A major new high-tech office development in Swansea city centre is fast taking shape. The five-storey building, known as 71/72 Kingsway, is a carbon-zero development with two underground levels. It is part of a major transformation of the area and will provide 114,000 square feet of flexible co-working and networking office opportunities for 600 jobs in the innovative tech, digital and creative sector businesses. The offices will feature state-of-the-art digital connectivity and integration with smart city technology, conference and meeting facilities. Balconies, a green rooftop terrace and atriums are also incorporated. The building detail required thermal insulation of the highest standard, along with high-performance expansion joints. With its comprehensive range of structural thermal breaks and the new Stacon dowel product, Schöck was ideally placed to meet the necessary requirements.

There were technical challenges though
The main issue was the retaining wall in the basement and ground floor area, which put axial pressure onto the structural Isokorb thermal break elements. As a result, it was necessary to calculate both the compression from this force and the moment resistance based on the residual capacity of the in-situ thermal breaks. At the second and third floors, the placement of the column grid was unconventional and converse to the usual external-to-internal arrangement. So the elements were in effect installed in the opposite direction to what would normally be anticipated. To combat any effects of thermal bridging throughout the RC construction, namely heat loss, damp and mould formation, a variety of Isokorb thermal break types were incorporated. Those most extensively used though are the T type K and the XT type K. Both are load-bearing thermal break elements for concrete cantilevered balcony construction, transferring moments and shear forces. They have 80mm and 120mm insulation thickness respectively.

New Stacon dowels used for the first time
There were a number of large beam forces to transfer on the upper levels and the newly launched Schöck Stacon dowels were used for the first time in the UK. This new dowel, the type SLD, is really compact and as the anchoring bodies have been reduced in size, it has the advantage of enabling higher loads to be installed in thinner slabs and walls, optimising on-site reinforcement. Stacon has been awarded UK Technical Assessment (UKTA) along with fire protection classification R 120. It is fully supported with Scalix design software too, the first web-based application for the design of shear dowels.

A dependable and fully compliant product range
The Schöck Isokorb range of structural thermal break solutions is the largest in Europe and in the UK helps projects meet full compliance with the necessary Building Regulations. In addition to the Isokorb type used on this project, there are also solutions for concrete-to-steel, steel-to-steel, renovation projects – and even a maintenance free alternative to wrapped parapets. All products have the security of independent BBA Certification, which provides NHBC approval.

Contact Schöck on 01865 290 890; or visit the website at www.schoeck.com/en-gb/solutions for full product range details.