UK Specification secures Kettering primary school

ASSA ABLOY UK Specification, a UK division of ASSA ABLOY, the global leader in door opening solutions, has delivered accessibility and safety to a Primary School in Kettering, Northamptonshire.

Working with Northamptonshire County Council, local firm pHp Architects and Jeakins Weir contractors collaborated with UK Specification to deliver full-scale redevelopment of St. Andrew’s Church of England Primary School, in Kettering.

The UK Specification team, which is dedicated to working with architects and design-led contractors, specified a range of timber doorsets and architectural ironmongery throughout the building, with the end users’ safety at the forefront of the specification.

David Shields, Specification Development Manager at ASSA ABLOY UK, said: “The challenge in all schools is to prioritise safety and minimise the risk of injury, while providing a comfortable learning and teaching environment for both pupils and staff. Fortunately, we have a wide range of experience when it comes to supplying educational facilities and provide a range of value added services, such as our latest BIM objects to assist in the specification process.

“Our product families for the education sector have been specifically grouped to take into account the factors including the number of cycles, the building life cycle, and maintenance schedules. Together with the use of BIM to deliver this data, which can add value to the whole life cost of the building, we were able to specify a fit-for-purpose, cost-saving and sustainable project.”

Simon Pritchard, an architect at pHp Architects, said: “The doorset specification was part of a complex series of extensions on the property, providing larger classroom space. We were working on a confined site while keeping the school in use during this time, so this proved challenging at times.

“We were very impressed with the finish on the products, and the specification process was smooth and simple, thanks to the team. David was able to suggest products and fill in the gaps in our design. The alternative is to leave the selection to the contractor, which can leave you open to the selection of products of lower quality.\"

Child-safe products included the ASSA finger guards, which act as protective shields to prevent pupils’ fingers from being trapped in closing doors, and ASSA ABLOY DC500 door closers with cam motion technology, enabling doors to be opened easily by young users. The specification also included all associated ironmongery including UNION’s keyULTRA™ 6 pin masterkey system providing the school with complete key control permitting access to authorised personnel only.

Working closely with the building contractors and the end users demonstrated UK Specification’s ability and expertise in being involved in the specification process, ensuring tailored security and access solutions matched the school’s needs.