Nationwide Interiors have had the honour of being chosen to supply and install the specialist Joinery Fit-out element of the new BBC Studios located at Media City in the heart of Salford Quays, Manchester. This highly prestigious contract has a current pre-site value of £2.1 Million pounds and our involvement begins in May 2009 and is expected to have a duration of just over twelve months.
Media City UK has been designed to provide a purpose-built home for creative and digital businesses. The first phase, spread over 36 acres, will be completed in 2011 but there is the potential to utilise up to 200 acres of land over the next decade, depending on demand.
The BBC will move around 2,500 staff to Media City UK, which will involve relocating five London-based departments, along with all local and network broadcasting currently operating out of Manchester city centre. The University of Salford will also have a presence at Media City UK, with a brand new campus for more than 800 students and staff.
Media City UK will house one of the largest high definition studio facilities in Europe, featuring seven HD television studios and two audio studios (one dedicated to the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra).
Centred around a waterfront public realm area twice the size of London’s Trafalgar Square, Media City UK will be a destination in its own right, complete with bars, cafés and restaurants. The development’s piazza has been designed to accommodate large-scale events for up to 9,000 people, making it a natural focal point both day and night.
