Location:
Fortis Data Centre
Client:
Sector:
Project Fortis involves the development of an industrial site in Chapelhall, North Lanarkshire, to create a new 100,000 sq ft high quality data centre. The data centre provides fully flexible highly serviced, secure technical space to future tenants.
Woolgar Hunter provided Civil and Structural engineering services on the project, and as such were involved not only in the structural design of the new two storey building but in extensive external enabling works. These include the diversion of an existing culvert, grouting works, ground improvement and piling works, to provide a suitably robust platform for the building.
Engineering Excellence
The superstructure consists of a two storey, braced steel frame structure. The floor and roof slabs are formed with an insitu concrete topping on precast concrete units which provide a high quality ceiling finish and act compositely with the steel floor beams via shear studs. The floors and the roof area designed for heavy plant loading in accordance with the Uptime Institute Tier 3+ resilience.
Fortis is a speculative development and as such, the design has been prepared with flexibility in mind. The building could be used as one large data centre or divided into two or four smaller data centres. Also there is a structural movement joint which would allow half of the building to be removed without significantly disturbing the remaining fully functioning data centre. Security is an important requirement for this development and this has been achieved by designing a double security fence to the entire perimeter of the site with controlled access gates at vehicle entrances. Woolgar Hunter worked closely with the mechanical and electrical consultant to coordinate the routes of services with the structure and below ground drainage system. Cables and pipework are to be conveyed externally via above ground cast insitu concrete trenches with lightweight, proprietary, removable corners to allow access for maintenance.
