The Bottle Yard Studios is the largest dedicated film and television studio facility in the West of England. The Studios sit at the gateway to the West Country, one of the most versatile regions for filming in the country.

 

Less than half a mile away from the original site, The Bottle Yards new expansion facility, TBY2 Studios, has three sound stages measuring 20,000 sq ft, 16,500 sq ft and 7,000 sq ft. It has a clear span space offering uninterrupted set building potential, with ceiling heights of up to 34 ft. The new facility offers over 40,000 sq ft of additional ancillary space including serviced production offices, prop stores, construction workshops, costume/makeup and break out areas.

 

TBY2 Studio’s was once a disused warehouse on the Hawkfield Business Park that has since seen a full conversion into a modern, sound-proof, fully functional film studio. CMB Bristol got involved in the design stages of the project in collaboration with ISG to help make sure Bristol City Councils needs were met and offering financial advice for costs of the different aspects of the M&E works.

 

Due to the high demand for power on the project, the 3 news studios at TBY2 are each powered by a 1,000-amp board which supply the 400amp, 125amp, 16amp and 13amp commando and standard sockets positioned around project. Each studio is fully insulated and has been acoustically treated making them completely soundproof. The ventilation in the studios provides both heating and cooling and has been designed to be as quiet as possible to ensure there is no background noise while filming.

 

TBY2 studio has been designed and built with premium insulation in mind and has a sophisticated building management system that always optimises energy conservation. Its energy supply is supported by a giant 1MWp photovoltaic array, consisting of more than 2,000 panels - one of the biggest community-owned solar rooftop arrays in the UK. Electric vehicle points and cycling facilities support carbon neutral travel between TBY2 and the main Bottle Yard site.

 

CMB provided Mechanical and Electrical services for the project, including:

 

• Three Air Handling Units providing each of the studios with both Heating and Cooling via thirteen external condensers.

• DX cooling to each of the two comms rooms.

• Fabric ductwork throughout the studios to allow even distribution of air throughout the space.

• A BMS system controlling the electric heating and AHUs on the project to allow the project to be time clock controlled and running as economically as possible.

• A castell controlled main LV switch panel, which allows the building to be continually powered even if one transformer breaks down or needs maintenance.

• An array of high level and wall lights throughout the studios to provide lighting for filming and set building.

• High level containment throughout the entire project for our Electrical services with ample room for future use.

• Fire alarm, CCTV and Access Control complete with video entry linked to the original Bottle Yard site.

• Low level commando sockets have been strategically situated throughout the building to allow easy access to required power.

• Cat 6A Structured cabling across the building with easily accessible outlets

 

A huge thank you to the entire CMB Bristol team for their hard work on this project throughout the last 12 months. They handed this project over to a satisfied client on time and on budget.