Newbury Racecourse?
Blog update
After all the rain we’ve had recently the going was good to soft as the Blogging Team made their first visit to our Royal Box project at Newbury Racecourse!
This exciting project will see us refurbish the existing Royal Boxes (which are now nearly 120 years old) consisting of the social room and dining room and also add an extension to house a new lift and lobby. We will also refurbish the kitchens and nearby public toilets and rebuild the broadcasting gantry on the roof of the 6 story Berkshire Stand.
Although straightforward from the outside this is actually a very complex project. The first hurdle is to demolish the remaining structure of the 1950’s building that was constructed around and above the royal boxes. The building used load transfer steel beams shrouded in concrete as a means of support. Each of these beams weighs an incredible 18.8 tonnes with the concrete in place, and 6.8 tonnes once the concrete is removed.
Over the coming weeks the concrete will be removed and a crane will lift the beams to the ground. This will allow the external works to begin in earnest.
Internally the strip out of the old floors, walls and kitchens has begun. Items of historical interest that will be preserved and re-used in the Royal Box have been stored or covered to be reinstated once the decorations are complete.
