Sapphire’s design and logistics expertise is expertly combined in balconies for Garrett Mansions, the first phase of West End Gate in Marylebone, West London. Sapphire designed, manufactured and supplied 40 balconies for the luxury development. A particular feature of this phase is outdoor space, with each apartment boasting a balcony beautifully appointed with glamorous uplights and sleek aluminium balustrades for the ultimate ‘wow’ factor.
The project’s principal challenge was the level of detail in the design, including the uplights set into the decking, vents, and GRC (Glass Fibre Reinforced Concrete) columns which had to interface with the balcony design. This demanded exceptional attention to detail as there was very little tolerance for error. Furthermore, the non-standard 50 x 12 mm bar balustrades required more bespoke changes. Installing two different sizes of balcony on a busy site also meant that Sapphire had to deliver precision logistics as well as design.
Sapphire manufactured the balconies offsite to rigorous standards, ensuring that both sizes interfaced exactly with the GRC columns. This included producing contrasting non-metallic soffits and metallic fascia and installing high-end decking. Sapphire’s ability to manufacture all parts offsite was integral to the smooth running of the project as given the busy location there was no storage space on site.
The two balcony types for West End Gate were produced using Sapphire’s Glide-OnTM aluminium Cassette® system. Cassettes® were preassembled offsite, including balustrades, decking and soffits, and transported to site with balconies ‘nested’ onto each pallet and pre-slung offsite ready for installation. Cassettes® simply Glide-OnTM to the pre-erected support arms, before completing the simple mechanical fixings. Using this innovative solution from Sapphire meant that once on location the balconies took just three days to install, ensuring minimal disruption to the rest of the build team.
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