SWEAT! Gyms has recently launched two new clubs – Glasgow, Scotland and Denton, Manchester – doubling the number of sites in their portfolio. These clubs are an excellent addition to the existing ones in Sheffield and Walsall.

A significant investment has been made, giving the clubs a high quality appearance. The bright and airy design has received an excellent response from its new members. One area that has seen a significant investment is the changing rooms, with Safe Space Lockers selected as the preferred partner for the two recent clubs.

Managing director of Safe Space Lockers, Dominic Hyett, said: “This is a great opportunity for us. To have the chance to work with a quality budget operator like SWEAT! is a real joy. SWEAT! has raised the bar by creating a high-end finish in all areas of the club.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a low budget gym, there’s no excuse for a club not to deliver a hard wearing, quality product. That’s exactly what SWEAT! has achieved here.

“We know that when we take on a project like this it’s not just the customer that we need to please. The real challenge and ultimate test is when gym users see it, and so far, we’ve had a 100 per cent satisfaction rate.”

Fresh design
Safe Space Lockers has worked closely with the designers and architects to achieve the right look and feel within the changing rooms. The brief was to create a light and airy atmosphere and enhance the brand of SWEAT!

A bold splash of vibrant colour was used for the lockers, bench seating and vanities. Large numbers were etched on the locker doors creating an eye-catching feature. Commercial director, Jamie Mair, said: “We decided to partner with Safe Space Lockers as their range and finish of products sat well with our vision.

“From the initial enquiry to completion of the project, the team has been accommodating, professional and prompt. Their service and attention to detail is outstanding and second to none.

“We’ve been delighted with the team and we hope to work with Safe Space Lockers again in the future.”

In February 2017, Solan Fitness opened its second gym in East Grinstead, West Sussex. Designed to offer its members premium quality, the 15,000ft² facility aims to build on the success of the brand’s first gym in Orpington, which opened in 2015 and was voted the UK’s Best Strength Training Gym at the National Fitness Awards that same year.

While the gym openings are recent, the team isn’t new to the industry; the founders were previous owners of a successful martial arts club in South East London, which counts several national and international champions amongst its alumni.

Central to the appeal of Solan Fitness gyms are their strength training offering. The new East Grinstead club has no fewer than 50 pieces of strength equipment, while the Orpington site is an official Hammer Strength Training Centre – one of only 33 gyms in the UK to have this accreditation. “Our mission is to take strength training facilities mainstream, making them easily accessible to all those who want to achieve serious results,” explains owner Rachelle Solan.

Cybex equipment was chosen for its high quality and build-to-order policy, which allowed the Solan brand to be incorporated throughout. Francesca Cooper, regional sales manager for Cybex, says:

“Every piece of equipment was carefully selected to ensure that the gym not only delivers on its focus as a specialist strength training facility but crucially, that it also appeals to members of all training abilities and interests.”

An extensive offering
The new gym includes strength equipment from Cybex’s Eagle NX and Prestige selectorised series, Big Iron racks and lifting platforms, an extensive range of free weights and plate loaded equipment, a nine-station Jungle Gym and the Bravo Functional Trainer.

The gym’s cardio provision is also very extensive, with Cybex’s 700 series treadmills, lower and total body Arc Trainers, and 600 series recumbent and upright bikes, all with E3 View embedded entertainment screens. Life Fitness Powermills, Row GX Trainers and Concept2 SkiErgs complement the cardio provision, while Cybex’s self-powered SPARCs feature in the gym’s dedicated HIIT zone.

Solan said: “Cybex’s heritage lies in sports science and biomechanics and this is something that we’re very passionate about – our staff are trained to educate people and the diverse range of equipment supports our aim to build a broad membership demographic.”

Member support
At the forefront of Solan Fitness’ philosophy are its club members. “We’re really passionate about making a positive difference to people’s lives and we believe that fitness is central to this,” explained Solan.

The gym adopts a holistic approach to training and helping its members get results – the East Grinstead club offers a sports supplements store, restaurant lounge, fuel drinks bar and physiotherapy clinic, all located onsite.

The club also hosts regular social and community events including fundraisers, seminars and DJ nights. Every Friday, members can also ‘bring a friend for free’ – a popular scheme that welcomes potential new members into the gym.

“We’re ambitious and have strong visions of where Solan Fitness will be within the next five years,” said Solan. “We aim to expand the number of clubs significantly, with each one retaining the core values of Solan, while offering a unique twist to keep training fun, fresh and motivating.”

Pure World Energy (PWE), the specialist in energy management, has provided an on-site clean energy solution at Woughton Leisure Centre, which is the largest multi-sport site in Milton Keynes.

The installation of a single C65 Capstone micro turbine combined heat and power (CHP) unit will deliver savings of up to £210,000 for the company over the next 15 years and reduce the facility’s carbon footprint.

The installation involved a number of obstacles that the PWE team had to overcome, including the removal of an old boiler, which required special attention due to the asbestos content. A new flue stack was designed after a full site survey ruled out the use of the existing one.

Immediate savings
Woughton Leisure Centre’s operator 1Life Management Solutions appointed PWE as its preferred energy partner, working in partnership with Milton Keynes District Council. PWE initially carried out a detailed site analysis to identify immediate savings for both consumption and carbon emissions.

The centre recently benefited from a £1.5m investment, including five new group exercise studios, new changing rooms and a Costa Coffee café, in addition to the existing 20 metre swimming pool, four-court indoor sports hall, 34-station gym and full-size floodlit football pitch.

This community-focused leisure centre is already achieving immediate savings in energy costs and carbon emissions, without any financial outlay or additional resource.

Generating confidence
Investment in the new low maintenance energy system, owned and operated by PWE, will reduce up to 130 metric tonnes of CO? and generate up to 370,000 kWh of electricity and 680,000 kWh of heat per annum. The new CHP unit that replaced the defective boiler is also saving the leisure centre additional repair or replacement costs.

Emma Lloyd, contract manager for Milton Keynes said: “The installation of a fully-funded Capstone 65 Gas Turbine is making a significant difference to our utility costs at Woughton. We’ve valued the expertise provided by PWE and found that the new system, tailored to our requirements, gives us greater control over energy consumption. The CHP unit is seamlessly integrated to act as lead boiler while generating electricity displaced from the National Grid without any disruption to the service that we provide to the local community.”

Steve Bambury, director of operations at Pure World Energy, commented: “Having a progressive energy management strategy gives Woughton Leisure Centre a competitive advantage, putting them fully in control of consumption and costs. Zero upfront costs and immediate risk-free savings mean peace of mind for the team.”

PWE has CHP units in five other 1Life facilities plus a two-year agreement with the leisure operator to deliver outsourced energy management across all 45 facilities within the 1Life estate. ?