The new £49 million Biochemistry building at the University of Oxford has been supplied with its furniture by Allitec. The company has been supplying the University for several years but it was a combination of competitive tendering and an understanding of both the aspirations and the needs of the Biochemistry Department that saw the company win the opportunity to furnish this most prestigious building. This is the latest development by the University
which has ambitious plans over the next fifteen years to fundamentally
re-develop the Science Area.

Designed by Hawkins\Brown architects and project managed and constructed by Laing O’Rourke, this distinctive 12,000 square metre facility with its glass facades and coloured fins brings together 300 lecturers, researchers and students previously based in a number of separate buildings. Inside a 400 square metre atrium with breakout spaces and specially commissioned artworks encourages collaboration between the researchers.

The Biochemistry Department at Oxford University is the largest in the UK and is internationally renowned for its research in the understanding of DNA, cell growth and immunity. Previously the department’s scientists have had to conduct research in outmoded buildings spread across the Science Area in the centre of Oxford.

Allitec took the opportunity to introduce some truly innovative furniture which has considerably added to the overall effect of the building. Allitec were supported throughout the project by their principal manufacturing partner, Verco Office Furniture and it was their Oblique desking range which was selected as the basis for the office areas together with the Pop office chair. The clean lines of Oblique, finished in a white frame and with beech veneer tops, offer a crisp
uncluttered feel to the working environment into which are placed some
classically iconic pieces of furniture.

Specially designed for the building were a series of white tables from Verco which provided not only the restaurant areas but occasional areas throughout coupled with the vibrant colours of the Catifa chairs. Finally, not to be outdone, Allitec itself designed and manufactured a series of tables and benches for the roof garden and courtyard. This external furniture, under the name of Dura, has now become a standard product of the company.

When Arik Air International, the leading Nigerian airline were granted their first ‘slot’ at Heathrow in November 2008, they were scheduled to be flying by Christmas and needed a working office for their operations staff in Terminal 2 at very short notice. Allitec were able to supply desking, seating and storage for Arik as well as arrange for the complete re-decoration and fit-out of the offices in time for the first international scheduled flights to Lagos.

Senior General Manager for Arik, Conor Prendergast, said “Allitec really stepped in for us and took away our problems of getting an office sorted out while we at Arik were able to concentrate on getting our planes flying. They did a great job and nothing was too much for them. As we expand our international routes further and require more furniture for our offices, Allitec will be very much our partners.”

Arik Air International are now planning their next routes to Johannesburg and then on to New York – the sky’s the limit!

Over the four decades that Sunseeker has been building boats it has evolved from a brand into an icon. To possess a Sunseeker has become an aspiration to many, to some an obsession. To own a Sunseeker is to buy into a style and to make the ultimate lifestyle statement. When only the best will do in luxury and performance, Sunseeker provides it.

Allitec has been supplying Sunseeker on an on-going basis for several years with technical chairs for their production areas. To be chosen to supply a company so committed to the very best is a great accolade for Allitec and we can only hope to aspire to achieving such a name for quality and performance.

Tussauds Studios in West London house the production facilities for Madame Tussauds, including sculpture studios, engineering workshops, design studios, animatronic assembly, wax modelling and plaster workshops.

Allitec have provided on an on-going basis their Ohmega draughtsman chairs for the workshops to be used by their artists. The chairs were supplied with vinyl upholstery to enable them to be easily cleaned which was paramount given the environment in which they were being used.

As Britain’s third largest airport, Stansted Airport has served over the last year 22.8 million passengers travelling to 162 different destinations in 34 countries. If you have travelled through Stansted over the last year you will have been through security where Opus chairs supplied by Allitec are used by all security staff supervising passenger security clearance.

If you travelled by train to Stansted then you may well have seen our ePU polyurethane chairs as used by the platform security details. Allitec has become associated with robust seating solutions for demanding environments and this is just one example.

The Halley Station in Antarctica was first manned in 1956 to conduct research into meteorology, glaciology, seismology and geospace science for the International Geophysical Year. After this ended, the station was handed over to the British Antarctic Survey who have maintained a permanent presence ever since.

Through Morris Construction, now part of Galliford Try, Allitec were requested to provide a durable seating solution for the research areas and the Opus polyurethane stool with an aluminium finish was deemed to be the most appropriate solution for the team..