A case study of control room furniture as part of Network Rail’s overhaul of Birmingham New Street.
As one of the busiest stations outside London, handling over 170,000 passengers daily, the control rooms are at the heart of New Street’s daily operations. Winsted was awarded the tender to equip several operational rooms at the station with furniture designed to meet ‘Section 12’ (fire and safety legislation) requirements. The products were sourced from manufacturer Winsted’s range of consoles and related equipment, designed for the rail industry.
Winsted’s Section 12 consoles for rail applications consist of modular powder coated steel assemblies and are available as stock items, with Trespa work surfaces that match the console finish. The custom furniture comprised two large consoles accommodating up to eight operators with two smaller consoles in adjacent rooms, with fire retardant storage units. All furniture was aesthetically designed to complement the fresh and airy rooms the makers add.
Julie McGill, Winsted’s UK Sales Manager says the equipment is ergonomically designed to help maximise the operators’ monitoring: “We’re very pleased with the installation, which meet all of the client’s operational requirements,” She notes. “The furniture’s modular design also allows for future configuration changes if needs should evolve.”
About the firm
Winsted adds that its custom design service incorporates ergonomic expertise to ensure that operators benefit from appropriate knee space, viewing distances, sight lines, view-over heights, reach and related elements for comfortable, efficient and effective working.
