Contractors working on one of Birmingham's largest new development projects say it will be completed in August.
BAM Construct is now in the home straight of the 26-storey 103 Colmore Row scheme which is towering over the city centre from its position at the corner with Newhall Street.
Once complete, it will have around 225,000 sq ft of office space, a ground-floor ‘winter garden' in the entrance and a sky bar and restaurant to be operated by London-based outfit D&D.
There will also be a 3,000 sq ft balcony terrace at floor 18 overlooking the Council House, Victoria Square and beyond.
John McCarthy, BAM's construction manager for the project, said: "Progress is going really well on site for which credit is due to the local supply chain which makes up more than 60 per cent of the orders BAM has placed for 103 Colmore Row.
"The site is operating covid-secure conditions for our workforce of more than 300 staff. The façade is complete and internal works are being carried out across the 26 floors above ground and four storeys of basement.
"We are currently developing a significant piece of artwork in memory of the late local artist John Pickering which will be displayed within the winter garden area of the main entrance of the building.
"We are on target to complete this iconic development, which will change the city's skyline, at the end of August."
The project, which is being led by developer Sterling Property Ventures and funder Tristan Capital Partners, has been a long time in the making.
John Madin's original 1970s NatWest Tower sat empty on the site after it was vacated in 2003 and several plans were subsequently mooted for its future but nothing came to fruition.
Demolition started in 2015 and had to be done floor by floor because of the tightly packed area in which it stood before being completed in spring 2017.
BAM says that almost 10,000 weeks of local employment have been carried out by staff from within ten miles of the project site while 114 students have worked on it through the company's links with Birmingham City University.
A total of 47 apprentices have worked on the development alongside several weeks of placements for students.
The development team is also launching a dedicated app for the address, said to be a first for a commercial office building in Birmingham.
The bespoke app has been created for occupiers and visitors and has features such as contactless door and lift access, virtual concierge services and meeting room booking.
The app will also provide the on-site property and facilities management team with real time data and information about the building's energy performance and usage by tenants.
The app has been developed by London-based prop-tech firm Cureoscity.
