May 16 2025

Proposals for bold, colliery-style industrial units have been proposed for the Fife town of Lochgelly to support the expansion of a local electricity installation service.

Bracewell Stirling Consulting, on behalf of Electricity Asset Services (EAS), has submitted a planning application for 0.6ha land north of its current facility. The corten steel build adopts a sawtooth profile and is dominated by a 24m 'colliery' style tower that also doubles as a wind turbine in a celebration of the area's industrial heritage.

In a statement, Bracewell Stirling told Urban Realm: “The proposal provides eight industrial units at The Avenue Industrial Estate, directly supporting EAS’s ongoing growth in the UK energy sector. Incorporating a dedicated staff breakout space and gym, offering panoramic views of the Lomond and Benarty Hills, the scheme is strategically designed to reinforce EAS’s presence as a key local employer while drawing on Lochgelly’s deep industrial and coal mining heritage.

"Architecturally, the development thoughtfully blends local history with practicality and modern sustainability goals. The use of Corten steel cladding references the area's colliery past, while sawtooth roof profiles not only enhance the industrial aesthetic but also maximise solar gain for PV panels. A distinctive colliery-style tower is designed to accommodate a vertical axis wind turbine, further underlining EAS’s commitment to renewable energy in a manner that is of its place."

A car park, HGV yard, and a large storage shed are also proposed as part of the development. 

3 Comments

#1 Posted by Shatner's Bassoon on 16 May 2025 at 10:00 AM

Great!

#2 Posted by Mansartarchi on 16 May 2025 at 13:30 PM

(Great) second year student design.

#3 Posted by End User #23123 on 16 May 2025 at 16:29 PM

The distant design is a little bit cute, cool and appealing actually, even if it feels a bit student-like It is certainly preferable to the usual boring corporate mid west trash that we see a lot of these days.

However, a significant concern is that the Corten steel may never be built due to the extremely high (branded) cost of that material, likely resulting in it being replaced by plastic or other undesirable alternatives.

Furthermore, the design layout's sad dominance by the car park is very questionable, particularly if the emphasis on charging points is intended to somehow justify this very dated idea.

Making other people swallow your lithium pollution is not a valid solution to the resource consumption-pollution-depletion-destruction-war issues that we see around.

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