NEGOTIATED STUDENT SCHEMES PUSH TORSION TO ACHIEVE £20M TURNOVER

Specialist accommodation contractor Torsion has secured three new student accommodation schemes worth almost £17m and says it is on target to achieve its planned turnover of £20m in its second year of trading.

Torsion's managing director Dan Spencer said the company has negotiated 100 per cent of its major contracts since the business started in early 2015. The latest deals are Torsion's first with property investment and development company Calthorpe Estates in Birmingham, student accommodation provider CityBlock in Reading, and a joint venture scheme between Midesh and Arkman in Coventry.

Work will start on site in August on Calthorpe Estates' £3.1m Birmingham scheme to build a five storey student accommodation block comprising 20 studios and 30 cluster bedrooms, as well as a ground floor retail unit, in Edgbaston. Architects Glancy Nicholls, and structural and civil engineers BWB Consulting are part of Torsion's design team on the project, which is due for completion in time for the 2017/18 student intake.

The £6.8m Reading scheme for CityBlock is Torsion's second major refurbishment project following its successful completion of Crosslane's St James' House in Newcastle. Enabling works have already started at the site, with the main contract due to start in September when the team will begin the conversion of Berkshire House, a sixties office block, into luxury student accommodation comprising 134 studio bedrooms.

The existing underground car park will be transformed into communal spaces, including private dining rooms, a gym, study rooms and an entertainment space, and an additional two floors will be added to the current four-storey structure. Over-cladding to the external façade and replacement windows will give the building a completely new and modern look. Architects WCEC and structural and civil engineers ICIS complete the design team on the project.

In Coventry, Torsion has worked closely with Midesh and Arkman to ensure its £6.8m scheme will be delivered on budget. Works have commenced on the 117-bed scheme with groundworks completed and the steel frame for the five-storey building currently being erected. The project is due for completion in August 2017.

"As a business, we're committed to delivering on our promises and by doing so we are developing long term relationships with our clients. Our early involvement in the schemes allows us to use our experience to adapt the construction methodology to suit the delivery period. We have delivered 100 per cent of our schemes on time and safely," said Torsion construction director Chris Goodall.

"We have a simple business ethos of employing and working with the best in the industry to ensure the most efficient structure and fabric solution is delivered. Working with clients and supply chain partners who understand our design to budget model gives cost certainty from an early stage, something which is important in the current economic climate," said managing director Dan Spencer.

Mr Spencer added that the student accommodation sector continues to be the strongest growing property market. The company has recently opened its third regional office in Darlington to better service clients in the North East region, adding to its existing locations in Leeds and Birmingham.

ENDS

Established in early 2015, Torsion Group is a privately owned construction business specialising in student accommodation, care, residential and social housing. Its 52-strong team is based at offices in West Yorkshire, the West Midlands and the North East. www.torsiongroup.co.uk