Nottingham Crown Court

The project involves the complete replacement of the ageing roof above a live court building while maintaining uninterrupted court operations and critical building services throughout the programme.

Located in Nottingham city centre, the scheme presents significant logistical, technical and operational challenges, requiring innovative engineering solutions, careful planning and close stakeholder collaboration to ensure the safe and continuous operation of the facility.

Alongside replacing the deteriorated roof, which had suffered from water ingress, standing water and damaged penetrations, the project is delivering essential fire safety improvements and mechanical and electrical infrastructure upgrades. Existing roof access has been redesigned to provide compliant fire escape routes, while congested rooftop plant is being reconfigured to improve maintenance access, creating a safer, more resilient and future proofed building.

A key element of the scheme involved lifting and supporting existing mechanical plant, including a nine tonne Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit and two 2.8 tonne chillers, to allow the replacement of the roof beneath while maintaining operational services to the live building.

Several design options were explored during preconstruction, including the construction of a new enclosed plant room and the installation of a permanent plant deck structure.

Following detailed evaluation, the preferred solution involved raising the existing plant onto bespoke temporary and permanent support systems, enabling roof replacement while minimising disruption and maximising value for the client.

Maintaining building services throughout the programme was critical. Temporary plant systems and carefully phased changeovers ensured continuous operation of the courts while allowing upgrades to be completed safely. Extensive out of hours working were undertaken to minimise disruption to court activities and maintain security requirements.

Innovation played a significant role in overcoming several complex technical challenges throughout the project.

Where no suitable roofing product existed on the market, Tilbury Douglas worked collaboratively with Bauder to develop a bespoke solution capable of achieving the Trust’s requirements while providing a 30 year warranty.

The roofing installation also required an innovative delivery approach after traditional scaffold options proved unworkable. Instead, the team carefully planned sequencing and installation methods around changing weather conditions, enabling the roof to be installed safely and efficiently without impacting programme.

A further innovation arose following the discovery of failed fire dampers, which resulted in additional works.

Conventional replacement methods and products could not provide a suitable solution, so the team undertook research and development to create an alternative installation method.

This resulted in a fully tested fire detail that met the required performance standards while overcoming significant access and installation constraints, delivering a robust long-term solution.