with the family throughout the design and build process, to deliver a tailor-made structure that provides the company with the perfect facilities for their expanding business.

The structure’s clad envelope consists of three different types of steel based cladding systems.

The roof is clad in a Kingspan insulated composite panel system, which is ideal for this type of building as it can be installed quickly and efficiently.

newforesticecream-news03Because of this REIDsteel’s team of erectors were able to install a 1m wide by 14.5m long panel every four minutes, enabling work to commence on the floor slab when the roof was complete in super-fast time.

Similar to the roof cladding system, part of the wall area is clad in a Kingspan insulated composite architectural wall panel system, which incorporates REIDsteel’s aluminium framed windows and curtain walling system.

The remaining area of wall is clad in a site assembled, insulated twin skin wall cladding system and also incorporates windows, personnel and vehicle doors.

REIDsteel’s Project Engineer for the development, David Cooper says:

By working direct with us on this project New Forest Ice Cream was able to use the expertise of our designers to optimise their production facility. The purpose built structure is tailored exactly to their needs and will allow them to continue expanding production of their wonderful ice cream for many years to come.

Graham Jenman, Director, New Forest Ice Cream comments:

On behalf of New Forest Ice Cream I would like to thank Reid Steel for the quality of the finished building and professional manner they went about the process, from the initial design to the handover of the keys.

They clearly explained what they would do and what was required by the ground workers. All work was done to schedule with no fuss. You could not ask to work with a more professional team.

Britain’s Steel Experts Build Bridges for Nepal’s Financial Growth

Sabha Kholanews01Slow growth in Nepal’s exports and difficulty moving home-grown agricultural products around the country to reduce dependence on imports are getting a boost from steel bridges that are designed and built in the UK.

Helped by £3 million of funding from the British government, through the Department for International Development’s (DFID) Rural Access Programme (RAP), REIDsteel of Christchurch, Dorset was appointed by local contractor Kalika of Khatmandu to construct a 120m steel span bridge to open up access between Khandbari and Chainpur and boost trade across the Sabha Khola river.

Sabha Kholanews02The bridge links Sankhuwasabha with the national road network and has the potential to transform the lives of 800,000 people – The river runs through the Arun Valley, one of the deepest in the world at 300-435 metres.

Without a bridge the people of the region faced extreme difficulties crossing from one side to the other. During the monsoon season boats would regularly capsize, putting lives and cargo in peril.

Building a bridge in such a remote region is easier said than done. Road access was little more than mud tracks in places and the mountainous terrain meant getting steel girders from the port to the site was a logistical nightmare.

Sabha Kholanews03However, REIDsteel has almost 100 years’ experience of building bridges around the world and the company completed a similar, slightly smaller 96 metre bridge in the region in 2011.

This meant the team was able to design, manufacture, ship and construct the bridge within just one year, far quicker than the contractor had expected.
Rollo Reid, REIDsteel’s technical director says:

The speed of construction was down to the hard work and dedication of the team of local workers. Supervisors sent by us from the UK trained the team and oversaw the work but the hard manual work was done by the Nepalise builders working on the project.

Hard manual labour is exactly what it takes to build bridges in Nepal. When REIDsteel built the Piluwa Kohla bridge, north of Dharan in Nepal, no cranes were available so towers were made using disused electricity transmission steel poles and two aerial ropeways spanning the river were put in place.

Using ropes and hand-power, the sections of the bridge were put into position. Although this work was done during the dry season, the project suffered a set-back when a flood surged down the river, sweeping several of the girders and pole props into the water.

Luckily, once the flood water had abated, the bridge parts could be salvaged and work was able to resume.

Rollo Reid continues:

Sabha Kholanews04The satisfaction of getting through the build stages and seeing the finished bridges is immense.

The structures provide the only bit of straight, flat road for miles around and it’s incredibly rewarding to see the sheer joy on the faces of locals who no longer have to dice with death to cross the valley.

Knowing that something that was designed, crafted and shipped from a small town in England will have a major impact on helping trade flourish in such a remote part of the world makes all of us at Reid’s extremely proud.

Aircraft Hangar for Eznis Airways, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Eznis-news01In early 2011 we were successful in being awarded a contract to design and supply an Aircraft Hangar for Eznis Airways.

This hangar was required to house their fleet comprising of four Saab 340B aircraft and two Avro RJ85 aircraft, which serve their expanding domestic flights service operating from the Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar.

The project required the design and fabrication of a 50m clear span Hangar together with a two storey office, workshop and stores facility on either side of the Hangar and across the rear elevation.

Eznis-news02In addition, we supplied the Eznis Company Logo which sits proudly on both gable peaks of the Hangar and we also produced a separate pair of sliding doors which can be opened to allow the nose of an Avro RJ85 aircraft to be worked on in inside the Hangar whilst the rest of the aircraft remains outside.

A set of inflatable fabric seals mounted on the main Hangar doors and matched to the shape of the fuselage ensure that the weather stays outside.

Eznis-news03We designed, fabricated and shipped every piece of steelwork, together with the cladding and the very important insulation material.

(temperatures in Ulaanbaatar hit + 40°C in the summer, but drop to – 40°C in the winter)

All packaged into more than 20 containers from the UK to Ulaanbaatar and also supervised the construction and erection of the structure before the worst of the winter weather set in.

TAG Energy Solutions – Tubular Production Facility Teesside

1318931793Construction of TAG Energy Solutions new 6840m2 production facility on the north bank of the river Tees is now complete.

The facility is a state of the art, automated tubular production facility for the rolling & welding of large diameter tubulars, and the construction of foundations – monopiles, tripods, jackets and transition pieces – for the renewables and energy industries.

REIDsteel designed, fabricated and erected the ‘V’ braced tied portal frame which spans 40m x 171m, 18m to external eaves. As part of the contract REIDsteel also designed, fabricated and erected the doors, crane beams, insulated roof and single skin wall cladding.

The structure has been designed to integrate with TAG’s manufacturing process and subsequently incorporates 4 travelling overhead gantry cranes for the moving and lifting of large steel plates and tubular sections during fabrication.

Following fabrication, the large diameter tubes can be safely removed from the facility and transported out through REIDsteel’s electronically operated 20m wide x 14m high slab sliding hangar doors at the gable end.

Despite the challenges of the harshest winter for 31 years triggering near Artic conditions during the mainframe erection & cladding installation, REIDsteel completed the job ahead of schedule and on budget.

Felicite Island Residences

Felicite-newsREIDsteel were first approached by the Félicité Island Development Company in July 2009 to carry out the design, fabrication and shipping of the structural steel framing for the roof and fascias of the first of a series of designer homes.

Nestling on a small segment of unspoilt Félicité, one of the inner Seychelles islands, the development will consist of 28 Bond-style residences, each with panoramic views of the Indian Ocean, swimming pool ceilings and private helipad.

Renowned architect Richard Hywel Evans describes his vision for Zil Payson as ‘a whole new resort standard in terms of vision, design, experience and sustainability, crafted from indigenous materials that melt into a landscape of staggering beauty’.

The villas are now nearing completion, and are for sale on a 99-year lease starting from a snip at £1.9 million.

Project: Felicite Island Residences
Client: Félicité Island Development Company
Location: Zil Payson Resort, Seychelles

RAF Valley Squadron Building & Hangar

news-RAF Valley SquadSteel construction work at RAF Valley with both the new Squadron Building and maintenance hangar is now complete.

The 5,500 m2 Squadron building will be used as a state of the art training school which will incorporate the latest technology in simulators and flying training devices to support the development of Fast Jet Pilots for the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy.

The Squadron building will also support flight planning and will provide an operations hub for the fleet of Hawk Mk.T2 aircraft.

The aircraft hangar will be used to house and maintain the aircraft.

Project: RAF Valley Squadron Building and Hangar
Client: VT Group
Location: Isle of Anglesey, Wales, UK