Tilbury Douglas has been awarded the first contract for the Barbican Centre’s £185m renewal programme to upgrade the building and its infrastructure.
The Barbican Centre’s renewal programme is being brought forward to update the iconic central London theatre, music venue and art space so it meets the needs of 21st century artists, audiences and communities.
Construction News’ sister publication New Civil Engineer reported that the firm will begin work to carry out sensitive and sustainable conservation and retrofit. The programme will repair the Barbican building to ensure it can continue to function long into the future, through an urgent programme of replacement and upgrade of key building systems.
The first phase of works for this contract are worth £22.5m of a total £185m that the whole renewal programme has been estimated to cost. The City of London Corporation stated the award of subsequent phases of works will be subject to funding and contractor performance and that there is no guarantee that subsequent phases will be awarded under this contract.
Further objectives include improving wayfinding and accessibility, delivering new and improved public spaces, and bringing underused spaces into new creative use, without adding any extra development. This includes investing in existing venues and bringing spaces that have laid dormant for years back to life.
The City of London Corporation also wants to make sure it is responding to the climate emergency and putting sustainability at the heart of plans, contributing to the organisation’s net-zero ambitions and investing in environmental improvements that reduce water usage and increase biodiversity across the site.
The contract is expected to last 10 years, although the City of London Corporation reserves a right to extend the contract by up to a further 10 years.
Tilbury Douglas managing director of engineering Ross Mather said: “Our engineering business has been awarded the Barbican Renewal infrastructure project, which continues our long-standing relationship with City of London.”
