Pasquill partners up with contactor to create the School of the Future

The TRA is always happy to hear from members about their latest projects and service offerings. By sharing your journey, you help foster a vibrant and connected community. Whether it’s a groundbreaking project or a unique solution, we encourage you to share your story with us.

In this article, we hear about Pasquill’s project with Ryearch Ltd on a project in Cornwall. Pasquill partnered with contractors Ryearch Ltd for a project at Brannel School in Cornwall, providing a range of engineered timber components to enable the development of their ‘School of the Future.’

The school had originally been operating above capacity, so to ensure there was ample space for the children, the school had planned to build a brand new £2 million five-classroom teaching block. The additional space would provide an additional 150 places – increasing its capacity to 900 students.

During the implementation phase, the team at Pasquill had to adjust their designs due to varying wall thicknesses on-site and complex junctions with blockwork and steelwork. To address these issues, a site visit was conducted to obtain precise measurements, ensuring the new structural elements would fit correctly while maintaining both functionality and aesthetics.

For the project, Pasquill supplied a range of engineered timber components, including roof trusses and posi-joists, chosen for their cost-effectiveness and flexibility. Additionally, high-grade Glulam Beams were provided to offer a strong and versatile structure for the building.

Design challenges

The project presented several challenges, particularly during the design phase. The complexities ranged from the spans and shape of the building to integrating the roof trusses with the posi rafters. Ensuring that all heights matched the requirements was key for the project.

Chris Spiller, project designer from Pasquill, said, “This was an interesting project to work on. Using multiple products posed several design challenges that had to be addressed.”

The challenges included the roof’s shape, integrating the necessary products, and issues with the building’s steel frame, which impacted the Posi Joists.

With the roof design, some aspects needed alignment. Chris had to overlay the trusses onto the posi rafter design in the design software and back again to ensure the roof line matched. This method was also used to provide the wall plate and support heights for the loose infill rafters, ensuring the roof lines matched the posi’s.

Gareth Lomas, technical support manager from Pasquill, explained, “From my involvement, the challenge was to ensure that our design fit the walls built on-site. This required considering the ideal build and ensuring it corresponded to the existing conditions, which we thankfully managed to achieve.”

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