Made of Steel
As one of the UK’s leading independent manufacturers of structural steel, Shufflebottom’s been taking some time to think about all the positive associations of steel: strong, unyielding, tough, durable, supportive. No wonder it’s used in everyday phrases to describe human characteristics such as, nerves of steel and made of steel. The list goes on. Sometimes you can’t tell by looking at the exterior, what is under the surface with humans and often this is the case with buildings too.
An example of this is the current project Shufflebottom is delivering for our client, Island Estates’ development of Student Accommodation at Rivermead Islands, Chelmsford.
Rivermead Islands is a brand new family-owned, independent and purpose-built student community offering luxury student living right next to Anglia Ruskin University’s Chelmsford campus. Residents there will be able to enjoy spacious en-suite bedrooms with small double beds, modern shared kitchens and an on-site sports bar, bowling alley and restaurant, all just across the river from campus.
Shufflebottom has already manufactured and supplied the structural steel for Block A and Block B – Point View and The Lofts and the buildings are ready for students to move into for this academic year 2022-2023. For Block A we delivered 255 tonnes of hot-rolled steelwork which was designed, detailed, fabricated and painted by Shufflebottom. For Block B we delivered 530 tonnes of hot-rolled steelwork, again designed, detailed, fabricated and painted by us. We were also responsible for the detailing and fabrication of 2 pedestrian bridges, fabricated out of curved circular and hollow-section tubes.
Shufflebottom is thrilled to have manufactured and delivered the structural steel for this prestigious project. You might not be able to see the support and inner strength offered by our structural steel, but it’s there at the heart of this student community, which has sited in Chelmsford’s former industrial quarter, to create a modern community whist retaining some of the Island’s industrial heritage.
We are honoured to have been commissioned by Island Estates though it’s not for the first time: our relationship goes back over twenty-five years and is one we value greatly. And we’re not done yet! Block C is in progress and will demand a similar amount of steelwork, and there are also two further pedestrian bridges to be fabricated.
So if you ever visit the student community at Rivermead Islands, remember that under the beautiful façade, it is made of steel! To see more of the development, please visit www.rivermeadislands.co.uk