Lakesmere: We've got it covered

Lakesmere designs, installs and maintains wall cladding, standalone roofs and partial or complete building envelopes that incorporate glazing.

The company, which was founded 13 years ago and employs about 180 people spread across four offices in the UK, is currently working on 30 public and private sector projects.

Its most recent completed projects include the National Assembly of Wales, the Liverpool South Parkway Interchange and the Xscape indoor ski dome in Glasgow.

Chris Horsfall, a director at Lakesmere, says the company likes to get involved as early as possible in the specification process. If it doesn’t, architects will already have made up their minds about their vision for the project and want it to work at any costs. It is sometimes easier to deal with contractors than architects, he says, because they’re more open to design changes. “With contractors we have more free rein.”

He prefers to work with a blank piece of paper. “This way, we can optimize the design of the primary structure. It saves costs on the main frame and also eliminates unnecessary future secondary support elements that would otherwise be needed to make cladding fit the architect’s vision.”

Horsfall says the designs that the company has to work on are not generally very detailed. But this suits Lakesmere just fine. “In fact,” he says, “we prefer this to too much detail, which invariably sets the design and doesn’t allow us to use our flair and experience.”

The fit-out specialist has noticed an increasing trend towards sparse designs, a consequence of ever-changing Building Regulations. It has responded to this by acquiring the latest 3D CAD technology tools to help it influence the design.

Horsfall is convinced that this approach can only have a huge benefit for clients and contractors. Employing a loyal supply chain, including the likes of Technal, Schüco and Kingspan, at the earliest stage, is another way to deliver projects for best value, he says.

This is essential on projects that are technically challenging. One was the 2004 refurbishment of the envelope of John Dalton tower at Manchester Metropolitan University, undertaken with Laing O’Rourke. Horsfall explains how the external facade had to be stripped back to a primary concrete frame and all internal walls had to be removed and refitted after cladding.

“We had to design a lattice support frame solution that could span column to column and accept various glazing and cladding systems without loading the floors prior to internal walls being installed,” he says.

“The construction had to be flexible so it could be adapted when final wall positions and acoustic conditions would be advised.”

The company might be ambitious in its approach to work and the scale of projects it’s taking on, but Horsfall warns against unrealistic expectations among work partners. He says: “When setting your goals, whether daily or weekly, always reappraise them and reduce them by half. Most other colleagues will struggle to match your own momentum.”