Castlepoint
Client: Castlemore Securities
Architect: Mason Richards Partnership
Main Contractor: Kier Build
Subcontractor: Astins
The massive 60,000m2 Castlepoint shopping park at Bournemouth, built on 41 acres, has 40 famous name stores with the largest occupying 12,000m2. Differentiated by its flagship store concept, giving shoppers the widest possible range of merchandise, Castlepoint provides a new style of shopping destination. The £200 million edge-of-town complex with parking for 3,500 cars was developed over two years on the site of the former Hampshire Centre.
Retail units within Castlepoint are separated by Knauf Drywall fire resistant partitions installed by drylining specialists, Astins. The separating walls – up to 10 metres in height - consist of two layers of 15 mm Knauf Fireshield on each side of 146 mm Knauf ‘I’ Studs with a layer of 25 mm Knauf Crown Acoustic Partition Roll in the void.
Knauf Drywall Technical Services were involved from the start of the project, including detailing the ‘fire umbrellas’ – to prevent lateral spread of fire at the tops of walls – because of the roof’s structural design. In addition, the separating walls had to allow a large deflection head of about 100 mm to accommodate natural movement in the 43,000 m2 roof.
Knauf Fireshield high performance plasterboard was used as the lining material to provide the superior fire protection required. The 206 mm wall specification used at Castlepoint has a 2 hour fire rating and 54dB sound rating.