hyTower® for High-Rise Urban Living – PCE appointed Brent Cross Town Plot 14 superstructure specialist

PCE Ltd are delighted to have been appointed superstructure and facade specialists for the design and build of Brent Cross Town Plot 14.

Working with main contractor Galliford Try on behalf of client Related Argent, Plot 14 will consist of 3 high-rise residential blocks rising to 12 storeys tall, creating 286 Build to Rent apartments. Covering 25,000m2, the Plot 14 development will be delivered using PCE’s hyTower® system build solution. Utilising the principles of HybriDfMA, nearly 4,500 structural components will be pre-engineered by PCE’s design team, prior to being manufactured offsite. PCE will be utilising the expertise of 5 specialist offsite manufacturers across the UK and Europe, with the company’s innovative digital systems ensuring seamless coordination.

Plot 14 forms part of a wider £8bn Brent Cross Town development between Related Argent and Barnet Council.

Why hyTower®?

Designed for speed, scale, and certainty, PCE’s hyTower® build system delivers benefits across construction, commercial, logistics, and sustainability. With up to 80% reduction in man-hours and 50% fewer site deliveries, hyTower® enhances project delivery, cutting construction time by up to 50%.

Construction of Plot 14 is expected to take circa 44 weeks, delivered by a site team of just 23 personnel. The speed of PCE’s onsite assembly is aided by standardised methodologies, the principles of PCE’s ‘smart connectivity’, and the skillset of PCE’s specialist, multidisciplined workforce. But it is also the preparation beforehand that enables rapid installation.  

Long before arrival to site, PCE’s components are diligently designed and subsequently manufactured offsite by specialists across the UK and Europe. Factory-controlled conditions ensure exacting quality standards are met, whilst enabling PCE to achieve a truly comprehensive solution; as components are manufactured offsite, required sub-assemblies are integrated. This includes M&E, services, balustrades, windows, balconies, and façades. 

With integrated facades, hyTower® enables weathertight structures as they are assembled. Further, PCE assemble structures without the need for scaffolding or back-propping; stair cores enable safe access and egress throughout. As such, this enables follow-on trades safe access just two clear levels below the assembly leading edge. This means fit out can happen much sooner, enabling structures to be constructed concurrently, with finishes, and ultimately, be completed and operational far quicker compared to traditional construction methods.

With the size and scale of the Brent Cross Town development, having a build system that takes a significant amount of construction activity offsite, enables the continuation of the wider development whilst alleviating pressures of a busier construction site. With so much activity already ongoing, PCE’s offsite solution reduces risk, is less resource dependent, requires far less deliveries, and provides greater predictability.

The right solution

PCE’s methodical offsite approach ensures the highest standards of quality across project delivery. Working closely with Related Argent, Cast, Galliford Try and their respective teams, diligence throughout the development of Plot 14 has enabled a high level of technical compliance. As such, Plot 14 is a NHBC warranted project, with apartments built to the highest standards.

It is not just quality that is of a high standard. Following the Decarbonising Precast Concrete report and in light of a lessons learned philosophy and a commitment to sustainable construction, PCE has implemented a lower carbon concrete mix in the design and manufacture of its precast components. This mix ensures PCE products for Brent Cross Town Plot 14 can be manufactured in a more environmentally friendly way, whilst maintaining the highest levels of quality and structural integrity. It is a further example of real-world application of the results arising from the decarbonisation assessment for stages A1-A5, enabling clients like Related Argent the means to develop significant structures in a more environmentally friendly manner. Starting this journey with sustainable construction will help write a sustainable story from the routes up.

Collaborative Construction

Flexibility is a key element to the PCE model. The company has worked closely with Related Argent and Cast (cost consultants) to collaboratively develop an optimised solution from Plot 14 that is moulded around specific building and system requirements. This flexible approach ensures projects continue to benefit from the certainty gained through PCE’s pre-determined standardisation and repeatability, whilst enabling the solution to adapt and configure to each project’s unique requirements.