Bespoke seating and litter bins at Flemingate, Hull

Context

Flemingate in Beverly, East Yorkshire, is a retail hotspot less than 10 miles from Hull, created from the redevelopment of a derelict chemical works.

The redevelopment comprised:

• Multiple retail spaces in a total of 162,561 sqft
• A 500 space car park
• A multi-screen cinema
• An 80-room hotel
• A college campus
• Office spaces
• 130 new houses

The area covers 16 acres (6.5 hectares), one of the largest undertakings in Beverly.

The redevelopment was designed to complement the style of the existing town centre, transforming the brownfield site into a mixed use retail and leisure destination.

The transformation has had a positive impact on the local economy and increased the desirability of the destination.

Work done

Artform Urban Furniture was asked to supply seating and litter bins to improve visitor experience and to increase the amount of time visitors stay on site. Artform provided expert advice on the best products to use and supplied them within the time frame for the completion of the project.

Three elements were chosen as complementary pieces to create an inviting and open space.

• Box litter bins
• Sculpture seats
• Big Harris benches with bespoke armrests and lighting detail

The benches were supplied with bespoke lighting to improve the visibility for the users of the area and with bespoke armrests for ease of use. The lighting was a new feature that had not been requested before. The armrests were added to give users a sense of individual space and to prevent skateboarders abusing the furniture.

Outcome

Daniel Wilkinson, Landscape Architect at Vector Design Concepts, commented:

"Whilst this project was a highly prestigious scheme to work on for Vector Design Concepts, it was still subject to the usual value engineering cost reductions that are common practice in most major schemes these days. We needed to specify street furniture products that were both high quality and within budget and it is testament to the excellent quality / value ratio offered by Artform Urban Furniture that we were able to retain the quality of specification within our scheme whilst still meeting the stringent cost targets. We wouldn’t hesitate to work with Artform again on future schemes."