FORE Business Park, Solihull

The M42's most sustainable business park

Strategically located close to Junction 4 of the M42, BAM speculatively developed the FORE business park on a 17-acre country park, 10 minutes from Birmingham Airport.

We built the three storey and four storey FORE 1 and FORE 2 Grade A office buildings, and secured planning permission for two further development plots.

The BREEAM Excellent buildings, with large floor plates, successfully attracted a series of high-quality tenancies to FORE, including Goodrich, Arcellor Mittal and e-Tech solutions.

Project details

Customer: BAM Properties
Architect: RPS Planning & Development
Quantity surveyor: EC Harris
Structural engineer: Cox Turner Morse
M&E services engineer: Couch Perry & Wilkes

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office

66,000ft² accommodation in FORE 1 and FORE 2

minutes from Birmingham Airport

seconds from M42 Junction 4

savings

63% on utility bills for occupiers

Maxium occupancy, affordable running costs

BAM optimised the mechanical and electrical systems within FORE to provide an occupational density of 1:8 sq m, so the buildings can comfortably house 20% more staff than all local competitors. These enhancements also mean occupiers can save up to 63% on their utility bills compared with a similar office building developed in the 1990s.

In July 2014, we sold the entire park to IM Properties for more than £21m.

Preserving local wildlife

Given that the surrounding parkland is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, we took an 'ecology first' approach to construction works.

In partnership with the Environment Agency, we put measures in place to protect the existing badger sett, 650m² of protected sedge grass, and trees with preservation orders.

This involved carefully planned working methods, such as installing a temporary service bridge to gain access so we could excavate the pond and divert storm water. We also planted semi-mature trees throughout the site.

Enhancing local employment and education

We made the most of the different ecological habitats to support the curriculum for local schools. On World Environment Day, we invited students to see the habitats for themselves, take part in a site tidy and install bird boxes.

By providing on-site work experience, we supported training opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses from the local area.