Barnard Castle Aseptic Manufacturing Facility

Future proofing

A state-of-the-art, highly complex pharmaceutical facility, the new build Aseptic Manufacturing Facility at Barnard Castle will secure the future of aseptic filling of vials and syringes plus the handling of cold chain products for the next 10-20 years.

BakerHicks completed the Scheme Design phase and are the Lead Designer for the Delivery phase of the project, working alongside the GSK Engineering team, SES Engineering Services, Star Refrigeration, Turner & Townsend, Daldrop and McLaughlin & Harvey. Key services provided by BakerHicks include:

• Pre-scheme consultancy
• Scheme design
• Detailed design for the shell and core
• Lead Design in Integrated Project Delivery (IPD)
• Data and information management using Building Information Modelling (BIM)

One team, one goal

With exacting regulatory standards to be adhered to, it is vital quality was guaranteed and tight control maintained by the GSK team over the build process and schedule. This meant a high degree of coordination and collaboration was paramount right from the offset. GSK’s integrated project delivery (IPD) approach has been a central element to the success of the project, ensuring a high degree of collaboration between everyone involved in delivering the project. Ultimately leading to efficiencies and minimising risk. 

As part of this approach, BakerHicks are continuing to provide support and technical advice throughout the construction stage with a dedicated Lead Designer and BIM Manager based on site. This allows them to use their experience and knowledge of designing facilities of this type to support and challenge the other IPD partners on the project to achieve the best solution. 

Embracing technology

Ensuring the whole team could engage with the design process is a key part of IPD and BIM software has been instrumental in achieving this. In addition to being used to coordinate the project, BIM is being used to provide digital asset management, supporting GSK’s IPD philosophy. BakerHicks manage one central, fully coordinated model which integrates models from various separate design packages and specialist equipment providers to inform the construction of the facility. This not only ensures the integration of the multi-disciplinary design, but allows the team to quickly and proactively detect and resolve any clashes and respond to any on-site questions on construction and installation. 

Pushing boundaries

GSK are a highly innovative client and aren’t afraid to push boundaries to drive better project delivery. This flagship project is an excellent example of what this approach can achieve. Making full use of technology, such as the unprecedented level of BIM integration for the type of project, has enabled the successful coordination of the team and design on what is a large-scale and highly complex facility. The end result will future-proof the design of GSK’s biopharmaceutical sites across the world, delivering them significant cost savings on future design.