Duet, Salford Quays

Duet, at the heart of the vibrant Salford Quays area, is Manchester’s “most exciting new development”. The first Build to Rent scheme in MediaCityUK (home to the BBC, ITV, Ericsson, and in excess of 250 smaller media and digital businesses), the 220,000 sq. ft. residential project consists of two inter-connected 16-storey towers that house 270 luxury apartments. The concrete framed blocks, linked together at each floor with a corridor and lift lobbies, contain 18 apartments per floor (eight single, two two-bed and two three-bed apartments). Our innovative foundation and concrete frame solution helped realise the £35m project, which was designed specifically to give renters a “better quality” private rental experience – dubbed “superenting”.

Praised for “raising the bar in BTR accommodation”, Duet is a new “landmark” for Salford Quays. Its construction followed our successful completion of The Trilogy, another Manchester-based BTR project. In total, Duet boasts 270 luxury apartments, with add-ons, amenities and dedicated tech-enabled management platforms to provide a bespoke, hotel-style service to renters.

The ground floor area consists of a reception area, lift lobby area, common/meeting rooms, multi-purpose gym and offices. A podium level was incorporated between the ground floor and the first floor on which a garden and decked area promote social interaction between residents. The external envelope features an aluminium window system with ACM panels.

Architecturally, the inner courtyard is characterised by angled bays that frame views to the waterfront, while preventing apartments from overlooking each other. Folded panels add depth to the façade and coated metal panelling features on the outer elevations, staggered at three-level intervals, provide a subtle variation to the aesthetics of the façade.