Concrete experts on the ball with £300,000 sports stadium contract

A Northern Ireland company has risen to a six-week challenge to design, manufacture and deliver specialist terracing and walls for a new football stadium being built for Morecambe Football Club.

The project is worth £300,000 for Acheson & Glover and the contract is one of 12 recent terracing projects, ranging from sports stadiums to racecourses and cinema complexes across the UK.

Project Manager Stephen Bunting said the Morecambe contract represented one of the largest terracing jobs in sports stadia in England currently under construction and involved the delivery of Acheson & Glover terrace units, wallings and step units to provide access throughout the stadium arena.

The stadium which is located at Westgate, is designed to accommodate around 7,800 people in total.

Stephen said that working to a tight schedule to ensure the new stadium would be ready for the 2010/11 season, the team had only six weeks for preparation, from the placing of the order to delivery at the site. “Our back was to the wall, but we came through, with the design, detail, approval, manufacture and delivery within the six weeks’ time frame,” he said.

The Morecambe contract was one of several terracing contracts won by Acheson & Glover recently, with the company also contracted to supply terracing and platform units at the home of Ulster Rugby, the Ravenhill Stand in Belfast.

The overall cost of the Ravenhill stand is estimated to be around £4.5m, with the Acheson & Glover contract worth £100,000. The company provided precast terracing and seating units and precast flooring.

Other recent terracing projects also completed include Corby Swimming Pool in Northamptonshire, New Livestock Mart in Stirling, the hospitality building at Ffos Las Racecourse, Wales and in Northern Ireland, Downpatrick Cineplex, Donegal Celtic FC, Belfast; Knockbreda Football Club and Ballinamallard FC.