Suresh Collett

Ryder Landscape Consultants were invited to work alongside Wates Construction and APD Architects to produce concept designs for a new, mixed use housing estate in Preston. Ran by the Homes & Communities Agency the team was short-listed to the final stage.

Key character areas within the overall masterplan were developed which would provide a design principle for similar areas within the scheme. These included, new public parks and linear parks that would incorporated play spaces, nature… Show more

Ryder Landscape Consultants were invited to work alongside Wates Construction and APD Architects to produce concept designs for a new, mixed use housing estate in Preston. Ran by the Homes & Communities Agency the team was short-listed to the final stage.

Key character areas within the overall masterplan were developed which would provide a design principle for similar areas within the scheme. These included, new public parks and linear parks that would incorporated play spaces, nature ponds and meadow grass lands. Public spaces around the existing canal frontage and commercial hotspots were developed to introduce community zones and focal points that were all linked by shared surfaces that promoted social interaction.

The adjacent Lea Park was also redesigned and a new path network that provided linkages to the surrounding areas as well as the new development were proposed. New nature areas, allocations for community allotments and multi-use games areas were incorporated allowing the park to become more functional for users.
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As part of Chester Zoos ongoing improvements and expansion, Ryder Landscape Consultants were approached following the successful implementation of the Chester Zoo Main Entrance to design the new Chester Zoo Nature Reserve. The brief included the creation of areas where educational talks and presentations could take place, interpretation points and areas of ecological improvement. The topography of the site featured a fairly substantial slope and any design would have to take this into… Show more

As part of Chester Zoos ongoing improvements and expansion, Ryder Landscape Consultants were approached following the successful implementation of the Chester Zoo Main Entrance to design the new Chester Zoo Nature Reserve. The brief included the creation of areas where educational talks and presentations could take place, interpretation points and areas of ecological improvement. The topography of the site featured a fairly substantial slope and any design would have to take this into consideration.

The proposals included a stepped amphitheatre around a bound gravel event area that was cut into the existing site slope. Grass matting was laid on the amphitheatre to create grassed seating allowing it to become integrated into the landscape. Timber steps were then incorporated along with a ramped access. To the east of the site there was a natural low to the topography of the land creating an area of swamp. This was fed by the land drains of the adjacent Chester Zoo car park and so was an ideal spot for a natural dipping pond. This area was proposed to be excavated so that it held more water and a timber dipping platform was implemented. Native woodland and scrub planting were also proposed and implemented to improve the ecological diversification on the site.

Ryder Landscape Consultants were further appointed to produce the tender documents following the successful planning application and contract administered the project to completion. Show less

As part of my Role at Ryder's I was asked in 2012 to implement a new BIM (Building Information Modelling) process to the company so that we could meet the governments deadline to be level 2 compliant by 2016.

We are now the proud owners of both Autodesk Revit and 3D Civils. Having seen an increasing demand from our existing clients and with one eye to attracting new ones, we felt the time was right to take the plunge. Having spent a period of time debating what the best software for us,… Show more

As part of my Role at Ryder's I was asked in 2012 to implement a new BIM (Building Information Modelling) process to the company so that we could meet the governments deadline to be level 2 compliant by 2016.

We are now the proud owners of both Autodesk Revit and 3D Civils. Having seen an increasing demand from our existing clients and with one eye to attracting new ones, we felt the time was right to take the plunge. Having spent a period of time debating what the best software for us, as Landscape Architects, is we finally settled on Revit and 3D Civils. They are fully compatible and when combined allow us to work closely with the rest of the design team and contactor on those elements of a scheme we are used to controlling and influencing, Revit for above ground proposals and 3D Civils for land form and below ground proposals. We are now able to combine our model with that of an architects or civil engineers to better understand how a scheme works and where the clashes are.

As a result of our investment we have recently become an active member of the North Wales BIM Hub and we look forward to working with the rest of the hub team to promote BIM across the North Wales Region.

With a number of schemes already testing our new found skills and capabilities and some exciting ones in the pipeline, we look forward to benefiting from the efficiencies working in 3D will bring us and our clients. We are currently working at BIM level 2 and hope to further this as we meet and work with other BIM proficient consultants and clients. Show less

The current promenade lies in the location of what was once was the old medieval promenade adjacent to the historic Caernarfon Town Walls built by Edward which is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument and part of the World Heritage Site ‘The Castles and Town Walls of Edward 1 in Gwynedd’. It is considered one of Caernarfon’s prime assets, providing links between Victoria Harbour, the Caernarfon Town Walls and Slate key. It also offers panoramic views of the Menai Strait towards Anglesey. However… Show more

The current promenade lies in the location of what was once was the old medieval promenade adjacent to the historic Caernarfon Town Walls built by Edward which is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument and part of the World Heritage Site ‘The Castles and Town Walls of Edward 1 in Gwynedd’. It is considered one of Caernarfon’s prime assets, providing links between Victoria Harbour, the Caernarfon Town Walls and Slate key. It also offers panoramic views of the Menai Strait towards Anglesey. However over time the promenade has declined and becoming un-inviting and dull due to the mass tarmac surface and lack of lighting making it unsafe in the dark winter months.

The brief was to create a vibrant new public space that complimented the existing town walls and surrounding area. The new public space should be accessible by everyone and opened up to cyclists providing a link between Lôn Las Menai with Lôn Eifion. It would also need to offer the ability to stage future events and have the utilities such as electricity supply’s to be able to run them. Lighting was also an important design element as this would allow the site to be enjoyed at night.

The design created a space that was bold and clean and complimented the historic background of Caernarfon and its Town Walls. The treatment of the surfacing was very important due to the location of the site being next to the sea and prone to flooding from high waves. The solution was to replace the existing tarmac surface with resin bound aggregate as it was permeable but still allowed us flexibility with the design by creating patterns within the surface. High quality paving areas were introduced to emphasis seating areas away from the promenade which would include relocated historical artifacts that paid homage to the areas past and current maritime history.

Following completion the project won a Roy Edwards award for sustainability. Show less

I was appointed design lead to produce a high-quality public realm scheme to regenerate the existing Darwen Market Square. The proposals saw the demolition of the existing 3-day indoor market to make room for the new proposals that would include, an open area for events, a social relaxation space, public art and outdoor seating area.

The site includes a historic market wall that features the original store units from the 1900's. This was retained and made a feature within the… Show more

I was appointed design lead to produce a high-quality public realm scheme to regenerate the existing Darwen Market Square. The proposals saw the demolition of the existing 3-day indoor market to make room for the new proposals that would include, an open area for events, a social relaxation space, public art and outdoor seating area.

The site includes a historic market wall that features the original store units from the 1900's. This was retained and made a feature within the proposals.

As design lead, I was responsible for producing the concept drawings and preferred design and presenting them to the client and key stakeholders. I was lead the coordination between the key disciplines to ensure that the designs between the externals works, civils engineers, lighting engineers and structural engineers we coordinated before tender and construction packages were produced. Show less

A large flood storage area is proposed to help protect Banbury from flooding from the River Cherwell. The works extending for 3km could have a dramatic effect on the local pastoral landscape of this clay river valley. Habitat mitigation include scrapes, river diversions, ox-bow lakes, hedgerow reinstatement, wildflower meadow and native woodland whilst promoting public access improvements.

Suresh acted as the visiting Landscape Architect dealing with any landscape related issues on site… Show more

A large flood storage area is proposed to help protect Banbury from flooding from the River Cherwell. The works extending for 3km could have a dramatic effect on the local pastoral landscape of this clay river valley. Habitat mitigation include scrapes, river diversions, ox-bow lakes, hedgerow reinstatement, wildflower meadow and native woodland whilst promoting public access improvements.

Suresh acted as the visiting Landscape Architect dealing with any landscape related issues on site and checking any environmental impacts created by the construction phase of the scheme. He also was responsible for assisting on the design of the overall landscape reinstatement works and any environmental mitigation that resulted from the implementation of the new flood defences. Show less

After winning a national architectural design competition with Architects K2 we have been challenged with providing an exciting and vibrant urban park in a harsh coastal environment. The park has to act as a town focus, allow the water sports enthusiasts to enter and exit the sea and integrate fully new coastal defences.

Suresh assisted in producing the detailed design for the tender documents as well as going on to help with the construction issues that were raised during the… Show more

After winning a national architectural design competition with Architects K2 we have been challenged with providing an exciting and vibrant urban park in a harsh coastal environment. The park has to act as a town focus, allow the water sports enthusiasts to enter and exit the sea and integrate fully new coastal defences.

Suresh assisted in producing the detailed design for the tender documents as well as going on to help with the construction issues that were raised during the construction phase. Show less

The Nottingham Flood Alleviation Scheme included the design and implementation of new flood defences over 27km of the River Trent as well as creating over 8 hectares of new national Bio-diversity Action Plan habitat within a Site of Specialist Scientific Interest.

Suresh was site based in Nottingham acting as a on-site Landscape Architect dealing with the main contractor and key stake holders on landscape related issues. He dealt with construction issues on site and fed back information… Show more

The Nottingham Flood Alleviation Scheme included the design and implementation of new flood defences over 27km of the River Trent as well as creating over 8 hectares of new national Bio-diversity Action Plan habitat within a Site of Specialist Scientific Interest.

Suresh was site based in Nottingham acting as a on-site Landscape Architect dealing with the main contractor and key stake holders on landscape related issues. He dealt with construction issues on site and fed back information that would need to be dealt with back in the main office in Chester.
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