CASE STUDIES
At West Port we are proud of the products and services we offer our customers. We deliver different solutions to meet our individual customers needs assuring we provide the right product for the right job on time and within our customers budget. Please take a look through our case studies below to learn more about how we could help your business.
Why Choose West Port
At West Port we pride ourselves in delivering a quality product, this can be in large quantities for the trade to single on offs for that special architectural build. At each stage of the production process our skilled team will ensure your order is produced under strict quality control procedures.
For large orders we can make and hold stock,
delivering it to sight when its needed, this limits the chance of on-site damage prior to fitting. Read through our case studies to see how we can help...
Tattenhall - Care Village
Sliding Sash with Spiral Balance Windows, Flush Casement, Timber Entrance Doors & French Doors
The Tattenhall Care village in Cheshire produced 162 one and two bedroom retirement apartments, penthouses and other on-site facilities for the over 65’s.
Due to a high demand in the Cheshire area for more retirement homes, Inspired Villages have partnered with the experienced retirement village operator English Care Villages and one of the UK’s largest property and leisure management, development and regeneration companies, Places for People. Working together with these two prestigious companies Inspired are creating a retirement village in Tattenhall to accommodate the over 65’s.
Seddon Construction and West Port Timber Windows and Doors worked together to reach the site requirements specified by Inspired Retirement Villages. The windows and doors supplied are to be low maintenance and operate with ease to make the residents lives more conformable in their retirement home.
A variety of window and door products were supplied to the site to match the requirements. The Sliding Sash with Spiral Balance Window has a stepped sash but utilises a modern mechanism. This window style provides a traditional look but most importantly easy operation.
The single external front doors are provided with Secure by Design as standard providing extra security to the properties due to the 3 point locking mechanism. The 4 ply door blank contains metal sheeting through the door blank preventing anyone getting through the door and the door from warping. In the centre of the door blank is a insulated foam core creating a warmer environment by preventing any heat loss to escape though the door allowing lower energy cost.
West Port also supplied Flush Casement Windows which have a modern look with its sash flush to the frame. The Flush Casement Windows are SBD certified with espagnolette multi locking system with an easy clean function allowing the resident to clean the outside of their windows with ease and safety from the inside of their homes.
French Doors were also provided maximising day light being brought in to the properties this also capitalises on the extra space of an indoor/outdoor living style for the residents.
West Port met the specifications with a high standard, ensuring this Inspired Retirement Village would provide a pleasant and comfortable environment for its residents for many years
to come.
Hamilton Grand
Hotel St Andrews
Timber Sliding Sash Windows with cords & weights
After laying dormant for many years due to a fire in the 1980’s, Hamilton Grand has now received its much needed re-haul into 26 luxury 2, 3 and 4 bedroom apartments ranging from 1,133 to 2,780 square feet. One of the apartments looks over the 18th hole of the famous St Andrews Golf Course at the price of £7.3 million.
West Port provided ISG Construction traditional cords and weights timber windows to the 115 year old building Grade B listed building. The owner of the building requested the windows to be finished in black but due to the sensitive area the building is based in Scottish Heritage requested for the windows to be finished in green. For the finish to be approved by the two parties West Port approached their paint supplier in Germany to provide a special green/black paint to which West Port used in their on-site paint factory. All the windows were also provided in a dual finish; the special green/black finish to the outside and depending on the room on the in-side, an apartment or the bar, the finish was either black or cream respectively.
Some of the windows required curved heads to them which West Port manufactured through their joinery shop, templates were made for the West Port joiners to work from as the templates are to make sure the curves are manufactured to the right shape and size to fit into the building correctly.
As the location of the building is near the sea the windows would need to have ironmongery salt spray tested due to harsh sea water. The ironmongery on West Port windows are salt spray tested to 2000 hours to accommodate the requirements for the building.
Victoria Gardens
Flush Casement Windows & Timber Entrance Doors
Victoria Gardens is a superb collection of high quality, high specification 1, 2, 3, & 4 bedroom homes. With several different house types to choose from including apartments, mews, semi-detached and detached homes, there truly is something for everyone.
Undertaken for Stonebridge Homes, the conversion and refurbishment of the former Leeds Girls’ High School created 36 exceptional quality apartments in an exclusive part of Headingley. The sympathetic conversion ensured all the original features of the three storey building were maintained, with the outer facade and existing roof repaired, and new timber sash windows installed throughout. All external works were designed to be in keeping with the rest of the development.
“The Leeds Girls’ High School buildings are such a feature of the area, being iconic designs and in such a prestige location. In partnership with Henry Boot Construction we are ensuring they are restored to their former glory whilst delivering much needed high quality housing in Leeds.”
Carol Gunn, Head of Sales & Marketing, Stonebridge Homes
Founded in 1876, Leeds Girls’ High School was originally built as an independent all-girls school until its closure in 2008. The historic building was later used as the set of ITV medical TV series Monroe and starred British actor James Nesbitt.
The Old School House forms part of Victoria Gardens, a development by Stonebridge Homes which also saw a selection of four bedroom homes built on the site.
The Old Vicarage
Flush Casement Sliding Sash Windows, Circular Windows, Timber Entrance & Patio Doors
Located in Old lsleworth, The Old Vicarage is situated in a conservation area not far from the River Thames. Due to the sensitive area and heritage of the building the windows had to be replaced with traditional sliding sash windows. West Port have a various range of sliding sash options available, the modern spiral balance being one of them. Wanting to keep the building looking as traditional as possible and in keeping with the area the customer decided on the modern spiral balance option. This option provides the traditional look of a sliding sash window but with a modern mechanism of the balances. An added extra on this window are horns and plant on astragal bars for the extra traditional style.
Feature circular windows were installed into this property manufactured by West Port in their advanced joinery department. West Port requested templates to use in the manufacture process; the templates are used as a guide to produce the windows to the correct size and shape to the opening in the building. This was no challenge to West Port due to the advance CNC machine and workmanship of their joiners.
West Port external insulated doors and patio doors were also supplied to site. The external insulated doors supplied are available in various styles and are all insulated to prevent heat loss from the building. All doors are supplied with a 3 point locking mechanism providing extra enhanced security to the property. The patio doors supplied were used to create a Juliet balcony to the upper floors. Using a patio door on these balconies creates more light and space into the rooms. These also had the added extra of the plant on bars, to match the windows to create the traditional look.
This property was completely remodelled by the architect and an adjoining new build town house added to the property creating semi-detached buildings. West Port supplied overall 25 Spiral Balance, 6 flush casement, 6 circular windows, 4 doors, and 14 patio doors between these
two properties.
Temple Sowerby
Flush Casement Windows, Timber Entrance Doors & Patio Doors
Built on the site of a former farm yard, Templars’ Court consists of five bespoke, three and four bedroom detached and semi-detached converted barn lookalikes. Built in local red sandstone and natural slate, in-keeping with the historic local area and situated around a central courtyard, with the addition of gardens and dedicated garages.
West Port supplied Cumbrian Homes with flush casement windows with crucifix Georgian bars to create a traditional cottage look. Some of the window openings in the properties were very slim at a width of 180 mm. For a window to fit into such a small gap West Port manufactured a slim line window consisting of just the frame and glass to fit into the gap required. These small windows provided light into the internal room along with the crucifix bar windows whilst also keeping in with the traditional look of a barn conversion. Timber external doors were also supplied with grooves on the external and internal face to create a traditional grooved door.
One of these properties required natural light into the living area and the 1st floor corridor. West Port manufactured a set of doors, side lights and a large curved top light. Once provided with templates West Port joinery department was able to cut the timber frame into the correct shape and size for the large set to fit into the opening. Installing these patio doors, top and side lights into this building created a room with a large amount of natural light and a beautiful view over the local farmland.
Riverside Dene
FD30 and FD60 Fire Doorsets and Fire Screens
The Riverside Dene consists of several tower blocks based in Newcastle, not far from the city centre, they are either privately owned or rented via Your Homes Newcastle. The tower blocks are 14 floors high with most of the apartments occupied by either the elderly or families with young children. With these vulnerable tenants, fire safety is paramount and high quality, compliant fire doors are essential in achieving the necessary fire safety requirement for all. The buildings were identified as needing new fire safety measures, and following an extensive process of specification, West Port were chosen to supply the doorsets.
West Port have made fire doorsets for over 15 years and all of their fire doors are fully certified with excellent proven performance, achieving over 40% of the British Standard requirement - BS 476:PAS22:1987. The manufacturing process is fully certified by BlueSky, a 3rd party UKAS accredited certification body, to ensure consistency and compliance of each door made. At Riverside Dene all the doors were colour matched specifically to the outside of the building for the required aesthetic look and feel of the environment.
At West Port doors can be custom designed to suit any requirement including glazed panels, low level thresholds, letter plates, air vent grilles etc. and can also achieve the Secured by Design
(SBD) standards.
G1 Glasgow
Dual Swing Timber Windows
Having laid vacant since the General Post Office re-located to Springburn, in the late 90s, consent was granted to turn the A-listed Victorian building into 127,000 sq ft of office and public space with a striking glass roof extension. The intention is to provide Glasgow with an iconic office development providing first class quality office accommodation. New public space will be available on the ground to engage passers-by and allow the people of Glasgow and tourists to the city to benefit from the new site. Within a year of opening, the building is 94% let, with an impressive tenant list covering Ernst & Young, Maclay Murray & Spens, Gardiner & Theobald, Mercers & Browns Brasserie.
On this project West Port supplied a modern opening window called a Dee window. This stepped sash window is manufactured to look like a traditional sliding sash window with modern sashes. The opening sashes are top hung fully reversible which allows a full rotation of the window sash bringing the outside to be cleaned from inside of the building at a high level.
The ground floor windows required to be non opening with a curved head as per the templates provided. Some of these windows reached the height of four and half meters. A window as large as this could cause some problems in manufacturing but with the technology at West Port they are able to manufacture the windows as a whole and paint them with the specialised on site paint factory.
Due to the age of the building the contractor required the new windows to match the existing windows. In particular the window horns. West Port was able match like for like with the tooling and technology they have within the custom built “175,000 square feet factory based on the fringe of the Lake District.
As the new windows were to be installed into the old openings the windows had to be craned in over the top of the building shell to be installed from the inside of the building as the reveal was larger on the inside of the building to the outside. This is how windows are traditionally installed.
Center Parcs
Flush Casement Windows, Timber Entrance & Sliding Patio Doors
In December 2004, Center Parcs announced it had identified a location for a fifth UK site at Bedfordshire. This project involved the construction of accommodation, indoor and outdoor facilities, sub-tropical swimming complex, restaurants and a spa.
In March 2014 Center Parcs started to take bookings and within 2 months more than 11,000 bookings had been taken for people to stay from the 20th of June 2014. Built on a 365-acre woodland site within easy reach of the all important London market, the site has 625 Lodges, 75 bedroom Hotel and six Spa Suites for overnight stays in its Aqua Sana spa.
West Port was awarded the contract to provide the new holiday Village with 4,000 timber Flush Casement Windows and 2,000 Entrance Doors. Each of the 625 Forest lodges have been provided with a timber front door with electronic locks and a sliding patio door giving the living area more light, space and a view into the forest to watch the local nature. e.g. birds, squirrels, etc.
All of the West Port timber windows and doors provided to the site are painted in a specific brown as requested by Center Parcs. This was to blend the windows into the building and surrounding area. West Port worked closely with ISG to make sure all requirements for this large project was met.
The architect visited the factory to take a closer look at the products being provided and to view how the production process worked in the 175,000 square feet custom built manufacturing facility based on the fringe of the Lake District.
Byker Estate
Flush Casement and Timber Single Doors
In 1969 Ralph Erskine was appointed as project architect for the Byker estate which is now world famous for its unique 1970’s architecture. Its skyline can be seen across Newcastle and from as far away as western Gateshead and Northumberland. It has been the subject of many photographic exhibitions, dramas and films and is now a Grade 2* listed heritage site.
As part of the Byker Community Trust’s £24.5m investment into the estate, the full external fabric overhaul included a new roof, new windows and doors. Residents of 400 flats and maisonettes at the social housing site benefit from the improvements, making their homes more energy efficient.
West Port timber windows and doors had to be approved by Newcastle City Council and English Heritage to help properly restore the Byker Wall’s listed features in line with Ralph Erskine’s original plans. This was mainly to match the bright colours and the style of the windows and doors to the existing. West Port had to specifically make their transoms and mullions of their windows bigger to match existing and also the grooves of the doors had to be a specific width and depth to again match the existing doors.
As the project required the new windows and doors to match existing West Port was able to provide the correct paint finish from their on-site paint plant. The finish is applied in the electro static paint plant that applies a primer first then a minimum of 100 microns as the top coat. These coatings are ventilating in other words they breathe, a bit like your skin, they allow the passage of moisture vapour out through the coating without destroying it.
The mixing machine within West Port has around 50,000 colour options making it easier to match colours when specified.
Islington Square
Timber Sliding Sash Windows
Teams from Kingston Joinery were on site in stages for a total of two years to complete installations of over 1,000 windows in Block A of this huge £400m development.
The Islington Square development has seen the former Edwardian Royal Mail North London sorting and delivery centre, originally built between 1904 and 1906, transformed into a new Covent Garden style destination.
It includes 263 new homes and 108 serviced apartments alongside restaurants, bars, boutique stores, a cinema and several theatre spaces.
“This was something of a milestone contract for us as it was our first seven-figure contract when it was initially secured in 2016,” said Managing Director Craig O’Leary.
“It has been a tremendous development to work on, the finished product is absolutely stunning, and we have since been awarded more high-value work with the same contractor – a great vote of confidence in both the standard of our products and our work.”
Lanchester E.P
Primary School
Stormproof Casement Windows and Entrance Doors
Planning the refurbishment and replacement of the windows in a school is not any easy task.
The logistics of ensuring that the disruption of the staff, and children alike is of paramount importance.
This coupled with ensuring the school is kept secure and that the safety of the children is maintained is a true test in ensuring that you select the right contractor for the job.
Client Comment:
Throughout this work the main contractor and the manufacturer kept us informed of what was happening and when it was going to happen. Surveying of the school was carried out early to ensure that as soon the school broke for half term work could commence.
This left only minor works to do when we returned to school leaving the children and staff free to enjoy the benefits of having warm comfortable classrooms again.
Keepmoat
- Retirement Village in Warwick
Flush Casement Windows, Timber Entrance Doors and Patio Doors
High performance timber windows and doors by West Port have been supplied to Warwick’s first purpose-built luxury retirement village. This will be the first development of its kind to be built by Keepmoat in this region.
This contract was awarded to Keepmoat who will be delivering this prestigious scheme on behalf of Inspired Retirement Villages including a collection of 49 self-contained luxury apartments created specifically for those over 65. The first phase of the £10m housing development scheme consists of a mixture of spacious one and two-bedroom apartments which provides private accommodation for over-65s.
Once complete the retirement village will also include communal facilities such as a wellness spa and relaxation pool, gym, deli shop, restaurant, community rooms and on-site care services. Designed by Inspired Retirement Villages, the new retirement village will provide care and support with a touch of luxury.
West Port supplied double glazed, factory finished windows, external timber doors and patio doors from their window and door range to this prestigious scheme.
The Flush Casement windows supplied have enhanced locking mechanisms creating piece of mind. The mushroom pins and lock plates will keep the sash and frame together securely preventing any unwanted visitors entering the property. An added function of the window is a night vent. When in position the function lets fresh air into the room while providing security.
As specified West Port also supplied the windows with a lower level handle to create an easy access for the resident to open and close the window. In doing this West Port is keeping in with the independent lifestyle Inspired Retirement Villages are creating for the residents.
The external front doors and patio doors are supplied as standard with a 3 point locking mechanism creating a Secured by Design door against any attempt of forced entry. To engage the locking mechanism is as easy as lifting the door handle. When lifting the handle the shoot bolt system engages into the frame creating a secure lock. Secured by Design creates a high level security standard by working with the industry and responding to trends in crime. The principle of this Secure by Design scheme has been proven to reduce the risk of crime, creating piece of mind to the residents within this retirement village.
A U Value of 1.5 was required of the windows and doors which West Port achieved using double glazed units with a warm edge spacer bar filled with Argon gas. The gas, spacer bar and double glazing prevents any heat loss from escaping the property to create a warmer environment for the retired residents.
West Port Timber Windows and Doors delivered a high quality bespoke product that met the specifications required by Keepmoat including effortless operation of the windows and doors to ensure a safe and warm environment for the residents.
May Fair Hotel
Dual Turn Timber Windows
This scheme at what is arguably one of the UK’s most prestigious hotels posed a real challenge to both the client and planners due to its scale and demanding location.
Set within a conservation area the local planners were adamant that the windows should retain all the original features to maintain the appearance of this grand building.
However, the owners of the hotel wanted to move away from the traditional “cord & weights” type of window to a more modern window that maintained the original features, but provided the facility to be easily cleaned and maintained ensuring the high standards of the hotel are met at all times.
West Port worked with the client to specify the Dual Turn range of windows, these provided the client with everything they required in terms of performance and easy clean whilst satisfying planners that they retained the aesthetics of the original windows both in style and material.
The project was completed in phases, West Port worked in tandem with the contractor providing our product as and when it was required. We manufactured and held the windows in our storage facility and they were delivered as required which prevented lots of product being on-site for longer than necessary this also reduced the risk of damage from the elements or accidents on-site.
St Elphins Park
Sliding Sash with Spiral Balance Windows, Flush Casement Windows, Timber Entrance Doors and Patio Doors
West Port supplied timber windows and doors to the St Elphins park retirement village this included Sliding Sash Spiral Balance Windows, Flush Casement Windows, Timber Entrance Doors to the original building, St Elphins’ House and throughout the site. Over time external buildings have been erected to create in total 130 properties. The original building, St Elphins House, started life as a private residence, a spa, and St Elphins’ Girls School.
The Victorian school house has been restored brick by brick to now house the Audley Club, which includes a luxury house club, fitness pool, bistro bar and the Orangery restaurant for the residents of St Elphins’ Park.
When looking into which windows and door products would be best for this site from the West Port range the Spiral balance, Flushed Casement, Entrance Doors and Patio Doors was the best choice to keep in with the Victorian grandeur of St Elphins house. The Spiral Balance Window is a modern version of the traditional lead weight window with the look of a box sash but with a modern mechanism this does however comply with the original aesthetic of the surrounding area with easy opening sashes for the residents.
As technology has advanced from the traditional windows the spiral balance is now completely draft proof making these windows the best option for keeping the residents warm whilst complying with strict conservation specifications laid out in the planning.
Windows were required to be curved to fit into the original stone bays. Templates were created for our joinery department and precision drawings allowing an easy working relationship with our glass supplier, West Port were able to supply the correct size and shape of windows to fit into the required bays.
Millfield Community
Dual Swing Windows, H Type and French Doors
West Port are proud to be part of the regeneration of Millfield School. The replacement of high quality timber windows has made a great difference to both the staff and pupils making it warmer environment to work in.
The windows are traditional in style keeping to the authenticity of the building, our bespoke windows were also an advantage to this scheme in which we also incorporated the arched tops and circular windows.
“Having the windows replaced on a four story Victorian School was never going to be an easy task.
However, West Port kept us fully informed of everything that was happening in conjunction with the main contractor. Between them they have transformed the school making it a warmer, safer place for the staff and children alike.
By using modern high performance Timber Windows the school has maintained its original charm, from when it was built in 1895”
Dame Anna Hassan - Executive Head,
Millfields Community School.
Bentworth School
Stormproof Casement Windows and Entrance Doors
West Port and Radway were selected for the supply and installation project under the Radport Brand, this offers clients a full supply and installation solution of Timber Windows and Doors.
The Scheme was awarded through the prestigious LHC procurement network for Hammersmith and Fulham and was to be carried out during the 6 week summer holiday break to reduce disruption to pupils and staff.
Through careful planning and the involvement of all parties concerned to establish the most effective programme the scheme was delivered on time and within budget and was also nominated for an award for the “Most Innovative Scheme” by the LHC.
Wilsons - Private New Build
Dual Swing Windows, H Type and
Sliding Patio Doors
Project Requirements – Inside of this property a balcony was constructed onto the first floor but due to the location of the building the property owner requested a view from the internal balcony. The building also required a lot of day light whilst keeping the heat within the building.
Solution - Between West Port and the installer we were able to calculate and offer a triangular fixed window to keep in with the building aesthetics and for the customer to enjoy their view from the internal balcony.
A sliding patio door was installed to the side of the building to provide access in and out of the property while providing extra day light, as requested it was also able to provide the resident an extra view from inside of the building.
Benefits – Due to the property standing in an isolated area on the Isle of Skye in Scotland the full force of the elements from all sides of the property would be a factor.
West Port windows are all weather tested so customers are able to have a wide variety in choice of which type of window they would like installed into their property. Giving them the peace of mind the windows of their choice will withstand the full force of the elements.
Gifford Lea
Flush Casement and Timber Entrance Doors
Appointed as supplier of timber windows and doors, we utilised our extensive knowledge of the retirement living sector and project delivery skills to ensure the completed village reflects the concept design. The site is located 8 miles from Chester in Tattenhall Village and enjoys countryside views across the Bolesworth Estate.
Phase one is a timber frame construction which completed in 2017 and consists of 48 village apartments across 8 separate buildings, all featuring a mix of different types of timber products. Each building has a variety of apartment numbers, ranging from two to ten apartments and providing a mix of 1 bed and 2 bed types as walk-up units or level access either at Ground Level or from a communal stair and lift core. The landscaping between the buildings has been carefully designed to ensure a village setting is created whilst also providing semi private and private amenity space.
Phase two is a steel frame construction which completed in summer 2019 and creates the village core including private dining spaces, brasserie restaurant, café, bar, fitness suite, spa, swimming pool, games rooms and hotel services, along with 56 apartments inclusive of village apartments, assisted living suites and larger panorama and penthouse apartments.
Phase three will create a further 48 village apartments across 8 additional buildings and is due to start on site following the completion of the village core.