Hot of the Press – The Northcliffe
The Grade II Listed, former home to The Daily Mail and its printing presses; The Northcliffe was undergoing a significant redevelopment which would look to deliver over 17,300m2 of premium office space. Thomann-Hanry® was instructed to carry out a full façade survey which then led to a full façade cleaning, restoration, and redecoration.
Named in memory of the owner of Amalgamated Press (which owned the Daily Mail and Daily Mirror among its titles), Alfred Harmsworth, 1st Viscount Northcliffe; The Northcliffe is an impressive former industrial building which was open in 1926 to house the company’s offices and printing presses. Gaining listed building status in the 1980s the site was now undergoing redevelopment to provide Grade A office space in the City.
Thomann-Hanry®’s scope of work at The Northcliffe encompassed every key service which we offer. It started with a façade survey, allowing the building’s management team a detailed and recorded understanding of all key areas of concern which would need to be remedied.
The Latest Buzz!
The swift turnaround of the visual commercial building façade survey was aided by use of MEWPs (Mobile Elevating Work Platforms) which cuts down on the time which is required. This is because no costly, visually unappealing, and intrusive scaffolding was needed.
Using MEWPs, and unlike that of a Drone façade survey, Thomann-Hanry® can get up close to the façade, inspect, record and when needed, remove and make safe items which could fall from the building.
The Scoop!
With the detailed and illustrated façade survey completed, Thomann-Hanry® were then instructed to clean, repair and redecorate the façade. Using the low-pressure, water-free façade gommage® cleaning system, our expert team completed a multi-level façade clean, across multiple substrates without damaging the Grade II Listed building, which can happen if using high pressure or solvent based cleaning methods.
Once the cleaning process had been completed, our expert masons worked to repair or replace areas highlighted in the façade survey. This work was conducted after the façade clean, to allow for the repairs to better match the true colour of the stone and brickwork.
As with all services from Thomann-Hanry®, these have been conducted without the use of scaffolding, which can add significant costs to a project, and instead use the more convenient and flexible MEWP system.
Stop the Presses!
In the final stage of the commercial façade clean and restoration, the Thomann-Hanry® Painting and Decoration team, with a few precise licks of paint, have helped to add the final touches to restoring the façade of this impressive, listed building in the heart of the former printing and publishing district of the City of London.
“The Northcliffe was a magnificent project to work on and is yet another example of the meticulous service which Thomann-Hanry® has become known for. We can offer a one-stop-shop for your commercial and historic building’s façade, whatever your requirement, the team at Thomann-Hanry® will be able to help.”