The Royal Opera House

The Royal Opera House

by | Jan 26, 2022 | Metalworks, Portfolio

Location: Covent Garden, London (circa. 2017)
Design Brief: Entrance and Foyer Metalwork
CAD System: AutoCad

I’ve loved the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden since my wife and I visited in 2007 to watch ‘Swan Lake’ on the day of our engagement. I was further delighted to be involved in the renovation of such an iconic space 10 years later.

The team I was part of were responsible for the new steel structure, as well as the lobby metalworks design package. I was responsible for taking the metalworks details that the architect had specified and liaising with our on-site team to provide a suitable fabrication package.

During this time I became further acquainted with glass balustrades, on this occasion it was the curved  balustrade at mezzanine level overlooking the open space of the ‘Linbury Theatre’ entrance.

In the Foyer I was responsible for the wall rails, the accessible ramp, all the glass infill and substructures. As well as the standalone handrails throughout. With the advice and support of our design director I was able to help deliver a quality result for our client.

More often than not designers don’t get to run their hands and eyes over work they have had a hand in getting to the workshop floor. I am happy to have the pleasure of both everytime I walk into this beautiful space.

Spirit of Cornwall – Chelsea Flower Show

Spirit of Cornwall – Chelsea Flower Show

by | Jan 26, 2022 | Metalworks, Portfolio

Location: Chelsea Flower Show, London (circa. 2018)
Design Brief: Spirit of Cornwall Exhibition
CAD System: AutoCad Advance Steel

I was presented with a unique opportunity to be sole designer of the metalworks for the Spirit of Cornwall exhibit at the 2017 Chelsea Flower Show.

The main structure was supported by a flat bar lattice frame on either side, together with walkway sections and fence panels, of the same theme.

The way that it had been visually designed by the architect, whatever fixing methods we used needed to be flush and near invisible to the eye. We couldn’t have any protruding bolt heads or threads which presented a challenge of how it should all be bolted together. Not only that, the exhibit needed to be deconstructed into multiple sections.

The solution was that the spacer tubes that run between the flat bar structure should be internally threaded and we would use a combination of countersunk bolts and threaded studs.

By strategically placing the tube spacers, we were able to form a structure that was demountable and moved to its permanent home in Cornwall after the show had ended.

During fabrication, the dish itself had to be spun by a specialist metalworks company, and when we received it, at first measure, it appeared to be within specs. But once the fabricator started putting all the pieces together things just weren’t matching up.

With the fabricator at a loss for what was wrong I had to go out into the workshop and figure out what was going on for myself. As it turned out that although the overall diameter of the dome was correct they had actually spun it to the wrong radius this meant that it was about 100mm too deep at the apex.

After some recalculating we came up with a method for joining all that back together without compromising the overall scheme of the dome piece.

There were a couple of interesting features incorporated into the design. The outlet for the waterfall needed to be precisely level, so I designed a tilting outlet.

Once the structure was installed and water was introduced into the feature whoever was installing had the ability to fine tune the water pour without needing to re-level the entire structure.

There was also the fear of the waterproofing of the feature leaking inside the dome. With all the shifting around it was a real concern.

We had to have a lifting eye in the centre of the dome whilst at the workshop to be able to lift and manoeuvre the structure during fabrication. My suggestion was to permanently weld the nut on the inside of the dome and to make a removable plug that could be periodically removed incase of water ingress.

Both are simple solutions that make a difference to the end product installation and future maintenance.

Kidbrooke Village

Kidbrooke Village

by | Jan 26, 2022 | Metalworks, Portfolio

Location: Kidbrooke, London (circa. 2019)
Design Brief: Phase 3 / Block D Metalwork Package
CAD System: AutoCad Advance Steel

Kidbrooke is part of a broader residential redevelopment strategy undertaken by Berkeley Construction in South East London. For the Third Phase Block D section of this project I was tasked as the lead metalwork designer and with further design coordination.



The redevelopment comprised five main residential buildings of varying height which share a communal green space on a raised podium. At street level there are a number of generous retail spaces. 

My role was to fully expand design on the balustrades at the podium level (metal and glass); the main entrances to apartment blocks; retail space canopies; car park and BoH metalworks including the automated gates as well as any other miscellaneous metal works that could fall under our scope of works as the project progressed. Simultaneously ensuring the design was harmonious within this project and previous phases.

The Substation doors were easily one of the biggest design challenges. The subcontractor responsible for substation louvre doors wasn’t able to manufacture the doors or the system because it was just too big, the structure was way outside the scope of what any louvre company could provide.

The door needed to be robust and secure (SR2), but like any other substation it needed to facilitate removal of the UKPN transformers for maintenance. To solve this issue I proposed incorporating a hybrid approach.

The main structure would be adapted to normally be bolt fixed in it’s closed position with louvre panels set into the frame work. During maintenance they could unbolt the doors around the perimeter and they would swing open through 180 degrees to allow unimpeded access to the substation.

By incorporating hidden proprietary hinges arranged in a unique way, meant that all areas were able to meet strict ‘secure by design’ criteria whilst also meeting the UKPN maintenance requirements. A clear win for everyone.