Stockport is currently in the midst of change after an exciting £1 billion investment designed to revive the town centre and attract more people and businesses. As part of this investment, public spaces are improving, new events are taking place, and transport is improving.
At the heart of these changes is the new Transport Interchange. The idea is to provide better and easier routes to the town centre for pedestrians and cyclists and improve railway station links.
The new interchange will have 18 bus stands and accommodate 164 bus departures per hour, allowing for the future growth of bus services.
The Requirement
Willmott Dixon approached us with the concept of creating seating solutions for the new Stockport Interchange. To accommodate the people coming in and out of the Interchange daily, they needed new seats and perches.
The Prototype
Willmott Dixon assigned D&M to create drawings that met their requirements. Once the drawings had been signed off, we worked with Willmott Dixon to initially create a prototype; this prototype involved different finishing options, powder coating, and a brushed stainless-steel finish. This prototype enabled them to sign off on the final design for the seating in the Interchange and ensure that the seating would be exactly as needed.
The Process
Once the prototype was finished, our fabrication team got to work manufacturing the seats and perches.
- Our 10kw Bystronic Fibre Laser cut the sheet metal required for the project.
- Using our Amada press brake machines, we folded the sheet metal with radius tooling and polyurethane tape to create smooth curves and prevent leaving tooling marks on the polished finish of the seats.
- Our welding team used a mixture of Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) and Metal Inert Gas (MIG) welding to create the seats and perches. We MIG welded the bases, and TIG welded the seats.
- We used Poly-PTX machines, Trizact belts, and soft-expansion rollers, which enabled our finishing department to achieve the brushed finish required for the job.
- Our powder coating team used the latest Gema powder coating technologies. We then used our Elcometer tools to carry out a paint thickness test, surface roughness test, and adhesion/ scratch test on the powder coating to ensure the durability of the seats’ surface for years to come.
All the chairs and perches were assembled in-house at our headquarters on the outskirts of Ripon.
The Results
This was an exciting project that we are really proud to have been involved in. Working alongside Willmott Dixon, we created something that will be used daily by large numbers of people who come into and out of Stockport town centre for years to come.
