Lindum was appointed to build a new three-storey operational and training facility for Great British Railfreight (GBRf).

The building, located adjacent the East Coast Mainline has allowed GBRf to grow its operations to meet the increasing demand for rail freight in a well-located high tech training facility.

The project was won through a competitive tender, however Lindum was awarded a pre-construction Delivery Agreement during RIBA Stage 2 to help develop the design and submit a planning application.

We worked closely with the client and local designers to develop a design that exceeded GBRf’s expectations in terms of operational functionality and aesthetics. We helped the client identify money-saving ‘value engineering’ proposals, which resulted in a 10 per cent reduction in the cost of the building.

Due to its historic uses and the location, the brownfield site had complications associated with remediation, surface and foul water discharge. Lindum employed key consultants to help fully identify the potential issues, carrying out surveys and producing reports to satisfy the planners of the design intent.

Timing was critical for GBRf and through close liaison with the planners and the Architect, Lindum was able to obtain a planning approval which contained no pre-commencement conditions. This ensured that the project could commence shortly after the approval was issued.

The £3.6 million building includes a new control room, three classrooms, a board room and staff welfare facilities. It replaces a temporary office building and has allowed GB Railfreight to bring a variety of teams under one roof.

The new building, along with parking spaces and bike stores, took 10 months to construct and was completed despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

During construction, the project team planted a time capsule under the foundations. This included newspapers, project drawings, team photographs and even a CD of current chart hits. The building site was also used by local firefighters, who used the empty, partly demolished buildings for training exercises.