Cadent Gas, Coventry – Bespoke Gullwing Shelter

Cadent Gas, Coventry

The largest natural gas distribution network in the United Kingdom, Cadent Gas is the supplier of choice for 11 million homes and businesses across the Midlands and the North of England.

The company has recently relocated to a brand-new sustainability focused headquarters in Coventry’s Antsy Park, with the building attaining a ‘very good’ BREEAM status.

Providing a positive work-life balance for staff members was a core tenet of their design ethos, with the four floor 100,000 square foot office space being equipped with a state-of-the-art gymnasium, restaurant, and leisure areas.

With employee well-being and environmentally friendly building practices at the heart of this project, our team was recruited to deliver a bespoke product to enable and incentivise staff members to cycle to work.

The solution

Cadent Gas’s new headquarters is home to a team of 1,000 employees and we were therefore tasked with designing and installing a bespoke, carbon positive 100 Space Bespoke Gullwing Canopy.

Galvanised Sheffield stands were chosen to provide a hassle-free and secure locking option for bikes, designed to accommodate a bike either side of each stand.

State of the art solar panels were installed onto the roof as part of the scheme’s drive towards renewable energy sources, with The Bike Storage Company working alongside other key contractors to deliver the scheme under a very tight completion window.

With a wide cantilevered roofline, it was imperative that the roof was put to the test by our in-house structural engineer, designing a heavy-duty purlin arrangement to ensure full support under snow-loading and additional weight of the solar panels.

A clever central guttering system ensured a neat, efficient discharge of rainwater from the roofline, with several strategically positioned outlets placed along the length of the canopy.

The unit’s base plates were designed to be fixed below ground level, to eliminate any potential trip hazard and to create a far cleaner look than when left exposed. A jet black powder coating of RAL 9005 was chosen to deliver a striking visual contrast to the surrounding sandstone block paving.

As Cadent Gas continues to proactively decarbonise its operations, it was great to play a supporting role in their strategic shift by delivering a sustainably orientated canopy that could incentivise cycle-to-work opportunities for their staff.

Product specification