New kitchen and dining facilities designed to feed up to 800 at this 15th century college demanded the very best from kitchen designers, the project installation team and the dishwashing supplier.
The project was part of a £9.7m redevelopment of accommodation and facilities to provide enhanced kitchen and dining accommodation.
Brasenose was established in 1509 and the constraints of working in a Grade 1 listed building included protected stone walls, varying floor levels and a narrow access route that was limited to a small single doorway – the only entry point for new equipment.
FCSI consultant member Kevin Barnes, Design Director of The Peter Burholt Partnership, battled with the angled untouchable walls, low ceilings and the need to maintain and complement historic features to create a new kitchen and servery, supported by a cold room area which is unusually situated in a basement complete with vaulted ceiling!
Warewashing equipment includes a K-Tronic series rack transport dishwasher with heat pump and 90° corner drying, along with front loading glass washers that feature Meiko’s unique built-in GiO reverse osmosis water treatment systems . Key to the choice of dishwashing supplier was flexibility.
“Some manufacturers offer you a choice of equipment and leave it at that,” says Barnes.
“But Meiko takes a different approach and they were keen to liaise with the manufacturing plant in Germany to see what could be done to help with the low ceiling height issue. Legs were lowered and alterations made to the top of the dishwasher to make sure it would fit in.
“Meiko are easy to work with, they are skilled at what they do and offer good after sales service and plenty of support. We have worked with them before on complicated projects and were confident in their experience.”
The kitchen installation project spanned three months and was carried out by C&C Catering Equipment.
“Due to the building and access restraints, plus local traffic regulations which restricted delivery times, there was a lot of coordination required,” said Keith Hartharn, Senior Project Manager, C&C Catering Equipment. “Access was a major issue and the 6-metre long one-piece top for the cooking suite had to be brought in sections and then fully welded and polished on site. The same was required for the Meiko K200 KVP rack transport dishwasher, which was also conveyed in sections and fully assembled on site.”
The name ‘Brasenose’ relates to an ancient door knocker, which now hangs in the main Hall.
More information from:
Meiko UK Limited, 393 Edinburgh Avenue, Slough, Berkshire, SL1 4UF
Email: MeikoUK@meiko-uk.co.uk
Tel. +44 1753 215120
Website: www.meiko-uk.co.uk
H&C News recently met with Meiko’s Nick Falco to get a better understanding of the business and the full interview can be seen here