Stellantis, Ellesmere Port
Location
Ellesmere Port
Value
£101 Million
Size
600,000 sqft
Developer
Stoford
End User
Stellantis
BREEAM
Outstanding
This 668,000 sq ft facility at the historic Hooton Park car manufacturing site, developed for global automaker Stellantis, is purpose-built with modern specifications. The development includes three floors of office space, alongside a two-storey hub.
Sustainability is a key focus of the project, with efforts to reduce embodied carbon and improve energy efficiency. Notable features include photovoltaic roof panels, rainwater harvesting systems, LED lighting, and an energy monitoring system. The building is designed to achieve a minimum EPC rating of ‘A’ and an excellent BREEAM rating. To enhance staff wellbeing, the facility offers an external wellbeing area, bicycle storage, and EV charging points.
The overall layout of the site and the position of the proposed building was developed to maximise the functionality of the production area whilst aiding the continued establishment of a high quality typology in accordance with the parameters of the approved outline masterplan.
The orientation and location of the building was specifically designed to align with the context, facing the main entrance towards the key circulation routes to ensure that legibility is maximised.
To soften the mass of the building from the access road, the main three stories were positioned to the front incorporating a band of parking and landscaping that works to create a protective buffer from the road and neatly conceal the entrances to both of the service yards.
The service yards are screened by the surrounding buildings and also screened by the reduction of levels, forming heavy landscaping and banking.
The office block was located on the North West corner of the building, projecting from the main building to integrate an additional design feature. This layout increases the prominence of the office while simultaneously providing the opportunity for passive surveillance of the car parking across the site.
Unit Design
The appearance of the proposal was influenced by contemporary styling, with an emphasis on creating a clean and modern aesthetic that was both long lasting and utilises a neutral colour palette.
The facade incorporated pre-formed cladding panels and large elements of powder coated aluminium curtain walling, all using an understated colour scheme. The structural simplicity of the design creates an aesthetic that simultaneously linked into the context and establishes its own unique identity.
The aesthetics and form of the newly built entrance were of particular emphasis, seeking to ingrain a corporate sensibility into the design while still including a strong focal point that establishes a unique identity that framed the full height curtain walling and working in conjunction with the site layout to naturally guide visitors.
Care had been taken with the elevational treatment to break up the expanses of cladding, with shifts in colour and texture incorporated to avoid a monolithic appearance. The primarily grey facade was periodically broken up with feature dark grey piers, positioned on the book-ends to suit the structural grid, creating ideal locations to add variety to the elevations helping to raise the prominence of the building, introduce a more contemporary style and create an ideal backdrop for feature signage and branding. The result was softening of the overall mass of the building through a diverse aesthetic that was flexible enough to suit a wide range of potential occupiers.
