John Lewis - Kingston Upon Thames with Noxite

With water ingress and standing water present across many areas of the roof, the need for urgent remedial work was evident. Upon closer inspection, large areas of the roof were also subject to blistering and cracking, while the build-up of organic material over time was supporting the growth of algae and plants.

However, the difficulties extended beyond the state of the current roof. The store's positioning added extra intricacies, situated beside the River Thames with a public road passing beneath a section of the building. These elements had led to restricted access and maintenance issues since the initial construction of the building and would continue to influence the upcoming re-roofing project.

With access and location contributing to significant safety concerns, roofing contractors, RTL, implemented various safety procedures. As the site also remained live during the project, the team needed to ensure the safety of staff and visitors, as well as passers-by and road users, by outlining safety practices to prevent instances such as the falling of debris onto the road below.

The completion of the roof refurbishment at the Kingston store brings several benefits to customers, the local environment and the John Lewis brand.

Where customers and the local community are concerned, investment in the building demonstrates a commitment to the area and provides a thriving shopping destination. The use of Noxite as a key part of the roof build up also has its lasting benefits for the local environment.

For John Lewis, maintaining the buildings within its nationwide portfolio is critical to providing attractive retail destinations, as well as managing their value. The roofing solution designed for this project delivers uncompromising performance over the long-term, as well as delivering cost certainty through the improvement works. For example, by devising a solution which avoided the need to strip back and replace the entire roof - particularly in hard-to-access areas above the live public highway - the team was able to negate the need for costly additional scaffolding in these areas. In practice, this allowed for the re-roofing works to be delivered on time and within budget, while ensuring uncompromising performance for years to come.

By working collaboratively with Icopal and specifying innovative systems such as Noxite, the long-term value of the John Lewis department store in Kingston was realised.