Imagine a build programme expected to take 162 weeks reduced on site to just 60 weeks. Now imagine that resulting in building that, on measurement, is within 4mm tolerance, over 12 floors. Add to that a structure that exceeds thermal and acoustic regulatory requirements. This building is reality at IQFive – a new student accommodation unit in the heart of Birmingham. The building has been constructed using a precision-engineered light gauge steel system with concrete floor cassettes from Henley Building Solutions.

A combination of studio apartments and cluster flats will accommodate 480 students over 12 floors. Studio flats have a fold out bed, private kitchen and bathroom. Cluster flats incorporate five private bedrooms, each with an ensuite bathroom, around a central kitchen and living area shared by the flat. This functional attractive building stands on a site which started out as anything but attractive.

Set on a triangular footprint, the site is flanked on one side by a road, and on another by a canal. The advantage of a pre-engineered system is that buildings can be delivered within tight, extremely difficult sites or on concrete podia over existing buildings, where traditional methods would be far more problematical to use.

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