Wednesday 26 August 2009

Portable Kitchen at Middle Temple

PKL's experience of using Portable Kitchens allowed Middle Temple to continue catering during a refurbishment. The location of Middle Temple Great Hall, the age of the building and surrounding buildings meant PKL had to overcome a number of site restrictions including weight sensitive lanes and restricted space.

The complexity of the project meant months of site assessments and design drafts to allow for a workable facility in this location. The only way to construct a facility using mobile kitchens to meet all the catering needs and site requirements was to build upwards.

It was the first project of this type for PKL and the final design comprised a 4-level, 8 unit stacked system using ISO Portable Kitchens.

A link into the service areas of the Great Hall was incorporated and deliveries to each level of the facility were achieved by means of a hoist on one side of the gantry. A staircase was also built alongside the units to provide access to other levels.

The Great Hall stands amongst many other buildings in a small lane, PKL devised a carbon filtration extraction system that ensured any escaping grease or fumes would be caught preserving the buildings and immediate environment.

Wednesday 19 August 2009

PKL Hold Successful School Kitchens Forum

The London School Kitchens Forum in July, organised jointly by PKL and the Local Authority Caterers Association (LACA), addressed a number of key issues facing catering in schools.

Delegates included catering and facilities management specialists from a number of local authorities, as well as representatives from associations and central government.

A key focus of the day was to consider the opportunities to improve catering facilities within the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) and Primary Capital Programme initiatives, stimulating lively discussions between speakers and delegates.
Speakers included LACA Chair Berverley Baker, A partner from EC Harris and representatives from the School Food Trust. To read more on the outcomes of the Forum, and to register your interest for the Next PKL School Kitchens Forum, please vist the link below:

Friday 7 August 2009

Doha 2006 Asian Games Athletes Village and Media Press Centre Dining Facilities

The Asian Games is one of the largest sporting events in the World and XV Asiad in Doha proved no exception with athletes from a record number of 45 countries participating.

The athletes village dining facility catered for 10,000 athletes and 6,000 staff, and was capable of serving 60,000 meals a day and included seating for nearly 5,000 diners while kitchen and dining facilities supplied to the Media Press Centre (MPC) catered for up to 5,000 media personnel 24 hours a day.

All the foodservice equipment was provided from the PKL hire fleet and the key to the success of this project was the prefabrication of complex Portable Kitchen modules off site.

These were assembled in the UK and shipped, fully fitted to Doha. As well as equipment, the Portable Kitchens also contained the extraction systems, fire systems plus all wiring, plumbing and requisite health and safety features necessary for operation in Doha.

PKL are experts in delivering large scale temporary kitchen facilities for major events, and have also supplied similar facilities for the Commonwealth games in Manchester and Melbourne and the last three Olympic games.

For more information contact our hire team on 0845 840 4242 or e-mail hiresales@pkl.co.uk