Project Description
In Autumn 2017 Amazon opened their new Fulfilment Centre located in Tilbury, Essex. At the time of writing, the opening of this facility marked Amazon’s 13th development of this type in the UK. It has created 1,500 new permanent employment opportunities in the area and provides a state of the art facility for customer order picking and despatch. As part of the construction team FK Group was brought in to design a roof system to meet the requirements of both Amazon and the local planning authority.
The Challenge
Amazon pride themselves in designing and operating buildings which prioritise energy efficiency, having constructed similar Fulfilment Centres around the world that are sustainable and eco-friendly. It was vital that the new Fulfilment Centre maintained Amazon’s high standards, providing a solution that would help attenuate storm water/runoff, moderate the urban heat island effect and improve local air quality.
Furthermore, as this particular site is close to the coast, it was vital that the green roof would be able to resist the heightened presence of salt blown in from the sea.
It was essential that all parties working on the build were experienced in the logistical aspects of installing a green roofing system. They would need to be flexible in their work, coordinating their skills to maximise productivity while dealing with the complicated logistics of placing materials at multiple locations on the roof, with limited access to crane time, and frequently very windy conditions on site.
Solution
ABG Installs was contracted to install the ABG Green Roof System. ABG Installs have a vast amount of experience and knowledge of green roof installations and had previously worked with FK Group on projects such as The Cross Green Recycling Centre in Leeds.
ABG Install’s technical understanding of the installation requirements of the job meant that they were flexible and able to adapt to design changes which were made during installation, helping to minimise any delays to the project. By programming their works efficiently they were able to work to the crane availability. Although windy conditions meant that the team had to handle material movements carefully, they were able to complete the project without letting these conditions cause delay by vigilant site management.
