Background
Cardiff Councils Venues Management Group tasked Seddon with undertaking an external refurbishment of The New Theatre prior to its centenary celebrations in December 2006.
The theatre, a Grade 2 listed building made of brick and bath stone, remained fully operational during the project, presenting a real challenge to Seddon in terms of completing the project on time and within budget.
Project
Seddon were briefed to carry out re-roofing, pre-paint repairs and the complete external redecoration to the New Theatre. The project comprised a major refurbishment and restoration challenge given the occupancy requirements and tight client timescale.
The building was completely powerwashed and the bath stone was cleaned and repaired. This involved treating the stone with chemicals to remove years of built up dirt and grime, taking the brickwork back to its sandstone appearance. To avoid causing inconvenience to the public, Seddon carried out the powerwashing and stone cleaning on Sundays. This took 5 weeks to complete.
All woodwork was completely stripped, with the Seddon team completed pre-paint repairs before starting on the redecoration. The team used tiles made of Welsh slate on the roof, and 32 windows and doors were replaced.
The original building had seamed gutters, which caused problems due to leakage at the joints. This in turn led to the masonry becoming mouldy and looking very unsightly. Seddons solution was to provide seamless gutters as specified by the client bespoke guttering created on-site, with no breaks.
The Seddon team faced many challenges, including the location of the theatre it sits next to two very busy city centre roads, which meant that vehicle parking and deliveries were not easy, Health & Safety issues including traffic management were managed effectively
In addition the theatre remained open throughout the work, with matinees and evening performances continuing as normal. This meant that much work had to be undertaken in complete silence when rehearsals or performances were taking place.
Extreme weather conditions in November also meant that the team had to battle the elements to continue working. Despite these challenges, the project was completed in six months, and on time.
The team used Johnstones paints including Stormshield masonry, undercoat and gloss. These are guaranteed for 10-15 years.
The project won Highly Commended in the Painting and Decorating Association Awards, run by Britain's largest trade body dedicated to the painting and decorating trade. Members are committed to the highest standards in health and safety practice, as well as training development.
Endorsement
Seddon carried out the work with minimum disruption to the theatre staff, public, theatre patrons and show performances, and they kept lines of communication open with us as the project progressed.