The building is situated on a very busy thoroughfare in Sheffield. Eventually, it would become two domestic dwellings and a commercial unit at the front at street level. There was an existing single-phase, looped electric supply, a gas supply and a water supply (lead pipe). Our task was to repurpose the existing supplies the best we could and add two electric supplies, two water supplies and a gas supply. The existing electric and water supplies were being used for the build.
The existing electric supply in the basement was moved to the commercial unit and a change of use was arranged with the energy supplier. The looped in supply was removed as they are no longer permitted by the network. The existing gas supply was moved from the basement to a kiosk at the front of the building – the service pipe was to be increased for the new supply. The existing water supply was to be kept but the pipework replaced under the lead pipe replacement scheme.
A new, three-phase supply was installed to the front of the building. This now feeds both domestic premises. As there was to be no communal area, it was felt that the creation of an outdoor kiosk would be the best place to terminate the supplies. Installing a single cable also helped to keep costs down. The existing gas supply was cut back to the main and a new, larger, service pipe was installed. This enters the kiosk to the two meters. Once again, not installing a new service from the main meant that a saving was made. All the excavation costs for the new water services were covered by the lead pipe replacement. As a result, the client only ended up paying for the costs required to connect to the main, any meters and infrastructure costs – a significant saving.
The two stand out things relating to this job were the significant savings made and the relationship we had with the developer and the contractors onsite. By using our extensive knowledge we were able to use the existing supplies and schemes to lower costs. In addition, the constant communication between all parties meant that site was ready to go whenever an installation was happening.
“I am delighted with the way Shadwick UC have delivered the services to the Whitham Road job. Utilities have always been a massive struggle and having the hassle taken away has been invaluable. Andy was always available and nothing was too much trouble for him. I am very much looking forward to our next project together.” Dr Sumanth Chikthimmah (DLPP Limited, Sheffield)
