Edgbaston Community Centre
Requirement
Until recently, Edgbaston community Centre operated from the local Junior School, but thanks to school expansion the centre has needed to find a space of its own.
A purpose built facility was required, and with support from Birmingham City Council they approached architectural firm Acivico for a new building to be designed. The building promised multifunctional rooms; changing facilities, a spacious hall, a working kitchen and cafeteria. The exterior was to be finished with brick and render and topped off with a stylish butterfly roof.
But when the Council approached a traditional “on-site” construction firm, they found the cost quoted to be far too high for their intended budget. When the construction firm discovered this, they recommended Wernick Buildings to provide a cost effective off-site solution.
Wernick Buildings worked closely with Acivico to create a modular building that held true to the original architectural concept, but at a more economical price. Wernick’s new design reduced the cost of the building by 30%, bringing it within the range of the Council’s budget.
Managing Director of Wernick Buildings, Andy King, was involved in the design of the new building. He told us; “We wanted to stay close to the aesthetic concept used by Acivico, but at a much lower cost. We used an optimised modular design for maximum manufacturing efficiency, and this ultimately brought the cost into the desired bracket for Birmingham City Council.”
Once designs were approved the centre was built off-site at Wernick’s main manufacturing site in Kenfig, South Wales in two weeks. The building was installed in just two days, a substantially quicker and thus more cost effective process than that of a traditional build.
Wernick managed to deliver everything requested in the original brief, including the butterfly roof which perfectly matches the buildings original aesthetic design. Tony Bailey, the centre manager, told us that staff and visitors alike were impressed with the new building. “It’s spacious, airy and light, it’s really got the wow factor. It’s a much nicer working environment for the staff, and our visitors have nothing but compliments for the building.”
It’s spacious, airy and light, it’s really got the wow factor. It’s a much nicer working environment for the staff, and our visitors have nothing but compliments for the building.
