We have a long-standing relationship with VCEP Ltd, having worked with them for many years. When they acquired a site with existing buildings on Gelderd Road in Leeds (a major commercial hub on the outskirts of the city), they appointed us to help develop it into a multi-purpose industrial space, creating speculative units suitable for a variety of businesses.
The brief was to create a site that would be commercially attractive to a wide variety of businesses, from SMEs to national brands. Because of the diverse nature of prospective occupiers, these needed to be flexible spaces that could then be fit-out for each tenant for their business use, including retail, warehouses, offices etc.
This versatility of purpose was a key factor in securing planning permission, with the opportunity for a greater range of employment uses cited in the planning officer’s report (the site formerly being home to a single large business that had ceased trading in 2017). Our initial plans included demolishing an existing building, sub-dividing existing units, re-cladding existing units, building new structures, and creating yard space.
This is a long-term ongoing project, which started in 2018 and will continue to be developed and expanded for several years. Phase 1 is now complete and fully let, including businesses such as SM-UK. The total area of buildings developed so far (early 2024) is 9,189.5 m² (98,914.95 ft²). Works have now started on phase 2 and this is expected to be completed by mid-2024. The entire development will have spanned 10 years by the time it is completed.
Accreditations: BSc (Hons) Architectural Technology, MCIAT, CSCS – Professionally Qualified Person
Skills: Autodesk CAD, Autodesk Revit / BIM, Contract Administration, Project Management, Principal Designer, Lumion / Twinmotion, SketchUp, Drone Operator and CAA licence holder
About Joe
As Associate, Joe is Tony’s right-hand man, playing an integral role in running the business and leading the team. Joe focuses predominantly on commercial and industrial clients and is a skilled project manager. Starting his career with Farrar Bamforth in 2010, he briefly went over to the dark side (Leeds) in 2015 but returned to the FBA fold in 2017 to take up a senior management role (and also because we’re awesome!). He introduced BIM and Revit to Farrar Bamforth and is the driving force behind our continued compliance and best practice in this area. His favourite project to date was the Magic Rock Brewery and Bar, in equal parts due to the creativity of the project and his love of beer.
And finally…
A lathering of high-end butter, Lurpak, is all Joe needs on his toast. Joe is a Civil Aviation Authority license holder and drone operator and, when he’s not working, enjoys following Huddersfield Town Football Club, music, travel, and time with the family.
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A feasibility study allows you to comprehensively evaluate the viability of an architectural project before committing significant investments to it. Viability is assessed from architectural, financial, and environmental perspectives. As well as the functional aspects of the build, it also includes some preliminary designs, allowing you to start visualising the outcome. The process could include a pre-application submission to the planning department for their opinion prior to a formal application. Conducting a detailed feasibility study protects you against the, often costly, ‘surprises’ that can come from not anticipating and taking steps to avoid the pitfalls that come from not being suitably prepared.
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Applying for and gaining the appropriate planning permission is a vital element of the architectural process; without it, you can’t proceed. Planning policy can be complex and, if not navigated correctly, can be time consuming and, sometimes, unsuccessful. We know planning. We understand the policies and the application requirements; in fact, we have a track history of securing planning permission on complex sites that initially seemed problematic.
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Building regulations are simultaneously the rules that keep us safe and the requirements that give architects and builders headaches as they strive for compliance with ever-evolving specifications. Not a problem for us though, as several members of the team live for the minutiae and details of regulations, and standards so we’re all over them. That not only means that your development complies with (and often, exceeds) building regs but that we also know the strategies for working with regulations in ways that don’t compromise creativity, function, or budgets.
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There are multiple trades, suppliers, contractors, and consultants involved in any build. Sourcing the right ones is a central component of the process and doing that needs to be fair, transparent, and objective-driven. We can conduct tendering to ensure that each job gets the right providers in place to deliver on the scheme we’ve created.
×If you love commercial development, why not take a look at the showroom completed for VW Van Centre, where we converted two existing buildings and added a new link structure to create one cohesive space.
Why not contact Joe on 01484 424008 or joe@farrarbamforth.co.uk or anyone else on the team to discuss what we can do for you.
