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Brentford Football Club’s new training facility, named after former technical director Robert Rowan, has officially opened.
The Robert Rowan Performance Centre – which is likely to be in place for up to the next five years, will enable the club to continue to develop its plans for a new permanent performance centre.
The building was completed by modular building expert Portakabin in partnership with Ardent Sports and Fuse Architects, following a competitive tender.
Angela Lewis, hire manager for Portakabin, commented: “Everyone involved in this project felt a huge affinity with the aspirations of the design. The bespoke nature of the architect and the Club’s vision allowed us to really stretch ourselves from a delivery point of view.”
Tony Blanchard, regional manager for Portakabin said: “The speed at which we moved on this job meant if you blinked, you missed a milestone . Starting on site in May and handing over in November for the official opening in December is unheard of in a project this size and scale. Buildings like this happen once in a lifetime. The openness, honestly and collaboration we were able to exercise with Ardent and the Club meant it was a success.”
Design details down through the high specification finishes and state of the art equipment installed was carried into the layout and flow of the building. Every movement through the building emulates the Club’s end goal of excellence. There is a specialist symmetry to how the players exit the changing rooms and out onto the training pitch so it’s the same movement as when they head out to play at Gtech Community Stadium.
The bespoke roof terrace was completed with a specialist non-slip resin, poured to replicate wood so that corporate sponsors and guests can experience training sessions from the best possible viewpoint.
Phil Giles, Brentford FC director of football, said: “Our new Performance Centre, named after our former colleague and friend Robert Rowan, has vastly improved the day-to-day working conditions for our players and staff. We wanted a building that would enable us to provide our players and staff with Premier League facilities.
“We had a vision of a building that would enable our players and staff to work together closely. We wanted to raise the level of what we could offer while, at the same time, maintaining the atmosphere and togetherness that has been present for many years and helped us climb the league.”
