Tuesday 17th September 2024: Sisk is proud to be transforming a historic 60-acre site at Silvertown in the heart of the Royal Docks as we reached another milestone as it was confirmed that the structure of a building containing the first new homes on the site is complete. The six-storey building will provide 106 new affordable homes and remains on track for delivery by Autumn 2025.
The Silvertown regeneration will transform a strategic dockland site that has been derelict for around 40 years. It will create circa 6,500 new homes, including thousands of new affordable homes across London Affordable Rent, Social Rent, and Shared Ownership tenures. The plans also include the creation of new jobs, within the restoration of the iconic Millennium Mills, and across retail, leisure, cultural and community facilities and next generation workspaces.
The first residential building to ‘top out’ is a mansion block comprising one and two-bedroom homes and ground floor retail. The building will form the start of a new local high street spanning between North Woolwich Road and Millennium Mills. It will mark the gateway into the project and provide a benchmark of the quality that will be delivered in future years.
The building has been designed by Maccreanor Lavington Architects and Brydon Wood Structural and M&E Engineers and constructed by Sisk. The design incorporates modern methods of construction including the use of steel framing and precast concrete panels that contribute towards a 36 per cent reduction in embodied carbon, shortened construction periods, and improved quality.
Live computer models have enabled components to be tracked through manufacture delivery and assembly stages and optimise construction performance. Lessons learnt from this pilot will inform design decisions on future plots at Silvertown.
Over 1,300 people are expected to be involved in the construction of Silvertown each year, over a circa 15-year construction program, with a significant number of these workers drawn from the London Borough of Newham.
The Silvertown Partnership, which includes Lendlease, a market-leading Australian integrated real estate group, is working alongside the Greater London Authority (GLA), Homes England and The Guinness Partnership (TGP) to help Silvertown achieve its potential. Homes England has committed infrastructure loan funding totaling £233 million to the project, which will support the delivery of infrastructure required to unlock the potential of the site. The Guinness Partnership Limited is the affordable housing provider for circa 720 affordable homes in phase one of the development.
Ger Hayes, Managing Director, UK South, Sisk said: "Sisk is thrilled to reach this major milestone at Plot 6, Silvertown. Collaboration has been key in our delivery to date and the project has been significantly supported by Modern Methods of Construction (MMC). We are excited to continue with the next phase of the project working with Lendlease and our local supply chain partners.”
Massimiliano Crea, Operations Director, Sisk said: "In partnership with Lendlease and our skilled supply chain partners, we have drawn on the expertise of our experienced London-based design and construction team to implement Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) techniques. This has allowed us to create a true ‘kit of parts’ frame, resulting in a 36% reduction in embodied carbon and delivering a more sustainable building for our client. We are excited to move forward with the next phase of the project, contributing to the development of a vibrant new neighbourhood and leaving a lasting legacy in East London."
Ed Mayes, Project Director for Silvertown, Lendlease, said: “Silvertown is being reimagined as the vibrant new heart for the Royal Docks—a bold place where people will live, work, and thrive. Delivering affordable housing for the local community is at the core of our vision, and with the first building now topping out, we’re one step closer to bringing these much-needed homes to the local community. In the current market it’s more important than ever to deliver these homes as early as possible, where they can make the greatest impact.”
ENDS
