Building Vibration Isolation

Farrat’s specialist acoustic isolation and structural thermal break pads contribute to the 5 Star Claridge’s development as featured in the BBC documentary series: “The Mayfair Hotel Megabuild”

Claridge’s is one of London’s most luxurious hotels, set in the centre of Mayfair originally opened in 1812. A seven-year development project included a new 4-storey rooftop extension and 5-storey basement, with 72 new suites, a spa and pool area all without having to close its doors to guests who are used to the highest level of customer experience.

Farrat supported Quantity Surveyor Rainey & Best and appointed Structural Engineers WSP with specialist technical advice resulting in the design and supply of a series of steelwork isolation pads and acoustic vibration solutions specifically developed to prevent construction noise travelling through the structure and disturbing hotel guests. In addition, their structural thermal break product TBK was used within the construction of the swimming pool area to thermally separate structural connections preventing heat loss in the building envelope. The project was featured in a BBC documentary “The Mayfair Hotel Megabuild” aired in January where Farrat’s innovative acoustic isolation systems were displayed in all their glory.

Appointed by WSP, Farrat were initially tasked with the isolation of the new steel structure constructed for the rooftop extension using their Hybrid Bearing Technology. CEO Oliver Farrell commented on the Manchester based companies’ involvement. “We worked with WSP to develop a robust system that met both the acoustic requirements and was easily adapted for a range of spatial constraints and loadings.” He added. “Manufactured at our Altrincham site acoustic bearings, washers and bushes were cut and delivered within days of design completion.”

Farrat also worked on the new ballroom (pictured), supplying the specialist high-performance acoustic floating floor which can be adapted for numerous applications including cinemas, concert halls, entertainment venues, and auditoriums.

Neil Wilson Senior Project Delivery Manager at Farrat commented. “Delivering a project of this scale whilst remaining open was always going to be a challenge for everyone involved, from hotel staff to the developers, architects, structural engineers and builders.” He continued “Claridge’s is an institution within London, so we were delighted with the results from the work put in by our team ensuring they could maintain their high standards through innovative acoustic and vibration isolation design.” Rainey & Best’s Director Mark Allen added. “This project was a true multi-disciplined effort. Farrat were a pleasure to work with throughout and nothing was ever too much trouble. I’m looking forward to working with Farrat on future projects.”

Filmed over six years, the TV series followed the challenging work carried out by a range of specialist engineers to create the new five-storey basement and London’s most exclusive rooftop penthouse. Remaining open to guests with no disruption caused by the build noise and vibration is truly astonishing and must be seen to be believed. The series is available to view on BBC iPlayer.

If you would like to learn more about the design and manufacture of vibration control, thermal isolation and precision levelling solutions, contact our team by email, call us at 0161 924 1600, or fill in the contact us form.

Over the last 62 years, Farrat have successfully partnered with a range of local, national, and international organisations that share a passion for solving complex engineering innovation challenges in a bid to make lives better. This has included research partnerships with education authorities, collaborations with leading industry institutions as professional members, supporting and engaging with STEM organisations to offer work placements, and submitting Farrat products and services to the scrutiny of 3rd party testing and accreditation.

However, the ongoing partnership with multi-discipline engineering firm Clancy Consulting stands out as one of the most successful series of collaborations that have contributed to Farrat’s advanced engineering achievements in UK construction to date.

Uniting to deliver world-class engineering projects

Farrat and Clancy have collaborated on 35 commissions across a range of construction projects within the last six years.

An early notable project was back in 2016 at ADF (Anthology Deptford Foundry) in London, where a specialist building vibration isolation solution was required to provide lateral movement restraint and vertical acoustic isolation. The solution was essential to achieving the ambitions of the client and the wider project design team, due to the proximity of railway tracks on two sides of the site generating prominent levels of disturbing noise and vibration.

Farrat worked with Clancy to design bespoke high-performance Shear Keys that would provide high vertical load capacity capable of eradicating tension in the walls and high shear loads to minimise the number of assemblies required.

Another complex project was Regents Crescent, a super prime residential development located in London. Following a vibration survey undertaken by Hilson Moran Architects during design stage, it was discovered that the new buildings would be subject to re-radiated noise generated by existing underground train movements beneath the development across Hammersmith & City, Circle, Metropolitan, Jubilee and Bakerloo lines.

Farrat and Clancy worked together to re-engineer the basic shear key design created for 20 Grosvenor Square and tuned it to the different load cases present at Regents Crescent.

The project has since been shortlisted at a finalist for Building Magazine’s Project of the Year award 2021.

Additional structural, acoustic, and thermal isolation projects in the engineering innovation partnership portfolio include:

• 2015: MIHP (Manchester Institute of Health and Performance) part of the Etihad complex
• 2015: Grosvenor Square
• 2016: ADF Anthology
• 2017: 60 Curzon Street
• 2018: AHW Anthology Tottenham Hale Works
• 2018-Ongoing: The Factory
• 2019: 21 Moorfields
• 2020: Lewisham Exchange
• 2020: Ashley Road East
• 2019-21: Thermal Break innovation project

Multi-faceted collaboration, trust & respect

In a recently published post-pandemic construction insight released earlier this year, Farrat and Clancy both discussed the impact of recent societal and legislative events on client expectations, best practice, technology utilisation, and subsequent evolution of ‘smarter & more collaborative’ working.

Clancy’s Civil and Structural Associate, Paul Fleming, has also recently reflected on how the relationship with Farrat has evolved:

“Since 2015, Clancy Consulting has been working with Farrat to deliver innovative solutions for whole building isolation. Over several years, there has been an increasing expectation on new developments to deliver the highest standards of acoustic and vibration performance. Whether that is preventing noise and vibration from passing from one area of a building to another or preventing external influences from disturbing the comfort of the internal environment, Farrat and Clancy work together to find the solution.

Clancy has supported Farrat on some significantly challenging projects during this time. Building isolation from ground vibration due to below-ground rail networks often leads to full building isolation being considered as the highest standard of protection. The brief is often simple, ‘we need a break between these two points to carry X Load.’ It is only when you drill into the detail that the challenges of geometry, load path, movement, shear load transfer, collapse tie provision, to name a few, become apparent.”

“At the extreme end of things, our affectionately named “Big Bertha”, could deliver 2400kN of shear across the isolation joint as well as a sizable 8400kN vertically. The product is supplied by Farrat to the highest standard of manufacturing and installation support. With our team providing guidance and support through the design and installation stages so that it can be integrated into the construction.

This is a true example of a successful partnership that we are both delighted to be a part of.”

Oliver Farrell, CEO at Farrat agreed with Clancy’s evaluation of the working relationship:

“One of our goals at Farrat is to maximise the return on investment for our clients, which generally means maximising the space available out of already challenging plots of land. To achieve this, like Olympic athletes, we are constantly challenging ourselves to push the boundaries.

Clancy have helped us to achieve this in a wide range of projects to create successful outcomes either by providing the intricate detailed design to get our creative ideas to work or bringing their own creativity to find solutions to impossible challenges. Always with the comfort that the final design will be robust and buildable. They are a pleasure to work with.”

For more information on bespoke engineered Building Vibration Isolation solutions, visit our hub here or contact our Technical Team here.

#onamission

Farrat are excited to see our market leading floating floors being rolled out at a new luxury hospitality development, the Te Arikinui Pullman Auckland Airport Hotel.

The hotel will be spread over the upper nine floors of the development, is set to have over 300 rooms, a restaurant and bar, leisure facilities, and will provide employment for over 200 people upon completion.

Farrat’s floating floor technologies have been selected with a bespoke deployment of products from the ‘Cine’ range. CineFLOOR PRO is standardly used for the acoustic and vibration isolation of entertainment facilities such as cinemas, concert halls and theatres.

In this instance though, CineFLOOR PRO is being used in a hospitality application to ensure that the noise and vibration created by machinery in the hotel doesn’t affect the comfort and peace of those staying in the rooms. This is for both the exercise equipment in the gym, and the plant equipment that keeps the hotel running such as pumps and cooling systems.

Despite being just about as far as it is possible to get from our HQ in the UK, Farrat’s products were selected as the optimal solution for this project, and our team is supporting the local installation company with virtual installation training and video QA inspections.

For more information on our floating floors, and how our engineers can work with your design teams, fabricators and on-site contractors to integrate acoustic and/or building vibration isolation in your development, contact our team here.

#onamission

In 2020, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick published proposals for more changes to the planning system, with the aim of encouraging more house building in city centres and above busy hubs such as railway stations. ‘Permissions in Principle’ and the brownfield land register, has been in existence since 2017. It was put in place to encourage the building of commercial and residential constructions on previously developed areas over greenfield sites. In the latest proposed changes, developers wanting to demolish vacant commercial, industrial, and residential buildings to replace them with housing will get fast-track planning.

There is high demand for housing in the UK and over 2500 railway stations.

Building above train stations is potentially an ideal way to work around existing infrastructure to create new homes. Funders are frequently interested in schemes such as these, as they not only encourage social mobility, but the clear access to public transport encourages tenants and owners to minimise their impact on the environment by reducing car usage in the future.

However, the potential for improving the amount of housing available by developing around existing transport systems is not without its challenges.

Vibration isolation considerations when building above railway buildings

Apart from the obvious civil engineering challenges, a major challenge for developing sites above or near train stations (as well as underground travel networks such as the London Underground and roads) is the existence of ground-borne vibration, which can be transmitted through the structural system. These vibrations are not just a potential annoyance to occupants and a possible reason not to buy, but a potential risk to the inhabitant’s health.

In the interests of health and wellbeing, rest and sleep are crucial.

The World Health Organization Night Noise Guidelines for Europe 2009 report showed that at or above LAmax,fast =32 dB there is sufficient evidence for biological effects of noise on sleep. Changes to sleep structure long term can increase chances of high blood pressure, heart disease, weight gain, diabetes, cognitive ability, and mental health problems.

In order to support buildings and building structures, it is essential that vibration control solutions are used, as they provide protection from low-frequency ground-borne noise and vibration generated by trains and public transport networks. In addition, these vibration control solutions will assist with any other surrounding noise or vibrations associated with living in an urban area such as traffic and nearby social activity.

Overcoming buyer uncertainty

Uncertainty about living above something as lively as a railway station isn’t as high as you would think, as long as you can provide reassurance and demonstrate that vibration and acoustic isolation is in place.

Location is a key consideration when buying or renting a home – transport for work, travel for socialising, and what is in the surrounding area. A property developed above or near a railway station is going to provide excellent transport links as well as being close to other local amenities.

Real-world residential development above railway stations

Ashley Road East (ARE) is a new 183-unit mixed-use development located in Tottenham Hale, set to play an important role in defining the area’s regeneration with the construction of two residential blocks, retail and office space.

It was an underused area of older commercial properties, ideal for redevelopment because of its central location, the need for housing in the area as well as commercial properties and removing the need to use any greenfield land. However, the London Underground Victoria Line runs to the south and east of the site, and the Northumberland Park Spur runs beneath the site.

Recently built Anthology Tottenham Hale is made up of 279 homes and several commercial units and faced slightly different challenges. In addition to being based right next to Tottenham Hale train and tube station, it’s also placed directly above a main road into central London. At 30 stories high, height was an additional consideration in terms of managing vibrations and ensuring structural integrity.

In both incidences, building on top of these train lines, tube tunnels, and roads was made possible with vibration isolation, making better use of space already built on with fantastic public transport links.

Find out more

To visualise how Farrat building components are used to isolate multi-storey developments located above, adjacent or between railway lines, watch our latest construction sequence videos below:

• Anthology Deptford Foundry (ADF), London
• Queen Mary University (QMU), London

Or Contact us for more information on how you might build over and around railway stations, moving forward using state-of-the-art building vibration isolation.

Ashley Road East (ARE) is a new 183-unit mixed-use development located in Tottenham Hale, set to play an important role in defining the area’s regeneration with the construction of two residential blocks, retail and office space.

Due to the developments prime London location, Farrat were contacted at pre-construction phase to help develop a variety of isolation solutions to mitigate against both structural and thermal disturbances impacting building performance.

Farrat in London redevelopment

Ashley Road East is just one of many projects currently underway in the country’s capital with the help of Farrat. If you take a walk through London you will see evidence of our teams hard work across a large number of redevelopments and projects.

For more information on how our engineers can work with your design teams, fabricators and on-site contractors to integrate building vibration isolation and fire resistant structural thermal break solutions, contact our team here.

#OnAMission

As we enter February, we are pleased that 2021 looks set to be another busy year for Farrat solving some of our industries most exciting engineering challenges. Our team are currently ‘on mission’, working hard with project teams across construction and industrial to deliver high-performing acoustic and vibration isolation, structural thermal breaks and industrial vibration control solutions into key markets. Take a look at a few of our current projects below.

Acoustic Isolation

East Square Cinema in Basildon

A new 10-screen cinema located on East Square in Basildon is currently under construction as part of the towns master regeneration project, which is due to be completed in the summer of 2021. This new multiplex is set to contain the largest cinema screen in Essex and is being delivered by McLaren Construction.

The steel frame was completed at the end of 2020 and we have already manufactured and supplied solutions from within Farrat’s Cine range, with CineSTEEL and CineWALL beginning the acoustic isolation. In 2021 we will be providing Farrat Installation Services with our CineFLOOR system to build on our work so far and ensure the project is completed on schedule.

Vibration Isolation

The Factory in Manchester

The Factory has featured heavily on our construction agenda in 2020 and is now rolling into 2021, as the development rises into the Manchester skyline. The new multi-million pound arts centre will be the permanent home of Manchester International Festival and is expected to deliver a £1.1bn boost to the city’s economy over a decade.

Farrat have supplied 1,001 individually designed, engineered and manufactured acoustic bearings to date, with another 1,000 predicted for 2021.

Industrial Vibration Control

Global supply into the Canning Industry

Farrat have supported the global canning industry consistently over the last decade, consulting, engineering and manufacturing a range of industrial vibration control solutions that enable plant operators to achieve improved OEE and reduce spoilage.

Following the success of 2020, in 2021 we are set to be working to deliver a canning factory in South America and two more in Europe.

Improving quality and production for rolling plants

In addition to the canning industry, Farrat have projects lined up in steel and aluminium rolling plants. Rolling is the metal forming process in which metal stock is passed through one or more pairs of rolls to reduce the thickness or make the thickness of the metal consistent.

In 2021, we will be supporting steel and aluminium rolling plants in Turkey and South America to achieve better quality and production rates.

Structural Thermal Breaks

Continued growth and material development

For Farrat Structural Thermal Breaks, 2021 brings the much-anticipated conclusion of Joe Pemberton’s Farrat sponsored 3-year PhD study in association with University of Salford and their construction of the world acclaimed Energy House 2 project. 2021 will also see the continuation of Projects at London’s Chelsea Barracks and Battersea, as well as the redevelopment of Birmingham’s city centre and Manchester’s residential quarters.

Growing through challenges

No doubt 2021 will bring with it a host of challenges, as we work around restrictions and attempt to get back to some assemblance of ‘normal’, but with so many exciting projects and plans for the year, we are looking forward to seeing changing skylines and construction technology developments.

#onamission

As part of our recent winter fundraising campaign – during which Farrat employees collectively covered over 3,000km from our office in Altrincham to reach Santa’s village in Lapland raising funds for 5 charities – Senior Project Delivery Manager, Neil Wilson, completed a jog around London to take in some of our recent projects whilst clocking up his distance.  

Setting out from the Everyman Cinema near Kings Cross (where Farrat CineWALL PRO provides the acoustic isolation for auditorium screens), Neil finished up at the new sustainable Google HQ which is currently under construction and integrates Farrat high-performance bridge bearings. 

On his tour, Neil passed a dozen other Farrat projects, including:  

• The former Royal Mail location, which was recently converted into 681 high class residential spaces and utilises bespoke Farrat acoustic floating floors to overcome the vibration control challenges that the busy location generates.  
• A theatre project on St Giles Circus junction in the West End of London, which is surrounded by a tangle of underground tunnels and features another bespoke Farrat floating floor to mitigate noise disturbance. 

• Ilona Rose House, a mixed-use commercial development comprising of retail, restaurants, roof terraces and pedestrian walkways, which are set to generate much needed employment into the area.  Here Farrat supplied Structural Thermal Breaks to reduce heat loss and mitigate against thermal bridging.
• VUE Cinema in Leicester Square, which has originally built in 1938, but re-opened in 2017 following a major refurbishment complete with leather reclining seats, Sony 4K digital projection and Dolby Atmos sound.  Farrat cinema isolation materials were engineered into the IMAX screen to ensure optimal acoustic isolation and the best possible viewing experience.
• Queen Street, a residential property that utilises the Farrat CineFLOOR system to isolate vibrations from the busy surrounding environment. 
• Just down the road, another residential project – 60 Curzon Street – where Farrat designed, engineered and manufactured the structural bearings that hold the weight of the load bearing walls above.
• Claridge’s (a building that needs no introduction in London), which underwent a major extension between 2019 and 2020 and where Farrat supplied acoustic pads within a CineFLOOR LITE system to ensure that surrounding hustle and bustle does not interfere with the guest’s comfort.

• 20 Grosvenor Square, a super prime residential development built between 2014 and 2018.  Farrat worked closely with the project team to not only provided the Structural Thermal Breaks to insulate the building efficiently, but a full building vibration isolation system incorporating the Farrat CineFLOOR PRO range to isolate the building from surrounding vibrations, which became an integral part of the entire project.  
• Neil then passed by the award-winning Royal Academy of Music, where Farrat developed a bespoke acoustic isolation system.  And just a little further along, Regents Crescent, another super prime residential centre where Farrat provided the Structural Thermal Breaks as well as structural bearings and Farrat CineFLOOR PRO for vibration isolation.  

 His last two stops before finishing at the new Google Headquarters were the Royal College of General Practitioners – a 290 seat auditorium with the added complication of being a Grade 2 listed building, with strict regulations to work around – and Cartwright Gardens – central London student accommodation.   

It is amazing to be able to see such huge engineering achievements delivered by Farrat in this one – albeit long – run, and demonstrate how Farrat is playing a key role in developing our nation’s capital; working around networks of underground and overground trains, main roads and surrounding hospitality venues as well as nearby airports, to delight our customers.   

#onamission 

The Covid-19 pandemic has presented many challenges for those who deliver CPD training. Like many providers, Farrat are exploring alternative ways to engage with our clients and adapt our technical training offer within an ever-changing climate.  

Despite the current restrictions surrounding physical events, Farrat remain committed to our role as a Technical Leader within our specialist fields of vibration control and thermal isolation.  

The current Farrat CPD programme encompasses some of the construction industries most complex engineering challenges. Providing technical knowledge, industry best-practice and practical guidance on how to mitigate the effects of Building Acoustics, Building Vibration Isolation and Thermal Bridging using engineering-led solutions. 

Our CPD courses are certified by CPD UK and are delivered on request and in person, by our team of Technical Directors and Applications Engineers across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. 

So what changes are we making? 

We are planning to release our CPD courses as free online learning modules that are automatically approved for Farrat clients to access, to support remote learning whilst our seminars and face to face meetings are restricted and social distancing measures remain in place. 

We are also looking to re-format our courses and offer new delivery channels, informed by the changing needs and behaviours of our clients. 

To ensure we make the ‘right’ changes, we are asking our community of clients, partners and industry peers to partake in a quick 1-min survey exploring how they think we can maximise the effectiveness of their online training. The goal of the survey is to outline preferences of topics, delivery platforms, formats, duration and availability, so that we can offer a tailored, flexible CPD programme built around you. 

Would you be interested in ensuring your technical knowledge is up to date remotely?  

If so, then please help us to prepare the most suitable digital CPD format(s) for you and your team by registering your preferences on the survey below: 

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/KPLJGMB  

In 2019 Farrat were pleased to welcome Paul Mellish as our new Head of Engineering and Operations. A few months in, we’d like to tell you a little more about one of our new additions to the team.

What led you to Farrat?

I completed a degree in Manufacturing Engineering & Management at Loughborough University. I then spent almost 11 years at Rolls-Royce (aero engines) in a variety of Manufacturing Engineering roles. Following that, I moved into the automotive industry as a Technical Manager at Bentley Motors.

I was drawn back to aerospace for a couple more years in a consultant role, assisting a number of domestic SME’s to become more globally competitive. Following a short stint in Additive Manufacturing as an Operations Manager, I became the Operations Director for an aerospace surface treatments business, before moving to Farrat.

What are you most looking forward to getting involved in/doing at Farrat?

Assisting an already successful company to achieve the next big step and become world-leaders in our industry sector! I am also looking forward to enabling each area of the business to achieve its objectives and develop a high-performing community that is sustainable for the long-term future.

What drives you on a day to day basis?

Knowing that I have made a tangible contribution to the performance and success of the business. On a personal level, my main drive is to make my family proud and to provide them with a comfortable way of life.

Paul is just one of many new team members in a range of areas of the team including engineering, HR, accounts and operations. We’re looking forward to introducing you to more team members throughout 2020.

2019 has been a busy year for Farrat and full of achievements and projects to be proud of.  There are too many to go into in one post, but here are a few of the highlights of 2019.

Longevity is an ultimate aim for most businesses, and for Farrat to celebrate it’s 60th year this year was a fantastic achievement. A family business now into it’s third generation, Farrat continues to grow with a well-established team, many of whom plan to be here to celebrate 70 years no doubt.

The growth of our non-structural vibration isolation department – new expanding markets has meant the size of this department has nearly doubled in size, with the launch of several new products in our Cine range. The number of projects in the middle east has grown with a number of high-profile openings this year including the largest mall in Egypt, which we were a significant part of.

Growth of cinema in the MENA region is huge with 500 new cinema screens planned between 2018 and 2023, and following attendance of the second MENA cinema forum, Farrat are looking to continue to be a big part of that.

The MENA cinema forum this year introduced a new way to display the power of Farrat’s Cine Range. Affectionately dubbed ‘the cube of silence,’ this demonstration enabled our Commercial Director Ryan Arbabi to show just how much noise and vibration we can isolate!

Farrat has continued a truly global reach in 2019, with more countries than we could go into in much detail. From canning factories in France, Brazil and the UK, shock isolation in Taiwan, vibration control at The Hague in the Netherlands and in Slovakia, in addition to the work in MENA with the growth of cinema in Saudi Arabia on the horizon – it’s been a globe trotting year!

Farrat TBF was a brand-new product launched this year, following numerous requests for a fire safe thermal break product. Fire safe thermal break material is not yet a legal requirement but to be able to launch a product as ahead of the curve, and one we truly believe will be in high demand in the future, was an exciting achievement.

The team has expanded this year to accommodate growth, but in addition to that, Farrat truly believes in developing team members internally. A large number of people within Farrat have progressed to new positions in house.

2020 sees a new level of growth with more exciting plans that we look forward to updating you on from as close as Manchester to the other side of the world.