Photograph by Morley von Sternberg
Five years in the making, the Shard is another triumph for the industry. Elaine Knutt reports
As London prepares for an Olympic summer in the world’s spotlight, the Shard will be a dramatic new reference point on the skyline. Externally complete although still undergoing fit-out, the 310m, 80-storey landmark has taken shape in 38 months, arriving on budget, on schedule and with a final flourish — a light show last week to mark a dedication ceremony by its Qatari funders.
Its architecture isn’t universally admired, with claims that its striking silhouette looks aggressive from a distance and lacks finesse up close. But whether they’re signed-up Facebook fans, detractors or just interested London onlookers, people are definitely talking about the Shard.
Meeting Gareth Lewis MCIOB, chief operating officer for construction at Mace, and Flan McNamara, construction director at developer Sellar Properties, it’s clear that they also want people to be talking about the Shard’s construction achievements.
“The Shard and the Olympics are right up there as evidence of what the UK construction industry can do, from a safety and quality point of view,” says McNamara, formerly of Schal. “It’s not just about Sellar and Mace, it’s great for everyone involved [in the supply chain] and for the whole industry.”
The Shard certainly chalked up a number of visible construction innovations: the time-saving method whereby the core went up as the basement excavation went down; the crane perched on top of the rising concrete core; and the cantilevered cranes jutting out from the structure. Then there was the bespoke inclined red hoist from Alimak Hek, a magnet for tourists’ cameras.
Away from the public eye, there was the wall-climbing “jump lift” for transporting workers and materials to the workface, and the offsite fabrication of 85% of its M&E systems.
And let’s not forget the safety record: “The Olympics is quoted as the safest construction project ever done, but the Shard is very close to that,” says McNamara. “We brought new health and safety procedures into high-rise working, and concentrated on driving safety by design. The standards of welfare and facilities on site were also high,” adds Lewis.
Nearing the end of the project, the duo are conscious that they’re close to pulling off that rare event in construction — a good news story. While there have been reports the Shard is behind schedule, their retort is “which schedule?”, as the programme has flexed to accommodate extra work not envisaged at the outset. Mace hands over in early July, and practical completion is expected in September.
“Because we’re the biggest project on the go in London, with a very high profile as well as being a high building, there were a lot of people waiting for something to go wrong. But the last few years have been great for us,” says McNamara.
Built through the recession — thanks to a refinancing post-credit crunch by new Qatari backers — the Shard became a visible reminder that London’s property and construction industries still had life in them. McNamara says the effects were more than symbolic: “In a time where there hasn’t been a lot of work, the Shard will have sustained a lot of sub-contractors at a decent price.”
Packages went out to tender in 2007/08 when Mace was acting as construction manager. But after a hiatus for refinancing, Mace was re-appointed on a JCT fixed price contract in early 2009, at a point when the larger contracts had been placed and there was 70% price fixity. As for the remaining 30%, McNamara acknowledges that “the market has helped, we haven’t had as much inflationary pressure as we might have had”. Mace and Sellar are now agreeing final accounts with major subcontractors, such as Severfield-Rowen and Byrne Bros.
So what are the secrets of its success? McNamara stresses the benefits of close contractor/client collaboration. “These big jobs are so easy to get lost in politics, but instead of having an argument, we just found a solution and moved on.”
Lewis points to achieving a happy medium between fixed processes and personal autonomy. “A lot of it is not having too much process laid down, so people don’t feel too stifled.”
On a project that took five years in total, they both highlight the need to refresh the team from time to time, so that the project benefits from as many different skillsets and ideas as possible.
Closing out the contracts, Lewis and McNamara are looking back at their achievement as well as ahead to practical completion. “The City is now extending to Southwark, so the Shard is starting to bring the north and south together,” says McNamara. “Everyone is proud to have worked on it, it will define a new London.”
Scaling the heights
Climbing the stairs to the summit of the Shard, the overwhelming impression is how London’s familiar landmarks have shrunk. St Paul’s Cathedral, the Houses of Parliament, the South Bank and the city’s other landmarks are all laid out like Lego London.
“You spot something new every day — the Oval, Arsenal, Wembley,” says Mace construction director Peter Savoy, possibly revealing himself as a sports fan. “It just goes on and on.”
The views will also be available to the public, who can buy a ticket to the viewing gallery on the 68th floor, eat at the restaurants on floors 31-33, or stay at the Shangri-La Hotel on floors 34 to 52. “It will be publicly accessible, and I think that will help people’s perceptions of the building,” says McNamara.
Apart from these public uses, the Shard contains 25 storeys of offices, and 12 floors of apartments including three duplexes. Finally, the top eight floors form the building’s spire, encased by eight jagged “shards” of cladding that leave it partially exposed to the elements. The steelwork for the spire section was largely built offsite then assembled by a lightweight spider crane positioned on top of the building. This was followed by the glazing panels, installed by a team of abseilers.
“Building the spire sections offsite meant we could build it in 100 crane lifts instead of 800,” says Savoy. “We learned a lot about how to work safely at height — all the method statements were reviewed and picked to bits before we started work. We’re now putting a document together [for use on future projects],” he adds.
