Newspan has a great reputation for transforming garden centres and here we take a look at how the company excels at both new build and refurbishment projects.
The Brief
Stansted Park Garden Centre lies within the grounds of 1,800 acres of parkland and ancient forest as part of the Stansted Park House and Grounds. Paul Richards and Tim Mason who were looking to expand following their successful new build garden centre in Studley; ‘Your Local Garden Centre, Mappleborough Green’ recently took over at Stansted and were aware of the architectural and building efficiency challenges that the current site faced.
‘Your Local Garden Centre at Mappleborough Green’ was built by Newspan, so Paul and Tim knew they could rely on their experience in the industry to give them advice with the redevelopment. “We’d been talking to Newspan about the site’s potential before taking it on; the basic structure of the building seemed sound enough but improving the retail environment would be an immediate priority. Newspan worked closely with us to understand what we needed the redevelopment to deliver; we wanted it to be lighter, brighter and much more modern, as well as a comfortable temperature that was easy and cost efficient to control all year round”.
The Solution
Tim explains; “Newspan’s solution was to design a radical system that would transform our multispan roof into fewer, wider and higher spans, adding extra framework above existing steelwork, totally changing the profile and creating a ‘cathedral roof’ effect”. Attention to detail in the finishing on this project was crucial. From the previous project together Newspan were aware Tim and Paul would be keen on getting the finishing touches right, such as painting the roof purlins white; “painting the purlins and trellis work white, would help to achieve exactly the ambience we set out for and provide a really high quality environment for our customers”.
During the delivery phase Newspan achieved the agreed key programme dates and were flexible on site with other trades, allowing the programme to maintain its momentum. Tim describes his perspective of the on-site team and support from the office team; “Newspan kept to schedule and were considerate of the other trades working on site. Their office team supported us fully with any queries or changes throughout the process, and the installation team were friendly and approachable – and finished on time!”.
Upon completion the transformation was so drastic that the building is now unrecognisable from its previous form. Newspan handed the project over to Tim and Paul, on time, for them to complete the fit out. The finished product goes down as potentially the biggest transformation Newspan have ever completed. According to Tim, the customers are pretty blown away by the building and he is extremely satisfied with the performance too; “The outcome was that many of our customers didn’t even realize it was the same building – they thought it was brand new! Our 160-cover coffee shop and gift areas are now air conditioned, while temperature in the plant areas is controlled more traditionally with vents. It’s too soon for facts and figures, but we have every confidence that the building will be much more economical to run, and provide a welcoming and comfortable environment for our customers and stock all year round.”
Being able to transform the existing building beyond recognition is the ultimate accomplishment and being able to continue the working relationship with Tim and Paul has been an added bonus. Tim sums up his final points on the project; “This wasn't our first project with Newspan; before this, they’d built a new garden centre building for us at our Mappleborough Green location, but they’ve proved equally capable with both new build and refurbishment projects, and we’re currently discussing a future project as we continue to expand our business.
