Marischal College comes out on top
19/08/10
A landmark step in the reconstruction of one of the UK's most iconic buildings has been taken with a topping out ceremony at Marischal College.
The ceremony will took place on level four of the west wing, the highest point in the 100-year-old A-listed building, which is being transformed into Aberdeen City Council's new civic headquarters by Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd – one of the UK's leading building and civil engineering companies.
Among those taking part in the ceremony were Sir Robert McAlpine director Andrew McAlpine and regional director for Scotland Boyd McFee, Lord Provost of Aberdeen Peter Stephen, council leader John Stewart, deputy leader Kevin Stewart and Marischal College programme director Andrew Sproull.
The Lord Provost said: "This is a significant and exciting step forward in the Marischal College renovation programme. The topping out ceremony marks the hard work carried out to date not only by the firms involved but also by council officers who have ensured that the work has continued apace and considerably below the budget originally set for it.
"The new council headquarters are rapidly taking shape and I am confident that our staff are looking forward to moving from St Nicholas House and other buildings into this remarkable property, which will help the council realise considerable energy savings, next year.
"Marischal College is a remarkable, stunning and world-renowned building which the people of Aberdeen are extremely proud of. It is fitting that Marischal College should be a public building for the people of the city."
Mr McAlpine said: "Sir Robert McAlpine is delighted to be involved in such a prestigious project as the redevelopment of Marischal College. We are pleased to have reached this significant stage and look forward to a successful completion."
Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd, which has almost a century and a half of construction experience, was awarded the £39.7 million building contract by Aberdeen City Council. The firm continues to progress the construction works on time and below budget, with a target completion date on summer 2011 and approximately 170 workers on site at the moment.
The new structural frame within the retained facades is complete and all new structural floors have been installed and the eleven façade retention towers used to stabilise the structure have all been removed.
Roof works on the north and south wings are nearing completing and have begun on the west (Broad Street) wing. Windows are being installed in the north wing.
Stone cleaning and re-pointing works are complete to the main elevations and have begun on the quadrangle and high level pinnacles.
Mechanical and electrical installations are well in hand to the north and south wings and all utilities – gas, water and electricity – have been laid to the building.
The main focus is now on sealing Marischal College and making it wind and watertight to allow progression of the internal fit out works.
The total capital expenditure required for the Marischal College project is now £65.8 million – well within the original approved budget of £80.4 million.
Family-owned Sir Robert McAlpine was founded in 1869 and has a proud record of construction projects across the UK. They include: the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct on the West Highland Line and the Glasgow District subway in the 19th century; the old Wembley Stadium, London's Canary Wharf development and Hampden football stadium in the 20th century; and London's 02 Arena, Manchester's Imperial War Museum, the Eden Centre in Cornwall, and Arsenal FC's Emirates Stadium in the 21st.
The company joined a Marischal Project line-up which comprises a design team of the Holmes Partnership as architects, Arup Scotland as civil and structural engineers, and building services engineers Wallace Whittle. Doig+Smith are the chartered quantity surveyors for the scheme, and Gardiner & Theobald the project managers.
The scheme involves the demolition of the college interior, which will be replaced by a 21st century office building providing 174,000 sq ft of modern office space on six floors for up to 1,400 staff work stations and a customer services facility.
The conversion retains all the granite elevations, provides a high-quality public open space within the quadrangle, and delivers a predominantly open-plan interior of contemporary and sustainable design.
The Marischal conversion emerged as the best-value scheme to create a new corporate council HQ after exhaustive studies comparing it with two other competing solutions – a new-build office block on a greenfield site or a root-and-branch refurbishment of the existing St Nicholas House headquarters.
Other major advantages include:
• the preservation of the 100-year-old Marischal College façade;
• the demolition of the ailing St Nicholas House;
• the creation of a new civic square and the wide-ranging renewal of the city centre around Broad Street and Upperkirkgate;
• the continuation of an accessible city centre location for the city council;
• the retention of council staff in the city centre to support shops and businesses. The A-listed Marischal College, designed by A Marshall Mackenzie and Archibald Simpson, is a structure of national significance and the second largest granite building in the world. The renowned Marshall Mackenzie frontage was completed in 1906 in the heyday of Aberdeen's granite industry. The building lay vacant and neglected after the University of Aberdeen quit the vast bulk of the premises in the 1990s.
Over 4,200 tons of waste were created during the internal demolition works at Marischal College, 90% of which was recycled or reused in some way instead of being sent to landfill.
The Marischal College site is historically important in Aberdeen, not only as a seat of learning since the 16th century. It was home to the Franciscan Friary, one of Aberdeen's major religious houses, from the late 15th century. Archaeologists were on hand during the demolition process to uncover the many secrets that the site holds, including the remains of some Franciscan monks.