HNW have steadily built a wealth of experience within the Blue Light sector, focused on the design and construction of new build fire stations and the refurbishment of existing facilities to follow decontamination and zoning best practice.  Most recently, HNW worked alongside West Sussex County Council and West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service in the creation of Platinum House in Horsham. This ground-breaking and award-winning project is a game changer for West Sussex, not only replacing an out-dated operational fire station, it also incorporates state-of-the-art training facilities, including classrooms, incident command suite, cold smoke tower, breathing apparatus suite and the region’s first Live Fire Training facility. The whole development places firefighter’s health and wellbeing as the top priority of the design and marks a significant milestone in the evolution of Sussex’s Fire & Rescue Service.

Our knowledge of the latest developments in decontamination and fire station design has enabled HNW to be instrumental in the drafting of Fire Station design guides for both West Sussex & Scottish Fire & Rescue Services. A key component for Fire & Rescue Service facilities is the decontamination process and associated zoning. The design component focuses on layout adjacencies, creating room clusters grouped into contaminated, transitional, clean zones, which are to be treated separately to avoid cross contamination. It is important for new build designs to be created with these principles in mind.

We have extensive knowledge of all types of fire training facilities and the provision of early-stage feasibilities. We continue to work alongside West Sussex County Council on assisting them to implement their Estates Improvement Plan for the remodelling of their existing fire stations. This programme sees a direct progression of work carried out by HNW from the initial analysis, viability and feasibility reports produced for all West Sussex’s 25 fire stations. Each station was studied, and plans developed for their adaption in order to meet the general principles of WSCC’s Design Guide. A first batch of designated fire stations will soon undergo significant improvement works to provide modern and professional working environments. The works will address key design issues such as decontamination and gender-neutral facilities, carbon reduction and the mental well-being of the individual fire fighters.

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