30 years of Multifix - our biggest projects
Turning 30 as a business offers us a rare opportunity to press pause for a few seconds. It allows us to reflect on not only where the time has gone, but what has been done with that time.
It’s certainly a nice moment as it reminds us just how far we’ve come and how lucky we are to have been a part of so many special projects.
It goes without saying that we appreciate that we play a small part in every project our services have been utilised for. However, there have been some projects that have really stood out over the years.
In this article, we have identified six of the biggest projects that we have been fortunate enough to have supplied fixings for.
The fact that some of these projects include major UK landmarks is a source of great pride for us, as it’s very special to say we were involved with them.
Wembley Stadium
When it was announced that The Home of Football™, otherwise known as Wembley Stadium, was to be demolished and rebuilt, it’s fair to say it was a big job.
So much so that the ambitious plans to transform the stadium, including the arch, saw the project veer way over budget. What was meant to cost £325m ended up costing £798m.
However, the finished product is one that is remarkable, with the stadium continuing to be an iconic landmark of both London and the UK.
The new Wembley is one of the best sporting stadiums in the world, in addition to being an incredible concert venue.
Many of the world’s biggest artists have played there, while the sporting history amassed since it opened in 2007 is impressive. The arch has also done a great job of replacing the much-loved Twin Towers of the old stadium.
For the Wembley project, Multifix supplied products for the doors, as well as providing joinery supplies.
Heathrow Terminal 5
A project a long time in the making, the opening ceremony of the fifth terminal for Heathrow Airport was certainly a landmark event.
Opened by Queen Elizabeth II in March 2008, Heathrow Terminal 5 is capable of accommodating over 30 million passengers per year. According to a recent study from The Independent, it’s the busiest terminal in England.
September 2023 saw an average of 100,000 passengers a day arrive or depart Heathrow, with Terminal 5 becoming the main hub for British Airways.
Construction cost £4.2bn and lasted six years, with the start of the project kicking off in September 2002. What makes this remarkable is that it came nine years after the expansion was first formally proposed.
The scale of Heathrow Terminal 5 is staggering in its own right, with the floor area covering nearly 3.8 million square feet.
For the construction of Terminal 5, Multifix supplied the channel support systems for the decorative ceiling that you see as you walk in.
The Shard
The tallest building in the UK and London’s most recent skyscraper, The Shard is one of the most innovative building designs in the world.
Costing £435m to build over a three-year period, The Shard has 95 floors and stands at 1016 ft, also making it one of the largest buildings in Europe.
It has since become the home to TV studios and over 26 floors of offices. In addition, many people go to The Shard for a view of London, as well as dining experiences.
Also, because of the way the building has a glass exterior, it is something of a very unique design. This is one of the reasons why it has become such a popular landmark.
For the construction of The Shard, Multifix supplied a number of carpentry fixings for the site, in addition to several power tool accessories.
Westfield
The largest shopping centre in the UK and Europe, Westfield in White City was a massive project that cost £1.6bn to complete.
Boasting over 400 stores, the shopping centre opened in 2008 after a five-year build. The build itself overcame several challenges, including facilitating Underground access and even disposing of unexploded World War II bombs.
At the time of its launch, it was the biggest shopping centre in the UK. However, after an expansion in 2012, it became the biggest in Europe as well.
The popularity of Westfield in White City saw plans for a Westfield in Stratford to be built. This is adjoined to both Stratford tube station and Stratford International and is also adjacent to London’s Olympic Park.
The Westfield in Stratford is the fourth largest shopping centre in England and opened in September 2011. There are 350 stores and services at Stratford, including around 70 restaurants.
Multifix had a helping hand in both initial Westfield developments, as we provided the joinery supplies for both sites.
Olympic Park
When it was announced in 2005 that London would be the first city to host three Olympic Games, the nation celebrated and rightfully so. After the celebrations though, lots of hard work happened to make sure the games could commence.
This included building a brand new, purpose-built Olympic Park, which was designated for Stratford in London.
This contained the London Stadium, the Olympic swimming pool, the ArcelorMittal Orbit observation tower and the Olympic Village, among other sporting venues.
Over 80,000 workers set about making the plans a reality and after three years and a cost of £455m, the project was complete.
Since the 2012 games, which brought moments permanently etched in UK sporting history, there have been some changes. The stadium has been converted to accommodate West Ham United, while the Olympic Village has been turned into accommodation.
Nevertheless, the legacy of the games goes on and the stadium is used for many other sports and concerts now. For the project, Multifix provided carpentry fixings, decking and site welfare products.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
One of the more recent major projects that we have been involved with, the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, is very noteworthy.
When Spurs decided they had outgrown White Hart Lane and opted to knock it down and rebuild over it, like Wembley, a lot of work needed to be done.
Construction started in 2016 and three years and a billion pounds later, the 62,850-capacity multi-purpose stadium was built.
In addition to being a world-class football stadium, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is also the UK home for the NFL. Other sports have been hosted there too, while it is being frequently used as a concert venue.
Some of the facilities at the stadium are some of the best in the world, including the retractable pitch, preserving the football one from the NFL one.
Multifix provided a wide variety of products for the site, including temporary protection, site consumables and PPE, studding and carpentry fixings.
Taking immense pride in what we have achieved
Our growth over the last 30 years has been incredible. We have gone from an idea from two brothers to helping construct some of the UK’s most notable landmarks.
As we said earlier, to have played a part in these projects coming to life is very special for us as a company. Hopefully, there will be many more to add to this list as the years go by.
Ultimately though, it gives us great pride to be a part of any project – whether it’s Wembley or a small building.
If you would like to get in contact with us to help you with your project, we’d love to hear from you. You can get in touch with us here.