Central Park Gateway, Manchester

Contractor: Balfour Beatty
Architect: Aukett Fitzroy Robinson
Type of works: installation, design and manufacture of glazing on canopy roof.

The Central Park Gateway is the first phase of Manchester’s north-south city link and supports a regeneration drive for new business areas in Manchester.The gateway is located at the North Manchester Business Park and incorporates a dual carriageway road passing under a railway line and a new multi-modal transport interchange, including a bus station, vehicle drop-off and a metrolink tram station connecting to a train station nearby.

Architects, Aukett Fitzroy Robinson, developed concepts for a canopy roof on the interchange, combining a curved copper structure with a lens-shaped section of glazing in the centre. This was technically complex as the building and roof were designed to be supported by tension cables and the glazing required many one-off components.

With extensive expertise and experience in complex designs and specialist projects, Aukett Fitzroy Robinson selected SkyLight Solutions to design, manufacture and install the glazing. SkyLight Solutions converted the architect’s concepts into working drawings and worked closely with the main contractor, Balfour Beatty, to develop a design that would accommodate the tolerances of the cable-tensioned steel structure and copper roof.

It designed a lens-shaped glazing solution with a high number of bespoke elements to create an elliptical perimeter edge and worked closely with Pilkington to specify the glass. SkyLight Solutions fabricated the entire assembly in-house, including the aluminium framework, flashings and brackets, before applying a Synthatec metallic powder coating finish and carrying out the complete installation. The glazing panels measured 1.5m x 3m and consisted of 11.5mm heat-soaked toughened laminated glass with a 1.52mm Ocean Blue PVB interlayer. The glass was structurally glazed into a Schüco FW60+ glazing system.

The project took eight months to complete and was delivered on time and on budget. The finished canopy roof is an iconic, state-of-the-art feature for the business park and showcase for the city.

Paul Robinson, Design Co-ordinator, Balfour Beatty said: “SkyLight Solutions provided a professional service and worked very well with the adjacent disciplines on the structure.”

In 2008, SkyLight Solutions was awarded ‘highly commended’ in the Building and Construction category of the Power of Aluminium Awards. This event showcases aluminium as the metal of the future and recognises and rewards some of the most innovative and exciting examples of how it has been used worldwide.