Normandy House, Basingstoke
Conversion of a 1980s office block into 114 open-plan apartments, set over two linked blocks.
Residential
< £10 Million
Interior Fit-Out
Completed
Client & brief
The Shaviram Group transforms both residential and commercial properties into state-of-the-art, high-quality homes, and prides itself on building exceptional places for people to live and enjoy.
The client took on a 1980s office block in Basingstoke town centre next to the train station, with a view to repurposing the building into 114 new residential apartments. DRG was commissioned as the main contractor and started work in April 2021.
DRG Interior and Building Solutions went above and beyond our expectations, showcasing exceptional professionalism and outstanding leadership. Their transformative work has turned the space into modern, functional living areas. We wholeheartedly recommend their services!
What can DRG do for you?
By choosing us, you can be safe in the knowledge that your construction or refurbishment project will be delivered to the highest standard, with low environmental impact.
Whether you are looking for a main contractor for general works or major works, we deliver on time and on budget. Working collaboratively with our clients, we create a built environment that helps communities live, work and grow stronger.
The DRG solution
Set over 2 linked blocks of 6 floors and 8 floors respectively – with both blocks served by a common central core – the project comprised a full strip-out and refurbishment of the structure itself, before reconfiguring the internal space.
Following the strip-out, partition walls and new doors were installed throughout to create individual apartments. Each apartment was completed to turnkey standard, with high-specification kitchens and bathrooms and performance flooring throughout. Externally, the refurbishment included new aluminium windows to all elevations, the installation of new lifts and new polymeric insulated roofs for both blocks. The premises also include a multi-storey car park, which has been retained and made good to serve as a residents’ car park, with the addition of bike racks.
In addition, we have recently introduced the EACIE (Evacuation Alert Control & Indication Equipment) warning system into our projects, as appropriate, to help improve fire safety – with Normandy House being our first project to see the system implemented. It is similar to a fire alarm, where an alarm sounds, but with the additional function of alerting people inside the building that it is time to evacuate. The alarm can be controlled to create an alert floor by floor, instead of alerting the entire building at once, allowing for controlled evacuations. Each apartment will have an alarm and speaker above their front door, with the master control panel next to the main entrance doors into the building, which the Fire Brigade can access in the event of a fire.
Key features
- Complete Strip-out
- Façade works with refurbished curtain walling
- New roofs
- New aluminium windows
- Full fit-out, including internal partitioning and refurbishment
- New lifts
- Electrics, connectivity and plumbing
- External and groundworks including drainage, lighting and access
- Evacuation Alert Control & Indication Equipment (EACIE) fire warning system
The result
Normandy House is now home to 114 high-spec apartments. In line with our carbon offsetting partnership with Ecologi, the project led to the planting of 114 trees.
Project specification
The apartments
- Double-glazed windows
- Combination blinds - partial or full blackout
- Separately metered water and electric
- Dimplex electric radiators, complete with smart localised controls and thermostats
- Integrated kitchens and appliances
- High-specification bathrooms
The MEP services
- LED downlights
- Sockets, switches and USB points
- Hard-wired smoke alarms
- MEV (Mechanical Extract Ventilation) extracting stale/moist air from bathrooms
- Sprinkler system to all upper-level apartments
The site
- Parking areas
- Cycle stores
- On-site manager's office
- CCTV camera coverage of external area and entrance lobby
- Bin store
Other projects
Shaping the built environment across the UK, take a look at our case studies.
.webp)