Marshall-Tufflex’s Twin165 double compartment trunking system has been used to solve the problem of restricted desk to window height throughout a new £17m academy.
The new North Shore Academy, Stockton, opened its doors to 1,000 pupils in May and, in common with other modern, hi-tech educational establishments, the academy required high levels of power and data supplies delivered to numerous outlets throughout the building, with space for cable management provision at a premium.
Mechanical and electrical contractor Shepherd Engineering Services (SES) ruled out three compartment trunking simply because the desk to window height throughout the building was insufficient to accommodate these larger solutions. The focus then switched to two compartment cable management solutions, as Mark Gibson, of SES, explained, “Having looked at quite a few two compartment systems, Twin165 allowed the most space, permitting approximately 50mm above the desks and 15mm below the window sills, whereas other double compartment dado trunking allowed only 5mm or 6mm. Even where concrete floors can affect the height by 5-10mm, there is no noticeable difference when Twin165 is used. Marshall-Tufflex’s product is also the better current proposition on the market for quality and flexibility within its price band, plus the service has been very good and we have not had any issues with the installation.”
The Marshall-Tufflex solution also scored highly in other respects. “Twin165 has the quality of bends for internal and external flexibility that most similar priced, alternative products with rigid 90° angle corners and joints do not have,” added Gibson, who designed-in Twin165. This followed it being put forward for the design and build project, and later supplied, by electrical wholesaler Newey & Eyre of Gateshead.
As a result, approximately 1,500m of the robust CAT 6 compliant, PVC-U trunking has been installed within virtually every classroom and open plan teaching area of the academy. The facility, built by Carillion Construction and designed by Ryder Architecture, will provide students with the hi-tech facilities that modern, learning environments now demand.
Carillion Construction was also actively involved with the local community from the building project’s conception – the contractor worked with North Shore Academy and Stockton Council in the development of initial drawings, and attended drop-in talks so that pupils, parents and teachers could fully envisage how the new, educational facility would take shape.
