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PCA Highly Commended in RICS South West Awards

On
by Tina Wyeth

 

PCA Consulting Engineers, in conjunction with Jonathan Rhind Architects, were highly commended by RICS for their repairs to the Bell Tower at St Mary’s Church, High Bickington.

Director Paul Carpenter worked closely with Jonathan Rhind Associates to provide structural solutions to the crumbling Bell Tower. St. Mary’s Church is a Grade I Listed building with the carved rounded arches of the south doorway dating back to the 12th Century and intricate wood carvings from the 15th and 16th Century found on the bench ends.

The Church sits high up in the landscape leaving the 15th Century Bell Tower exposed to the harsh elements. Quinquennial reports over the last 15 years had identified loose stones and cracks opening up on the tower buttresses, allowing rainwater to penetrate through the missing stonework. The area beneath the tower was cordoned off for over 5 years and bell ringing in the tower ceased due to falling stones and the vibrations loosening the stonework.

The Parish were granted EH/HLF funding to repair the tower and work began in earnest. A cherry picker was used to access the tower to carry out a close inspection before a detailed method of repair was drawn up by JRA.

The buttresses were taken apart stone by stone, each one carefully mapped to ensure they went back in the correct place. Any fractured and delaminated stones were replaced with ones of a similar size and shape from a local quarry.

PCA specified both traditional and discreet modern techniques to repair the tower. Seven different repair types were used including Heli-ties to ensure the buttresses and principal walls are now sufficiently tied together.

 

RedR Annual Reception

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by Sophia Darke

Once again, the directors of PCA attended the RedR Annual Patrons and Supporters Drinks Reception, also attended by the RedR President, HRH The Princess Royal.

PCA continue to support this worthwhile charity with various events throughout the year together with the usual annual donation.

RedR work tirelessly around the globe providing training and support to disaster affected countries. To read more about the work they do, and the impact they have, visit www.redr.org.uk

RICS Awards 2017

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by Sophia Darke

St Mary’s Church, High Bickington has been shortlisted for the RICS Awards 2017 – South West in the Building Conservation category.

Paul Carpenter worked on this project in conjunction with Jonathan Rhind Architects utilising his extensive conservation experience to ensure the success of the necessary repair work undertaken to the church tower.

The Awards Ceremony is being held of 11th May 2017.

A new addition – Harrison Ward

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by Sophia Darke

PCA is delighted to welcome Harrison Ward to the team. Harrison has just completed his A levels, gaining excellent results, and joins us as a trainee CAD technician. He will undertake training with, and provide assistance to, our current CAD department.

A royal encounter

On
by Sophia Darke

In February, the PCA directors were invited to attend this year’s RedR Annual Patrons and Supporters Drinks Reception. The event, held at the Institution of Engineering and Technology in London, was also attended by the RedR President, HRH The Princess Royal.

PCA are proud to support RedR and along with an annual donation have a variety of fundraising events throughout the year.

For more information on the work that RedR undertake visit www.redr.org.uk

PCA welcomes new graduates

On
by Sophia Darke

We have recently appointed two new graduate engineers, Luke Shackleton and Dafydd Bonar.

Luke qualified in 2015 with a degree in civil and coastal engineering from Plymouth University and moved back to the area from Bristol to join PCA in November 2015.

Dafydd joined us in January this year after relocating from South Wales following completion of a degree in civil engineering at University of South Wales.

The appointment of Luke and Dafydd will assist our existing engineering team as work load continues to increase while undertaking further training through PCA

New-look PCA

On
by Tina Wyeth

New-look PCA is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year and is looking to the future. The Kingsbridge-based structural, civil and conservation engineering company has appointed two new directors and has a new company name – PCA Consulting Engineers.

Director Paul Carpenter said: ‘During the last 35 years that we have been in business, I feel we are dedicated to covering a full range of commissions from small domestic projects to large-scale commercial and residential developments, including historic buildings.’ The PCA Consulting Engineers team sees Paul continue to work alongside Colin Souch and Andrew Horton in their new roles as directors to consolidate 90 years of senior engineering experience.

PCA Consulting Engineers will continue its tradition as a family business with Paul’s son Ross an integral part of the engineering team that boasts a core of young and talented professionals. The practice has been situated at the top of Fore Street for more than 30 years and has always collaborated closely with local architects and builders to produce the best results for its clients.

Colin said: “We believe we have the flexibility and adaptability to provide a truly bespoke service that offers pragmatic and well-engineered solutions. We are all dedicated to meeting and exceeding our clients’ needs both locally and further afield.”

PCA Consulting Engineers offers structural, civil and conservation engineering services, plus structural and party wall surveying, principal designer duties and CDM advice, project management, construction legal services, and temporary works design. PCA works with clients across the South Hams, Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Dorset, the south of England and London.

“The launch of PCA Consulting Engineers celebrates the culmination of 35 successful years in our field of expertise but also marks a new chapter in our history,” said Andrew. “We have strong foundations in terms of experience and links with architects, clients and contractors throughout the South of England, but are also more than prepared for the future with an enthusiastic and skilled team of young engineers at the heart of the practice. Together, we enjoy seeing the results of our combined efforts come to fruition in a variety of home, work space and conservation projects.”

Click the menu icon top left to explore the services PCA offers and view projects its engineers have worked on.

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