Streamline with Steel Frame

With the Metframe solution at its core, the Thetford Riverside Travelodge is a 62-room hotel and part of a 41,000 sq ft. redevelopment of the riverside area in Thetford, which includes a three-screen cinema and five restaurants.

The Metframe solution was selected due to the structural efficiency of the system and manufacturing the product offsite contributed to a fast build, allowing that section of the project to be completed to a tight schedule. Value engineering the structure resulted in key savings. For example, reduced weight allowed the use of shallower foundations, which reduced the amount of materials required and the overall cost of the building.

The Metframe load-bearing walls and concrete floors formed the top three storeys of the hotel building. The acoustic properties of the hotel’s building structure were an important factor in the design process, to prevent sound travelling between rooms and having a negative impact on overall guest experience. The concrete floors specified as part of the Metframe design provided the high levels of acoustic insulation required. Metsec was engaged early in the tender process to help assess the foundation and loading requirements of the building, establish a value engineered plan and achieve any savings possible.

Metframe is a pre-panelised system which is used to provide the load bearing structure for low to mediumrise structures. The system uses the studs in the same way as load bearing SFS, except they are bolted together offsite to form panels. The incorporation of heavier gauge studs and the bespoke designs allow structures to be constructed up to 15 storeys in height. Metframe structures can incorporate steel joisted or concrete floors, depending on the client’s requirements. Joisted floors will offer a much lighter structure, but concrete floors generally provide a higher level of acoustic and fire protection. Pitched, dormer or flat roofs can be readily incorporated in Metframe structures as well as balconies, cantilevers and insets.

Colin Kennedy, Managing Director at Veitchi Interiors, said: “With the Metframe product we were able to achieve exactly what the client required on time and within budget despite challenges presented by the winter weather and a location where access was limited by proximity to the river. Metframe was chosen for this project due to the greater stability and fire resistance of the system compared with alternatives such as a timberframe kit construction.”

To continue reading this article, visit: Offsite Magazine Issue 12