Spectus and Worsley Glass blend into a city's heritage

When the brief for a new development is to blend in with a former listed brewery and lodging house, the result is inevitably going to be something a little above the ordinary and the Sillavan Way development in Salford, Greater Manchester, has lived up to those expectations.

It has also fulfilled the local authority’s aspiration for a landmark feature at the Trinity Way location, which is the main route into the city centre.

With nearly 600 casement windows and more than 100 pairs of French doors in the Spectus Elite 70 bevelled system, the second phase of the project was awarded to Worsley Glass by executive developer Renaker on the strength of the quality and service the Spectus fabricator had delivered on phase one.

The development is made up of four blocks comprising 327 apartments, a central, courtyard garden and retail units. It sits among the three iconic listed buildings, which are now a mixture of commercial, residential and professional uses but remain a distinctive feature of the city’s industrial heritage, and all in the red brick which characterises much of historic Greater Manchester.

To complement the brick of both the new and old buildings, RAL 7016 anthracite was chosen for the exterior of the frames, with white inside. With the tallest block rising to 17 storeys, weather tightness was integral to the specification, especially on the upper floors. Acoustic glass was also used on some elevations. The windows and doors achieve a U-value of 1.2.

Anthony Kilbourn of Worsley Glass said: “The success of phase one was an invaluable foot in the door for Worsley. It proves how important each and every job is, and why it’s crucial that we deliver time after time. There’s no doubt the quality and performance of our product played a big part in us securing the second phase. Spectus supported us every step of the way, advising on technical details and supplying coloured profile on-time and in-full.”

As further testament to the Work of Worsley Glass and the Spectus system, the fabricator was appointed supply chain partner for a subsequent Renaker development of almost 500 apartments.