An Essex-based Chartered Building Company is hoping to use its expertise in innovative offsite prefabrication to follow its success building a new generation of beach huts in Southend with a contract to build the second phase, which has just been granted planning permission.
The first eight huts for Shoeburyness Beach near Southend-on-Sea were completed in the autumn by Carmelcrest, a family run business currently in its third generation. The set of huts costs £100,000 and took 10 weeks to build.
London architectural practice Pedder & Scampton’s competition-winning design responded to an ambitious brief from Southend Council. It updates the traditional beach hut format with an eco-friendly design featuring green planted roofs, recycled materials and a distinctive slanted shape that gives each individual hut its own private terrace. Coloured doors and shutters create variety and a feel-good vibe within the bold repetitive structure.
The walls of the huts – which are built on the existing raised concrete promenade with great views of the sea – are formed from recycled timber pallets bolted into timber frames and faced with tough translucent polycarbonate sheeting to the outside and plywood to the inner faces. The wall cavities are then filled with layers of pebbles, gravel, glass chippings and shells, laid in drift layers visible through the plastic, giving the huts a beautifully tactile seaside aesthetic.
“In-house fabrication projects such as the beach huts is something Carmelcrest are very experienced in,” says Luke Spooner, grandson of founder George and son of current MD Ray Spooner MCIOB. Luke’s three brothers – Ben Spooner ACIOB, project manager, Stephen Spooner ACIOB, project manager, Adam Spooner, junior electrical projects manager – also work in the business, which turns over £4m-£5m a year.
“A full-size model of the beach hut was mocked up in the workshop for us to test. The type of work we do is varied but we have a great deal of experience in prefabrication,” adds Spooner. “We manufacture our own in-house IPS Panelling systems [for toilet refurbishments and such]. We have also recently completed the design and build of a coffee pod that was prefabricated in-house”
George Spooner started the general building contractor in 1983 and retired in 1992, handing the business on to his sons, with Ray becoming the new managing director. Ray Spooner acquired 100% shares through a management buyout in 2001
Architect Pedder & Scampton beat more than 40 other entrants in the competition, which was launched in August 2012. The designs were developed with structural engineer StructureMode.
