Unique design in bespoke Corten Edging
The Rushden Lakes retail and leisure facility is home to shops, restaurants and a 270 hectare nature reserve and wildlife centre in the heart of the Nene Valley. The shopping area, across three terraces, also has extensive external hard and soft landscaping areas and a public outside plaza. The sustainable development includes nett zero buildings and green roof space.
Choosing the product
The central plaza area brings together greenery and seating for visitors. The area is next to the car park and has high footfall. The long curved planters had integrated seating and required a bespoke design. Made from CorTen steel, Kinley’s HiGrade Bespoke planers were ideal for the job.
Key Details
| Location: Northampton | Client: LXB Retail Properties |
| Landscape Architect: Strata Design | Main Contractor: Winvic Construction |
| Completion Date: March 2017 | Project Value: £39 million |
Managing the installation
As an integral part of the plaza, the HiGrade Bespoke planters were bolted down onto a continuous concrete foundation at the same time as the kerbing and other services. The additional low steel edges around the floor level planting areas used 450mm long steel fixing stakes to fix them through the welded tubes on the reverse of the edging. The products used were designed to fit easily together which meant that both the CorTen steel planters and edging were installed in less than a week. The planters also used our latest design in connection detail which enabled the installers to adjust the panels to create a perfect, seamless join - minimising any visual impact. The Kinley team supported the installation process by laser cutting holes for the third party lighting in our factory so the installers could simply clip the lighting units into position, thus eliminating any product manufacturing onsite.
Overcoming the challenges
- Rusting -To avoid the CorTen steel rusting and staining the light coloured paving, the planters and edging were installed before the final surface was laid. This meant that the majority of rusting had already happened and there was minimal run-off. The cantilever benches were supported by powder-coated supports rather than CorTen supports to avoid CorTen leaching on the beige colour paving beneath.
The end result
There was huge excitement for this retail centre, highlighted when 20,000 people visited Rushden Lakes within the first three hours of opening. Even BBC One’s Countryfile visited the site to explore the area of outstanding beauty. The public plaza perfectly complements the modern shopping centre design as well as being sympathetic to the surrounding natural environment.
Why Kinley?
Kinley’s bespoke planter made the high profile plaza area at Rushden Lakes come to life. Richard Willmott, Lead Project Landscape Architect at Winvic Construction acknowledged that the CorTen planter system and cantilevered benches are a versatile feature of the outdoor space. The robust appearance and sinuous curves allowed the design intent to be fully and efficiently realised. In addition the installation support proved to be an invaluable part of efficiently completing the project.
The overall quality of the materials supplied, and the guidance given by Kinley made the installation process easy (even with materials and details which were new to us) and provided a fantastic end product that both ourselves and the client were happy with. I would have no hesitation in recommending your services for future projects.
