Catnic Arch Lintels key for Congleton

For a new luxury development in Forge Lane, Congleton, property developer Keyworker Homes required a comprehensive range of high-quality and bespoke lintels. As such, Catnic is creating specially made heavy duty and arch lintels for use in the construction of the 25 unique properties. In addition, the manufacturer of steel construction products is providing specialist design expertise and technical support - and will continue to do so throughout the project’s two-year delivery programme.

Work began on the £11 million Forge Lane development in November 2015. Over the course of two years, 10 plots consisting of 3-bedroom town houses and 4-5 bedroom luxury detached houses, designed by Trinity Architecture, will be created to complement the idyllic countryside landscape. The development is scheduled for completion in Q4 of 2017, with Phase One currently underway.

Keyworker Homes specialises in sustainable construction and has a proven track record for delivering small-scale housing developments, right through to large multi-use occupier schemes. When it came to sourcing high-quality steel solutions for Forge Lane, the developer turned to Catnic due to the company’s design expertise, ability to provide an indemnified schedule and ensure a quick turnaround on all its bespoke lintels.

“Catnic worked with our drawings and outlined exactly what we needed - including the structural loading measurements,” said Mike Parkinson, Construction Manager at Keyworker Homes. “Catnic is the only manufacturer that provides such a comprehensive scheduling service for free. It really is invaluable, as it provides in one document all the details we need - avoiding complications on-site and guaranteeing structural accuracy. This, along with the technical coordination of its bespoke lintels, quick turn-around of CAD drawings and spot-on estimating service is playing an integral role in keeping the project running to its build programme.”

Catnic is providing an extensive range of its Cavity Wall Open Back Lintels, which are resistant to impact, abrasion and damage and also encompass continuous CFC and HCFC free insulation, leaving no room for potential ‘cold spots’ and offers an excellent thermal performance. In a number of plots, Catnic also created bespoke heavy duty mitred lintels, which were supplied in three sections and bolted together on-site for reinforced structural support.

As the houses required an unconventional support solution due to their unique design, Catnic is supplying a range of bespoke semi-circular arch lintels for porch arches, as well as Lintel Arch Centres for use over openings in external cavity walls. This allowed for the easy erection of segmental arches and provided a permanent centring for brick arch construction. The bespoke arch lintels offer considerable flexibility for feature brickwork, with clear spans ranging from 600mm to 1200mm.

Paul Anderton, Managing Director at Trinity Architects commented: “The landscape was originally a rural Cheshire lane so the council wanted the houses to reflect the character of rural Cheshire houses. As part of the overall design, properties include arch windows and we therefore needed to work with a specialist partner for bespoke lintels. Catnic has provided a high level of support for our clients Keyworker Homes. Crucial to the process has been the supply of extensive detail drawings of all lintels and schedules for us to check.”