Providing design and structural engineering for a multi-storey car park

Sadlers Mead Car Park - Engineering Services

Wiltshire Council in Chippenham needed a solution to an increased demand for parking adjacent to Chippenham Railway Station—the existing surface car park no longer met commuters’ parking needs. Looking to reuse this site, the Council engaged us to help with civil and engineering designs for a new multi-storey car park.

Our civil and structural engineering team designed a new five-storey car park. Working collaboratively with AHR architects, we provided a complete design. We also supported the Council to achieve planning permission—delivering a flexible performance specification as part of the tender process to give the Council a wide choice of construction methods. Working with the Council and Vinci, the main contractor, we agreed on using concrete as opposed to steel for the structure. Concrete requires less maintenance and is more robust with respect to potential vandalism and the inevitability of vehicles bumping into walls.

We supported construction of the new car park using off-site pre-cast concrete and provided advice on reusing materials from the existing car park for the new space. Our geo-environmental team conducted full site investigations that included verification reporting and delivery of a remediation method statement. Our structural engineers designed the foundation. Along with reviewing and commenting on Vinci’s construction programme, we provided structural performance specifications that included loading and waterproofing requirements. Finally, we designed the surrounding external public realm works including the hard landscaping and drainage.

Wiltshire Council’s new Sadlers Mead car park has 237 car parking spaces, with more space for three coaches and six motorcycles, and 12 electric car charging points—meeting modern commuter parking demands.