The brief, developed between the client Senior Flexonics, project manager and Wylde, was to create a flagship engineering and manufacturing innovation centre, providing outstanding facilities for staff and customers alike.  

The principal design goals were to create functional yet inspiring workspaces for staff, foster a stronger connection between production teams and office staff, and build a clear sense of identity and place that reflects the products they make and the surrounding Welsh landscape. 

The building was reduced to shell and core, re-roofed, re-clad, re-glazed, and fitted with a new M&E system for more efficient production and office spaces.  

The extensive strip out and demolitions allowed Wylde to redesign the building language to meet the needs of both staff and visiting clients. On arrival, visitors enter the remarkable and surprising Town Hall & Greeting area, which links impressively to the first floor, with a feature staircase rising through an open atrium.

The Town Hall area on the ground floor provides space for lunches but is also an alternative area for work and meetings. This space links office and production and is large enough to be able to address the whole team together, providing a shared ‘heart’ of the facility for all to gather and feel welcomed as one team. 

Senior had outgrown their outdated and tired building. They were unable to expand their production capacity or update the existing machinery easily. Admin, R & D, and production facilities were fragmented across several office spaces in the 1970s building and a second production building a few miles away. It was decided to leave both buildings behind and create their new facility within a much larger industrial unit, built around 25 years earlier on the site of the Oakdale Colliery, thus providing an opportunity to bring the whole operation together in a cohesive, efficient and integrated way, with capacity for future expansion in both production and office areas. 

We carefully considered the overall first floor space plan, creating pockets of flexible open plan areas placed between confidential office areas, allowing production, R & D and admin staff to work alongside each other in smaller manageable spaces. Large, glazed openings separate office from production, visually connecting the levels together, enhancing the sense of teamwork, and showcasing the investment in state-of-the-art production equipment below.

Technical patterns carved into acoustic walls and ceiling materials, photography of key components, and product display walls, are constant reminders that the purpose of Senior Flexonics is to produce high quality products. It’s thrilling to witness a new state-of-the-art piece of equipment being added to the overall production capability; it’s all there on show, taking centre stage for everyone to see. 

The client was enthusiastic to introduce modern ways of working, with a variety of different settings in an open-plan design, something they previously lacked. Meeting spaces, quiet pods and breakout areas provide options for quiet concentrated work or video calls, which would otherwise be disruptive in open plan. The introduction of collaborative settings means teams can choose to sit together around high or low tables, with plenty of write-on surfaces for team interactions.

The senior management team are assigned cellular offices to carry out concentrated or confidential work. Green planting areas are strategically located throughout the offices, including a purpose made planter area for large and dramatic specimens, located below the feature staircase in the atrium. Biophilic panels and ceiling rafts adorn the Town Hall space. 

Management of acoustics in open plan workspaces has become increasingly important in recent years; it’s no longer a luxury but a necessity. Senior Flexonics embraced introduction of materials which make use of spaces more comfortable for staff, in all areas.  

Quiet / wellbeing rooms were a key design component from the outset, so following in the vein of reusing where we could, we repurposed some existing domestic L-shaped sofas, adding comfortable throws and cushions for those who need some down time or decompressing space.  

The client’s R&D innovation became part of the interior design application. Senior produce innovative products for the growing markets in the automotive and aerospace industries. It is a complex process, using fluid dynamics to analyse flows through pipes and plates. 

Part of the branding package illustrates this process graphically on a display wall. Each member of staff is represented on the wall as a shape in the flow pattern; each person signed the shape, and their signatures join the lines in the pattern.  

During the design development process, detailed evaluations were made, including the age and condition of external fabric, fire risk of insulation, and thermal performance. Consequently, the decision was taken to replace all roof and wall cladding, and most of the glazing, achieving a significantly improved lifecycle performance, thermal efficiency and reduced fire risk, consistent with the client's aspirations to create a flagship innovation centre. 

The project demonstrates a practical sustainability model, extending building life while improving operational performance. It showcases what can be achieved through ambition, collaboration and targeted public-sector support. It stands as a compelling case study for inward investment, reinforcing confidence among global corporations that South Wales offers the talent, infrastructure and governmental backing required to support high-value, innovation-led companies. 

A serendipitous part of the sustainability story was that Wylde were able to re-home 85% of the furniture from another of their clients, located in Cardiff, who were also re-locating to a new building.  but had chosen not to reuse a significant proportion of their existing desks, chairs, and other furniture. Wylde were confident of the furniture quality, having specified it 9 years earlier. A lengthy and detailed exercise was required to match the available stock with the designed scheme. It takes considerably more design time and consideration to seamlessly blend available products into a new scheme with exciting new products. A large quantity of acoustic ceiling rafts and light fittings were also salvaged from the same client, and reworked into new shapes and panels, at a fraction of the cost, and carbon footprint and genuinely supporting reuse. This rarely happens in practice because it takes more effort from the design and manufacturing teams to produce a successful scheme. The big benefits are of course significant saving of materials going to landfill and greatly reduced costs. 

The office areas have a backdrop of South Wales images integrated into large format acoustic products. Wylde worked exhaustively with the client, taking care to choose images that represent their South Wales location. The Senior Flexonics MD was closely invested in the whole design process and is coincidentally a keen photographer who was able to supply a number of key images that take centre stage in the office areas. Wylde also worked with a professional photographer, who is well known locally, to provide several interesting and unusual shots. These reinforce a sense of pride and place in the outstanding landscapes of South Wales. 

Senior had already considered the option of a purpose-built facility, but a financial feasibility study found this wasn't prudent. With financial assistance from their parent company, Senior PLC, and contributions from the Welsh Government's Economy Futures and Caerphilly Council, it was possible to undertake a major overhaul of the the 7,000m2 steel-framed warehouse, giving it a whole new lease of life. The restored industrial building now helps to support highly skilled engineering jobs in the Sirhowy Valley of South Wales.