All Weather Halls are transformed into construction training centre

De Boer has used a series of All Weather Halls to create a huge training venue in east London that will help thousands of people become highly skilled construction workers.

Vast working space
The facility, which has been built in Leyton for Waltham Forest Council, has created a vast working space totalling more than 2,200 square metres – equivalent in size to 11 tennis courts – and offering internal heights of up to 12 metres.

Safe, secure environment
It means that would-be construction workers can learn skills such as roofing, paving, steel fixing and kerb laying in a safe, secure environment. The height of the structure means trainee scaffolders will even be able to work at heights equivalent to a three-storey building while still being safely under cover.

All Weather Halls
De Boer, which is a leading provider of temporary structures and semi-permanent accommodation, created the space by joining together three of its versatile All Weather Halls. The company also provided add-on services and facilities such as cladding, roller-shutter doors, guttering and personnel doors before handing the facility to client Bouygues UK, a construction specialist acting on behalf of the council.

Huge training facility
The huge training halls now form part of the new East London Waltham Forest campus of the UK’s National Construction College. With the backing of organisations including the National Skills Academy for Construction, the facility is likely to help in the training of as many as 160 apprentices and 1,000 adult trainees a year. It is expected to provide skilled personnel for major building projects such as Crossrail and the ongoing redevelopment of London’s Canary Wharf.

Translucent roof sails
Robert Alvarez, De Boer’s Sales Director – Commercial, said: “With an internal height of 12 metres at the eaves, these are among the tallest structures erected by De Boer. As well as offering space and flexibility, the training venue also incorporates other innovative features, such as translucent roof sails which maximise natural daylight and therefore make lighting the building more economical and environmentally friendly.”

Building materials storage
Using teams of up to ten people a day, De Boer completed the build process within eight weeks before handing the facility to Bouygues UK. Two of the All Weather Halls – measuring 28m by 32m and 28m by 40m – have become training halls while the third structure, measuring 28m by 10m, is used to store the building materials required by trainees.

Modular structure
Following the hand-over of De Boer’s facility, the client has wrapped a two-storey modular building around three sides of the smaller training hall to form additional office and classroom space. The official opening of the premises took place on Wednesday January 26.

Steel-framed halls
The project has also demonstrated the incredible versatility of De Boer’s steel-framed All Weather Hall, which has previously been put to uses as diverse as warehousing, minerals storage, sporting arenas and a theatre. The company even supplied one of the structures as a hangar for a British Airways Concorde on display to the public at Manchester Airport.

Construction trainees
Robert Alvarez added: “De Boer’s facility is due to play an important part in training the UK’s construction workers of the future. Students will be able to take their learning beyond the classroom, putting their theory into practice in a huge, safe working environment.”