Ikea Doncaster, Phase 2 - (April 2005)
Location: South/West Yorkshire
When Billington erected the steel structure for the Ikea project in Peterborough, it was the size of twenty football pitches (85,660 square metres) rumored to be visible from space and the UK's third largest warehouse. That was of course until Billington erected the steelwork for an extension to Ikea Doncaster of 71,832 m2 connected to an existing structure of 60,952 m2, giving a total plan area of 132,784 m2 or 31 football pitches. When portal frames with a clear internal height of 33 metres are factored into the equation then this has got to be the new "big one", not so much a warehouse, more of a black hole, sucking in men and materials from around the UK. As far as football pitches are concerned, you could put a golf course in this one and never touch the sides with the ball. The main high bay portals reach into the roof section like giant redwoods to support the metal foliage above. Massive vehicles delivering hardcore and steelwork were sucked in and dwarfed by the sheer size of the structure. Giant cranes and cherry pickers strained skyward to reach lofty heights, where cold rolled purlins shimmered in the spring sunshine and the erection crews contemplated oxygen.
More information:
Scope: Design & Build, Portal frame
Contractor: Shepherd Construction
Engineer: Shepherd Design Group
Weight: 3,160 tonnes
Value: £3,605,000
Market Sector: Commercial
Design Type: Design & Build
Frame Type: Medium / high rise
