Equine Construction were given the opportunity to work closely with one of the top trainers in Lambourn on a new American Barn to house 30 young racehorses.
This American barn is of a brick and block cavity construction using beautiful Mickelmarsh bricks for the exterior of the barn and paint grade concrete blocks internally.
The beautiful brick work was carried through to retaining walls and the stunning entrance walls with brick piers and automatic gates.
Equine Construction always tries to maximise the amount of natural light and ventilation in our buildings, this is vital for the welfare of the horses and we include this in the initial planning, design and materials used.
For this project we used an insulated composite roof with GRP rooflights over each stable for maximum natural light. The composite roof, as well as keeping the building cooler in summer and warmer in winter, is also much more aesthetically pleasing as it has a flatter profile than fibre cement and has a white underside which helps keep a light and airy feel within the building.
We also incorporated windows into the back wall of each stable where possible to allow for maximum ventilation, along with ventilation panels in both gable ends.
Working closely with the client, all of the external facilities such as lunge arenas and the horse walker were positioned for ease of running the yard and the safety of the horses. For example, the walker was positioned close to a set of sliding doors to minimise the distance from the barn for the young horses. The walkway was also finished in non-slip rubber pavers to match those used in the walker.
This beautiful project was set within the backdrop of the Lambourn valley with its rolling green hills and incorparated the following services
- Groundworks incorporating concrete foundations, drainage both internally and externally to the steel framed portal building under a Kingspan composite roof
- Concrete floors throughout
- Services for water and electricity
- Feed and tack rooms incorporated within the barn
- Preparation for the installation of 30 quality German stables
- Laying of approx. 40,000 bricks and blocks
- Preparation for horse walkers and lunging arena
- Footpaths and carparking areas
- Bespoke ramps for unloading and loading of horses along with muck trailers
- Retaining walls
- Impressive entrance walls and gates