Sheldon Bosley Knight has played an integral role in the completion of the drone survey work on the former Wholesale Market in Birmingham.
Working closely with airborne property surveyor Monssi, the SBK team was tasked with preparing regular drone surveys, time lapse and progress videos of the demolitions taking place, together with surveying an underground attenuation tank the size of a football field, including video production of conditions.
The 12-acre Smithfield site, close to the Bullring, is currently being demolished ahead of its redevelopment for the Commonwealth Games this summer, before further development to provide a cultural and leisure quarter, public square, a park and thousands of new homes.
Preparing drone surveys in city centre locations is not for the faint-hearted, as there is no room for error. The drones had to be operated in full compliance with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations for unmanned aircraft, and all parties involved in the site, including the police, had to be informed. All the various elements of data collection required were completed and acquired correctly.
To ensure a successful flow of data collection for the client, the SBK team had to give consideration to the range of modern drones and the close proximity of the site to other high rise buildings in the area, together with the commercial manoeuvring approach to the City Airport (BHX).
The site will be initially used for housing the Commonwealth Games later this summer, providing a location for Basketball, Beach Volleyball, the Press Centre and the Fan Zone.
Following the Games, part of the site will be passed on to Pride for its festival in September before finally becoming the largest inner city redevelopment project in Europe where a whole series of planned developments will be constructed over the next 15 years.
SBK’s director of commercial property, Tony Rowland, said: “Sheldon Bosley Knight is delighted to be associated with this prestigious and ambitious project.
“Drone survey work is becoming more commonplace and important in major projects such as this. However, it was not an easy undertaking given the proximity of the site to the nearby high rise buildings so it required a lot of planning and skill to make sure it was done correctly.
“Now that this work has been completed, we wish the organisers well for the site preparation in readiness for its exciting redevelopment.”