Contractor J Tomlinson completes multi-million pound redevelopment of Coventry Transport Museum

Construction company J Tomlinson has completed work on a £9.5 million redevelopment of Coventry Transport Museum and Old Grammar School. 

The museum, which houses hundreds of unique exhibits including the world’s fastest cars ThrustSSC and Thrust2, has been completely transformed following a 15-month redevelopment programme. 

Nottingham-based J Tomlinson’s role included £4 million of the work, which involved building two new extensions, structural and internal alterations, as well as external modifications. 

Twelve of the museum’s 14 galleries have been completely transformed, including the creation of a stunning all-new permanent World Land Speed Record Exhibition for ThrustSSC and Thrust2. 

The project has also involved the redevelopment of the museum’s neighbouring Grade 1 listed, 12th Century Old Grammar School, which has been brought back into public use as an exhibition, education and events space. 

Martin Gallagher, Construction Managing Director at J Tomlinson, said: “Coventry Transport Museum holds the largest publicly owned collection of British vehicles in the world, and J Tomlinson is proud to have been involved in this redevelopment scheme which has created a new home for them, and for the hundreds of other exhibits on display. 

“This is a world-class museum that showcases Coventry’s rich transport heritage. The adjacent Grade 1 listed, 12^th Century Grammar School is also a very special building, and we are very pleased to have given this a new lease of life as it opens the next chapter in its long and illustrious history. 

“J Tomlinson has completed the project on time and on budget, and we are delighted that the museum is now fully open again for the public to enjoy.” 

Coventry Transport Museum fully re-opened on Saturday 20^th June with a special event involving supercar stuntman Terry Grant, who is famous for holding over 20 stunt-related World Records, and petrolhead duo and presenters Harry Metcalfe and Amanda Stretton who showcased a Trailblazing Cars of the World tribute; including a Ferrari F40, Porsche 911, Jaguar C-type, original Range Rover and many more. 

Culture Coventry chief executive Gary Hall said: “Re-launching the museum is the culmination of seven years of hard work by the team. It marks yet another landmark for Coventry’s transport heritage, but also preserves its rich history. The museum provides a haven for visitors to immerse themselves in the past, present and future of Coventry’s transport legacy - capturing the imagination of visitors of all ages.  We are extremely grateful to the European Regional Development Fund, the Heritage Lottery Fund and all of the other organisations who have supported this project throughout.” 

J Tomlinson, which is based in Lilac Grove, Beeston, near Nottingham, and operates mainly throughout the East and West Midlands, provides a range of services including construction, refurbishment, repairs and maintenance, mechanical and electrical engineering, energy efficiency, fit out and facilities management. 

Coventry Transport Museum’s redevelopment project was funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund, Garfield Weston, as well as Biffa Award and WREN via the Landfill Communities Fund, and Arts Council England.

For more information visit www.jtomlinson.co.uk

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

J Tomlinson joins ‘world’s fastest man’ at the new land speed record exhibition opening

Thrust SSC - photo Mark Radford/Coventry Transport Museum

A team from Nottingham-based construction company J Tomlinson joined guests at Coventry Transport Museum for the official opening of the all-new permanent World Land Speed Record Exhibition.

J Tomlinson is the contractor for part of the £8.5 million redevelopment of the museum, which got underway in April last year and is due to be completed by Summer 2015, when 12 of the museum’s 14 galleries will have been transformed. 

The Biffa Award Land Speed Record Exhibition is one of the first parts of the redevelopment project to be completed, and forms a stunning new home for the current 763mph land speed record holding car Thrust SSC, along with its predecessor Thrust 2.  Towards the end of last year, J Tomlinson was in the driving seat when the cars were delicately relocated from their previous home in the museum to the new exhibition gallery - a move that involved hoisting the supersonic cars over the rear gates of the museum.

The new exhibition was officially opened by ‘World’s Fastest Man’ Andy Green, who drove ThrustSSC to its 763mph world record in 1997 – a record that still stands today.

Martin Gallagher, Construction Managing Director at J Tomlinson, said: “It was great to be at the official opening of such a fine exhibition gallery, and J Tomlinson is delighted and proud to have been involved in this scheme at Coventry Transport Museum.” 

The company, which is based in Lilac Grove, Beeston, and operates mainly throughout the East and West Midlands, provides a range of services including construction, refurbishment, repairs and maintenance, mechanical and electrical engineering, energy efficiency, fit out and facilities management. The firm’s work at Coventry Transport Museum includes building two new extensions and structural and internal alterations, as well as external modifications.

Gary Hall, Chief Executive of Culture Coventry, the trust that runs Coventry Transport Museum said of the new exhibition: “Coventry Transport Museum has been home to the world’s two fastest cars Thrust SSC and Thrust 2 for many years now, and these seriously mind-blowing vehicles have attracted millions of visitors to Coventry throughout their time at the museum. We are now absolutely thrilled to have been able to give them a fitting new home in a dazzling exhibition – it has been specially designed and built to show off the vehicles, and to tell the amazing stories of the land speed record pioneers who dared to bring their engineering dreams to life.

“When designing the new exhibition we have also made sure that there is the perfect space for Bloodhound – when Richard Noble’s 1000mph car becomes the world’s fastest car in 2016, we would dearly love to offer it a home alongside its ancestors. For the moment though, we are delighted to have a full-scale Bloodhound model in place for the next few weeks, after which it will be replaced by an equally impressive life-sized K’NEX model of the vehicle.”

The new exhibition has been generously supported by Biffa Award, a multi-million pound fund that helps to build communities and transform lives through awarding grants to community and environmental projects across the UK.  The programme administers money donated by Biffa Group Limited, through the Landfill Communities Fund.

The Transport Museum redevelopment is also funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Heritage Lottery Fund, Garfield Weston Foundation, Arts Council England and WREN. 

For more information about J Tomlinson visit www.jtomlinson.co.uk
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J Tomlinson in the driving seat as world’s fastest car relocates

Image ©Coventry Transport Museum/Mark Radford

Nottingham-based contractor J Tomlinson was in the driving seat of a delicate relocation operation to move the world’s fastest car Thrust SSC into its new home as part of a development project at Coventry Transport Museum. 

Thrust SSC is being given pride of place in an all-new ‘Biffa Award Land Speed Record Gallery’, which is set to open in early 2015. 

As part of the daring relocation manoeuvre, the 54ft long, 10-tonne supersonic car was hoisted over the rear gates of the museum, before being transported to a low-loader lorry and driven at walking pace around the outskirts of the building. The vehicle, which measures almost the same length as two double-decker buses laid end-to-end, was then once again lifted in the air on a crane and placed into position just outside the new gallery, at the front of the museum, before being manoeuvred into the brand new exhibition space. Thrust SSC’s predecessor Thrust 2 had been moved in the same way just minutes before. 

J Tomlinson is the contractor for part of the £8.5 million redevelopment of Coventry Transport Museum, which got underway in April this year and is due to be completed by Summer 2015, when 12 of the museum’s 14 galleries will have been transformed, giving visitors a fresh perspective on Coventry’s fascinating transport history. 

Martin Gallagher, construction managing director at J Tomlinson, the company tasked with managing the base build works and moving the Thrust vehicles, said: “Transferring these two very special cars into their new home was not only a unique operation for J Tomlinson, it also marked a key point in the extension and refurbishment of Coventry Transport Museum. 

“Thrust 2 and Thrust SSC are the two fastest cars in the world, and we are very pleased to have been part of the team that has created a new, prominent gallery for them so that they can be displayed in all their glory. We will now begin work on the area that these cars previously occupied, as J Tomlinson continues the development of the home of this internationally significant transport collection.” 

Gary Hall, chief executive at Culture Coventry, the trust which runs Coventry Transport Museum, said: “This was a fantastic moment for everyone involved. Thrust SSC has lived permanently at Coventry Transport Museum since it was acquired in 2001, four years after it smashed the World Land Speed Record in the Black Rock Desert – and this was the first time it had moved since its arrival. 

“We are absolutely thrilled to be giving both Thrust SSC and Thrust 2 a new home in their own specially designed Biffa Award Land Speed Record Gallery, where they will be joined by an all-new 4D Land Speed Record simulator – the whole thing is set to be a real ‘WOW’ for visitors old and new.”  

The relocation manoeuvre was managed by Leicester-based MFH Construction Projects, and the moves were undertaken by Collett & Sons Ltd, a Halifax-based company specialising in transport, heavy lift, marine services and transport consulting. 

Visitors will be able to see Thrust SSC and Thrust 2 in their new Land Speed Record Gallery from February 2015 onwards. The new gallery has been supported by Biffa Award, a multi-million pound environment fund managed by the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts (RSWT), which utilises landfill tax credits donated by Biffa Waste Services. 

The Transport Museum redevelopment is also funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Garfield Weston Foundation.  

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk 

Top museums success for heritage and cultural experts Focus Consultants

Focus Consultants is celebrating a link with four of the top 20 free museums and galleries in the UK recommended by The Guardian newspaper. 

The company has worked on many high-profile museums across the UK, including the National Army Museum in Chelsea and the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, Exeter, which was named UK museum of the year in 2012 by the Art Fund charity.

Now four museums that Focus has worked with or is currently involved in have been named on a top 20 list of free family friendly museums recommended to visit by The Guardian. 

They are the V&A Museum of Childhood in London, St Fagans National History Museum in Cardiff, Coventry Transport Museum and Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry. 

Focus Consultants, which has its headquarters at Phoenix Business Park, Nottingham, and has branches in London, Leicester, Boston and near Lincoln, specialises in creative approaches to securing funding packages. The firm has worked to help many significant heritage, ecclesiastical, arts, culture and leisure schemes gain grants from a range of funding sources. 

Since establishing in 1994, Focus has helped to secure £1 billion worth of grant assistance for a range of projects and businesses across the UK.   

Partner at Focus Consultants, Kevin Osbon, said: “It’s great news to see that so many of our projects have made it onto this list of recommended museums and galleries to visit. Focus is proud to be part of the teams that are creating such high quality destinations that are filled with interesting and interactive activities for families.”  

The firm worked for the V&A on a multi-million pound redevelopment of the Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green, which houses the V&A's national collection of childhood-related objects, including dolls' houses, toys and games, furniture and clothing. As well as overseeing the redevelopment, Focus also secured the funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), which both made significant contributions to the successful opening of the project in early 2007. 

At St Fagans, Focus helped the project to secure £11.5 million - the largest ever grant award in Wales by the Heritage Lottery Fund - and was then appointed project managers and cost managers for the open air museum near Cardiff. The St Fagans project is now out to tender with works due to start on site shortly. 

Focus was strategic lead on the creation of the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum initiative - a £12m complete redisplay of the museum and art gallery including the creation of Coventry History Centre and the development of a huge glazed canopy to effectively turn the building around 180 degrees… completely changing its orientation so that it could be linked to Coventry Cathedral and Coventry University via a major public square.  

Focus is also lead consultant on a project to create an internationally significant transport heritage attraction by redeveloping Coventry Transport Museum, which has received initial support for a £4.9m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and £3m from the European Regional Development Fund.  The complete redisplay of Coventry Transport Museum is about to start on site. 

The Guardian published its list as part of the newspaper’s ‘How to see the world for free (or almost)’ series.

Visit www.focus-consultants.co.uk

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Focus Consultants in the driving seat for transport museum scheme

Nottingham-based Focus Consultants has been appointed lead consultant on a project to create an internationally significant transport heritage attraction.

The company is involved in a major scheme to redevelop Coventry Transport Museum, which has just received initial support for a £4.9m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).

Project plans include a major redevelopment of the museum’s exhibition spaces and the conservation and revitalisation of the city’s Old Grammar School to bring it back into public use.

The 14th Century, Grade 1 listed Old Grammar School, which is on English Heritage’s At Risk Register, is to be conserved and restored to house a public access archive and educational facility.

Focus Consultants, with offices at Phoenix Business Park, Nottingham, Endeavour Park, Boston, Princess Road East, Leicester, Aubourn, Lincoln, and Holborn, London, is providing project management services for the proposed scheme.

The museum houses the largest collection of British road transport in the world – with more than 249 motor vehicles, 450 cycles, 120 motorcycles and well over 1,000,000 archival items.

“We are proud to be working on the Coventry Transport Museum scheme, and delighted to hear that the Heritage Lottery Fund has given the plans its initial support,” said Focus Consultants partner Kevin Osbon.

“Focus Consultants has significant experience of securing funding for heritage and leisure projects. We have worked on many key developments across the UK, including the recently opened SeaCity Museum in Southampton and Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery, which opened at the end of last year, and which was recently named UK museum of the year by the Art Fund charity.

“This is an exciting project, not just for Coventry but for the wider transport heritage world too, as the transport museum is of international significance.”

Focus Consultants is now working with the rest of the team on the next stage of the Heritage Lottery Fund bid.

A first-round pass means the project meets HLF criteria for funding and HLF believes the project has potential to deliver high-quality benefits and value for Lottery money.

The application for Coventry Transport Museum and the Old Grammar School was in competition with other supportable projects, so a first-round pass is an endorsement of outline proposals.

Having been awarded a first-round pass, the project now has up to two years to submit fully developed proposals to compete for a firm award. On occasion, an applicant with a first-round pass will also be awarded development funding towards the development of their scheme.

Focus Consultants specialises in creative approaches to securing funding packages and delivering high quality projects across the UK.

Since its creation in 1994, Focus has secured over £800 million of grant assistance, and delivered more than £1 billion of projects and programmes - including enterprise support, innovation, culture, health, regeneration, affordable homes and energy carbon sustainability projects.

www.focus-consultants.co.uk

Issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk