Registered Office: 2 Burscough Road, Ormskirk, Lancashire, L39 2XG.
Registered No. 215881 London.

Press Releases

Eurostar St Pancras

Arguably the biggest restoration project in the UK this year, the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras, London was recently opened by Her Majesty The Queen. The project worth £800 million took six years to complete and houses over 6000m² of FSC certified Jatoba block flooring supplied by the UK’s largest hardwood flooring manufacturer and supplier Atkinson & Kirby Ltd.
Copenhagen Airport was the inspiration for the flooring specified by Architects Chapman Taylor. Atkinson & Kirby worked closely with both Loughton Contracts and main contractor ISG throughout the project.
Jatoba was an ideal choice for an area like St Pancras that will receive such a large amount of foot traffic due to its hardwearing nature.

Due to the high profile nature of the project and National Heritage overseeing the whole renovation, sustainability of all materials was of key importance. Therefore being FSC certified and British manufacturers made Atkinson & Kirby the ideal choice to make this bespoke product and to maintain the FSC Chain of Custody.
Atkinson & Kirby worked painstakingly to get every last detail right, beginning with sourcing the FSC certified Jatoba lumber from which the bespoke sized blocks were to be made. Once the lumber was in their warehouse in Lancashire, it was then checked and verified by the Forest Stewardship Council, ISG, and Chapman Taylor to ensure that it met specification, it was from then on months of work ensued. Because of the desired pattern that the flooring was to take, the manufacturing process was highly complex, with quality control vital to ensure that all of the bespoke sized blocks were manufactured to a high standard.
By manufacturing the blocks themselves, Atkinson & Kirby were able to plan production schedules to meet exactly with the requirements of the project as a whole and of Loughton Contracts fitting schedule, and delivered all consignments of flooring in accordingly over a period of 5 months.
In order to keep the floors looking fresh and new, it was imperative to choose a finish that was suitably durable for the level of foot traffic that the floor will experience. Therefore specialist manufacturers Woca were approached. Woca worked closely with Loughton Contracts and Atkinson & Kirby to establish which of their vast range of specialist finishes would be most suitable for a building of this nature. Natural Master Oil was finally chosen, not only to best protect the timber but to also make this busy public area easy to maintain, which is of prime importance to the longevity of the installation.
When asked to comment on the project, Sales & Marketing Director David Ellams said “This has possibly been one of the most complex manufacturing tasks we have ever undertaken, but thanks to our skilled craftsmen at our Ormskirk manufacturing plant we have succeeded in producing a floor of outstanding beauty that will only improve with age. As with the rest of the restoration the Jatoba floor will be there long after our lifetime”.

Dining Room at Liverpool Town Hall

Capital of Culture for 2008, Liverpool is home to many buildings old and new that detail the history of the well known port. Steeped in History, the City's Town Hall can be found in the cultural quarter, located close to the famous Liver Buildings that sit on the water front. The imposing Town Hall is a grade I listed building, dating back to the 18th century.

Liverpool

The Dining Room within the Town Hall has played host to many guests including people from the media, television, world ambassadors and even Royalty! This elegant room recently received a makeover courtesy of new hardwood flooring supplied by CFA Members Atkinson & Kirby and fitted by local floor layers Traditional Flooring UK Ltd.

In a room of such grandeur the flooring is of key importance, in reflecting its opulence. After all if you could be entertaining Royalty, you need the King of all floors and where better to find that than at Hardwood Flooring manufacturers Atkinson & Kirby Ltd.

Atkinson & Kirby supplied 125m² of Prime Grade American White Oak (114mm wide) Unfinished Solid Strip Flooring from their Traditional Range for the project. The flooring was manufactured by skilled craftsmen at their factory in Ormskirk in the heart of Lancashire. Made especially for the project, the strip was cut from the finest quality FAS lumber sourced directly from America.

American White Oak is a strong durable timber highly suitable for flooring with a straight grain, the prime grade also minimises the amount of knots and colour variation in the boards to give the floor a more even colour.

Alan Ray and his team at Traditional Flooring UK worked closely with the Heritage Officer for Liverpool City Council Glyn Marsden to ensure every element of the installation was sympathetic to the historical significance and prestige of the building. Discussing the project Alan said "having worked throughout the City on other projects with Glyn and having experienced the knowledgeable workforce we were able to carry out all the necessary requirements in house with ease".

The project took 9 days to complete, from sub-floor preparation to finishing. Once laid the flooring was sanded and finished using Granwax Hardwax Oil to give a superior natural aesthetic appearance.

Commenting on the project Atkinson & Kirby's Sales & Marketing Director David Ellams said "When Alan Ray approached us with the specification for this project; he wanted a clean looking floor that would reflect the stature of the room. In order to acheive this, we knew immediately that FAS lumber would create the desired look, and set about manufacturing a bespoke floor especially for the project. Our manufacturing capability underpins our flexibility and ability to manufacture on a bespoke basis to meet specifications and exceed customer expectations on projects like this".

Telephone 01695 573234 / 020 8577 1100 for all enquiries.