COPELAND LODBERRY RENOVATION PROCESS

Keep up to date with the renovation process of our new training facility, the Copeland Lodberry.

In November of last year, Ocean Kinetics purchased the historic Copeland Lodberry on Lerwick’s seafront with plans to renovate the 200-year-old building into a new training facility. Lodberries, once numerous in Shetland but now rare, were merchants’ dwellings usually from the 17th or 18th centuries which included a house, courtyard, warehouse and pier.

Planning permission was granted in June, and renovations are well underway.  Our priority is to restore and preserve the building so that it continues to serve as a prominent feature of the town for centuries to come. The first phases of the project have therefore been to make the building wind and watertight. The erection of the scaffolding was an early challenge, given that it was part in and part out of the sea.

The original slates and timbers were in very poor condition, and are being replaced with new wood and traditional Welsh slates. Meanwhile, a stone mason is carefully repairing the stonework.

All the work for the project is being carried out by local craftsmen and in addition to the work on the house itself, the lodberry’s courtyard and pier are also being repaired, with the deck of the pier being relaid to allow it to be used safely. In the house, the ground floor will be covered in traditional stone flagstones, reusing the old flags wherever possible.

The timber trusses and floor will follow and, in keeping with our wish to use local craftspeople, traditional windows are being made locally.

Following this, the next phase of the project will be flood prevention and groundwork.

The project architect is Colin Sim from Malcolmson Architects and engineer is Karl Tait from Arch Henderson.