Landmark London
Development ‘One
The Elephant’ Uses
Dura Grating Structural
Floor Risers to Improve
Safety and Operational
Performance
‘One the Elephant’ is a
significant milestone in the wider
regeneration of the Elephant & Castle
in London. The landmark development
is being constructed by Lend Lease in
partnership with Southwark Council
and Dura Grating Solid Top Floor Risers
have been selected as the ultimate
safety solution to the common problem
of riser voids.
Together with improvements to the
adjacent St Mary’s Churchyard Park
and Southwark Council’s new stateof-the-art community leisure centre,
One The Elephant will form a new focal
point in the heart of Elephant & Castle
on its completion in 2016.
At the heart of the development is
landmark 37-storey tower that will
set new standards for practical and
contemporary London living and is one
of the first buildings to achieve level
4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.
This means that efficient lighting,
heating and water fixtures and better
insulation and ventilation are a key
part of each apartment’s design.
Ensuring that these services are
delivered safely and efficiently is a core
part of any major project. Historically,
voids have been left during the initial
fabrication of the building to allow
services to be installed at a later stage
and were often covered with plywood,
netting or bordered by scaffolding, but
these riser voids posed a significant
health and safety risk both during the
construction and the operation of a
building.
Leading project management and
construction firm Lend Lease who are
constructing the building are renowned
for putting safety at the heart of their
operations. Lend Lease have chosen
Dura Grating Solid Top Floor Risers
from Dura Composites to cover the
riser voids and provide the ultimate
safety solution, therefore mitigating
the risk of people, tools and materials
falling through.
Dura Grating Solid Top Floor Risers
are a solid surface Fibre Reinforced
Plastic (FRP) panel, which is an ideal
and cost effective alternative to
traditional materials such a wood,
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concrete or steel. Lightweight, it can
be cut on site without the need for hot
works permits and easily positioned,
preventing any debris falling through.
Dura Grating has bi-directional
load bearing properties and in this
application is finished with a solid top,
further improving safety compared to
traditional open mesh grating panels.
are simple to cut on site using regular
power tools and do not produce sparks
or require welding. The knock on
effect is that costs can be saved as hot
works permits are not needed. We are
Dura Grating has a high slip
resistance, excellent durability its use
in applications such as these mean
that the risk of falls from height can
be controlled from the outset. Dura
Grating comes in a variety of sizes and
load bearing capacities and can be
installed following formwork removal
as the risers form part of the general
floor plate.
The benefits of the Dura Grating
system are numerous and include:
• Elimination of the risk of falls from
height of people, tools and materials
• Easier manual handling due to its
lower weight compared with metal
or concrete
• Easily adapted to suit specific
apertures on site when services
have to be installed, using standard
power tools
• Non-sparking and non-conductive,
eliminating the need for expensive
hot works permits
• Protects the riser void for followon trades and to allow for building
operation and maintenance
Talking about the successful
implementation of Dura Grating Solid
Top Risers at One The Elephant, Stuart
Burns, Director at Dura Composites
commented; “One The Elephant is a
remarkable development and sets the
standard for mixed-use regeneration
projects. When considering a suitable
Floor Riser solution, we are delighted
that Lend Lease found that Dura
Composites was the rational choice.
Compared to traditional metal grating,
Dura Grating Solid Top Floor Risers
allow no debris to pass through, are
lighter in weight and therefore easier
to install and do not corrode. They
also increase working safety as they
delighted that Dura Grating Risers are
being specified on so many landmark
projects such as this and look forward
to the opening of the building in 2016”.
For more information about Dura
Composites and to view the full
product portfolio, visit the website at
http://www.duracomposites.com