Electrical fit out is drawing to a close at Fort Dunlop one of Birmingham’s iconic buildings which is being transformed by Urban Splash.
The former Dunlop tyre warehouse, familiar to the thousands of motorists who pass it on the M6 every day, had stood derelict for more than 25 years before a £50 million joint venture between Advantage West Midlands and Urban Splash reinvented it as a prestigious mixed use scheme.
Comprising 300,000ft2 of high specification office accommodation, 45,000ft2 of retail and leisure space and a 100-bedroom Travelodge, the development was completed last spring. However, electrical fit out of the office accommodation has been ongoing on a floor by floor basis as tenants have taken up space. Mitie completed the final installation work in January.
Ease of installation and cost effectiveness of the system prompted electrical contractor, Mitie Engineering to select Electrak’s 63 amp underfloor busbar for installation throughout all six floors of office accommodation at Fort Dunlop and, in all, the contractor has installed more than 2,500m of powertrack, supplied through Edmunson’s Electrical in Birmingham. The Electrak underfloor track will service all small power needs in the offices, including PCs, printers and photocopiers. In addition Mitie has installed more than 1,500 three-compartment floor boxes across five floors.
Tony Bates at Mitie commented: “The plug and play nature of the Electrak system makes it very quick and easy to install which has allowed us to save significant man-hours on site, helping us drive down costs and complete the work within tight schedules. The flexibility of the system also means that it will be very simple to reconfigure as and when tenants’ needs change or new occupiers take space, helping to ensure that the newly revitalised building can adapt to meet the needs of Birmingham’s thriving business community.”
