St Andrews By the wardrobe

Introduction / Scope:

CGA during the pandemic undertaken in a controlled method the refurbishment and upgrade of Mechanical, electrical and life support system to St Andrews by the Wardrobe. The church was first erected by Christopher wren in 1695. The church was bombed and gutted during the London bombings of WW2, with only a portion of the outer walls and the Bell tower remaining. The church was rebuilt during the 1960s to the finish that is there currently. CGA were appointed to take the out of date and dilapidated electrical, life support and mechanical services and modernise all systems within the church. This consisted of constructing new joinery to match the1960s panelling to enclose Fan Coil units for heating. Creating risers from the nave up to the roof void and complexly sympathetically rewire all existing lights and switching within the space.  Part of the works was to utilise existing lighting and undertake modernisation with specialist lighting contractors to a more energy efficient LED lighting and new internal wiring. This allows for retaining the original feel of the church and bringing the lighting up to regulations. Whilst undertaking the works all electrical board locations were stripped out along with any ACMs and replaced with new metered distribution boards throughout the church.

Challenges:

1.       The project as with always in Historical buildings the challenges arise every day. The main challenge was to undertake insulating the roof void to above the nave ceiling.

2.       During the construction period the designer advised that the tender mechanical design was not sufficient for the church due to noise migration to the neighbours and the church Nave.

3.       The building has elements of listed areas due to the original construction on the church. Concealment of new mechanical services FCU was a challenge with running the feeds and pipework.

Solution:

1.       This was undertaken on bespoke made access platforms across the existing roof structure to allow for safe access

2.       CGA and our specialist contractor for the Mechanical services worked with the client initial design to work with them on adaption of the existing design to a more attenuated air source heat hump and attenuated fresh air supply tunnel for the supply through to the extract system

3.       Our specialist joinery company matched all existing profiles and joinery elements and fabricated new enclosures with concealed grilles to allow for maintenance and sensitive introduction of modern services

Material sand components:

1.       Installing a larger roof access hatch covered in copper

2.       Fire alarm and Vesda system

3.       Create new risers through nave to roof areas and cloak in period finish joinery panels

4.       New mechanical system throughout the church to feed fresh air and heating via FCU and ducted system

5.       FCU encased in period joinery encapsulation credenzas with access for maintenance

6.       New ceilings

7.       Roof mounted air source heat pumps and attenuated enclosure

8.       Introduction of new lighting scheme and controls

9.       Strip out of existing working ad replacement with regulation cabling behind existing joinery wall panels

10.    Insulation to above Nave ceiling throughout roof void

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