These businesses are subsidiaries of Bowmer + Kirkland and form the B+K Group
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Birmingham City University's STEAMhouse was a combination of restoration and expansion, transforming Birmingham's locally listed 120-year-old Belmont Works into a space for businesses, creatives and academics to collaborate on ideas.
This project involved the rebuilding and conversion of the locally listed former Belmont Works and construction of a new build facility to the rear providing a total proposed floorspace of 12,923 sq.m (GIA) including the change of use of 941 sq.m (GIA) of existing floorspace at the former Belmont Works. The two elements of work are connected by a structural glass atrium opening up the centre of the building to natural light and creating a centralised meeting space.
The two elements of work are connected by a structural glass atrium opening up the centre of the building to natural light and creating a centralised meeting space.
The new facility accommodated the STEAMhouse 2 project, together with new teaching space for the University, commercial offices, and ancillary campus retail facilities. The new building is designed primarily to house STEAMhouse activities, teaching accommodation and future commercial elements for Birmingham City University. The initial phase of the project was to clear the site and install the façade retention to the Belmont building. Once the façade retention was in place, the remainder of the existing building was demolished.
The treatment of the Belmont exterior and interior is sympathetic to the heritage of the original building, whilst the new 5-storey extension has more of a contemporary architectural aesthetic.
