Fulton & Fifth – manufacturing with hyTower®
Use of PCE’s hyTower ® solution ensures precision, quality, and scale for the manufacturing of Fulton & Fifth
Fulton and Fifth is an exciting five tower mixed-use development led by property developer, Regal London. In continuation of its successful relationship, Regal London have once again appointed PCE Ltd as the specialist design and build superstructure and façade contractor.
The development comprises five towers, standing between 17 to 28 storeys tall. Alongside 876 residential units, it will introduce retail, leisure, recreational, and light industrial spaces to Wembley, one of the fastest growing parts of London.
hyTower® - A Predictable System of Speed, Scale, and Simplicity
To ensure a fast, controlled, and predictable design and build solution, PCE’s innovative hyTower® system build is being used to deliver the project. hyTower® is an offsite hybrid DfMA (Design for Manufacture and Assembly) system build solution for the design, manufacture, and installation of residential, commercial, and mixed-use multistorey superstructures and façades. Use of the system elevates planning, predictability, and control through use of standardisation and repeatability. This is key for any project, especially such large-scale projects which bring higher levels of complexity.
As with all PCE HybriDfMA systems, hyTower® uses an offsite DfMA model. Components are diligently designed within the hyTower® system, created as a ‘Kit of Parts’. This is a series of standardised components that interface seamlessly and reliably through PCE’s proven ‘smart connectivity’. They are then assembled onsite quickly and safely using standardised methodologies. For Fulton and Fifth, the Kit of Parts for each level consist of a hybrid of reinforced concrete and steel components. This includes twin walls, hollowcore, steel composite beams, sandwich panels, steel square section beams, and stair and landing units. Over 10,000 components will be manufactured for Fulton and Fifth, totalling over 50,000 tonnes. The standardisation and commonality of hyTower’s ® Kit of Parts ensures greater control and reduced ambiguity across manufacturing. When the same set of components are repeated, and the same processes are repeated to create these components, it lessens complexity through increasing consistency.
Controlled, Coordinated, and Comprehensive Manufacturing
Getting the detail right through design and manufacture ensures more effective and efficient installation. It is why rigorous planning and quality control has gone into the manufacture phase for Fulton & Fifth, which is now in full flow.
With PCE’s adaptable and flexible supply chain model, 7 specialist offsite manufacturers from across the UK and Europe have been selected from its supply chain. Each supplier has been carefully selected based on the qualities each brings to Fulton & Fifth specifically, based on required structural integrity, embodied carbon, and required performance characteristics. From there, PCE met with Regal, project architects Ryder, and members of the designated supply chain. This allowed all parties to define and agree the required component quality standards, aesthetics, and tolerances, setting the benchmark standard for all subsequent manufacturing.
Across Fulton and Fifth’s supply chain, PCE Precast Coordinators, or quality controllers, are stationed at the factories that are manufacturing the project’s components. This helps monitor and support manufacturing, ensuring coordination and control throughout. Use of cutting-edge automation and robotics across production elevates precision, whilst minimising waste and maximising efficiency. This ensures PCE products are consistently manufactured at scale to the highest standards.
To ensure a quick and comprehensive structural solution, structural components have required integrations added as they are manufactured offsite. This includes the consolidation of façades, balconies, windows, M&E, and utility integrations. Not only does this ensures that any required integrations are completed offsite under highly controlled circumstances, it also means that components are delivered to site in their final form. This enables weathertight structures as they are assembled.
Digital Delivery
Once manufactured, the logistics behind the delivery of components to site is aided by cutting-edge digital technology. PCE’s use of Ynomia, an intelligent digital asset tracking and insight system, elevates accuracy and insight throughout all phases of project delivery. With each model replicated in an interactive 3D digital twin, it provides real-time status tracking of all components. The transparency and visibility achieved through use of Ynomia enables a much more accurate, easy to coordinate just-in-time strategy. For even greater control, stock levels of components are maintained at each supplier.
Fulton and Fifth is a large scale project. It demonstrates the benefits of PCE’s hyTower® solution, which removes complexity and adds certainty whilst achieving a high-quality solution at speed and scale.
