Bróga House

Bróga House’s student accommodation is wrapped around two internal courtyards whilst integrating a protected structure: The Lee Boot Manufacturing Company building. The building’s elevations are composed of brick with stone detailing and they are broken into terraces to respond to the scale of the context. In total, 100,000 bricks and 750,000kg steel reinforcement-in-concrete were used in the complex’s construction, a seamless blend of old and new building elements that delivered outstanding student accommodation for generations to come.

On account of its excellent relationship with contractor John Paul Construction, IG Masonry Support was appointed to supply a masonry support package for three levels of the 17.9-metre high Bróga House building.

The biggest challenge for IG Masonry Support was designing its units around a large number of stone sills. With a 215mm depth and at 215m in height, the sills were installed at each building level. This added to the structure’s complex nature and required the presence of double leaf brickwork in certain building areas.

Each non-standard masonry support unit needed a bespoke design that fixed back to the reinforced concrete structure. Standard Welded Masonry Support, Inverted Welded Masonry Support, Dropper Welded Masonry Support and Folded Angle Masonry Support featured throughout the build. To add to IG Masonry Support’s technical challenges, bespoke Folded Angle Corner Systems were also required for corners of the building to accommodate high loads in these areas.

In order to fulfil its remit for a large-scale building project involving a huge array of masonry support units varying in type, IG Masonry Support held multiple design meetings. This ensured complex details were interpreted correctly, resulting in its units precisely complementing other suppliers’ materials without clashes. The thorough and detailed pre-project planning also helped to provide cost certainty from the programme’s outset for the client.

As an example of how IG Masonry Support countered its numerous design challenges, where stone sills featured within the building, the company supplied dowels with its masonry support systems. These were used to attach the masonry support to the sill, thereby providing additional load support.

Stainless-steel standard lintels were also required for each window head. As part of a non-standard practice that was required in high load areas of the building, the lintels were fixed to IG Masonry Support systems.

Being familiar with IG Masonry Support products meant John Paul Construction was fully aware of their benefits in relation to largescale building projects. Quick and simple to install, excellent onsite adjustability, extra strength to support extreme loads and cost certainty from the project’s outset; there was never any doubt that IG Masonry Support units were a made-to-measure solution, for the hugely inspiring Broga House residential programme.