WRU stars open Admiral House, Newport
Local employer, Admiral has celebrated the official opening of its Newport office by Welsh rugby player Jamie Roberts and three other members of the team.
Jamie, along with George North, Dan Biggar and Dan Lydiate joined Admiral's CEO Henry Engelhardt to mark the official opening of the city centre office. Representatives from many of the organisations involved in the building also attended the event.
Following the ceremony, the rugby players took time to walk around the building to meet with the staff who work in the specially built 6 storey, 80,800 sq ft office block located on Queensway, directly opposite Newport railway station.
More than 600 staff are based in the Newport office having moved from Langstone Business Park to the city centre in June 2014. BDE Law, also part of Admiral Group, moved from premises in Cardiff to the office in August.
Admiral CEO, Henry Engelhardt said, "Today has been a great day and we're delighted to officially open this fantastic building which is a superb environment for our staff to work in. A lot of hard work and dedication went into the planning and construction of the building, not to mention moving our staff in, and today has been a fitting tribute.
"To be joined by four distinguished players from the Welsh team ahead of the Autumn Internationals is a real honour. Our staff were naturally overjoyed to have the chance to meet them and we're really proud to say they opened Admiral House in Newport."
Jamie Roberts said, "It's been a real privilege for myself and the other players to be invited to open this fantastic building and we really enjoyed meeting and chatting to the people who work here.
"Our relationship with Admiral is great and every time we visit the Admiral offices, we're always made to feel unbelievably welcome and we really cannot fault Admiral staff in their support of the team."
Kyria Huntbach, Admiral staff member from the Newport Claims department said, "Our new building is fantastic and we've already made it home and settled in really well. It's super convenient being in the city centre. It means I can run errands during my lunch break if I need to or do some shopping, and I'm able to socialise with colleagues after work.
"To have the building opened by the Welsh rugby team is a huge privilege, and the fact they also took the time to walk around the office for photos and autographs with all of us was fantastic."
About Admiral House:
- The building's fresh air is provided by two air handling units both of which are the size of a mini bus.
- The chiller providing the air conditioning for the building is the size of a single decker bus.
- In the event of a power failure a generator the size of a tractor will keep the building data centre and all phones operational for 24 hours.
- The building contains approximately 120km of wiring.
- A central atrium with striking staircase between floors ensures daylight is supplied to inside and outdoor walls reducing energy usage through lighting.
- The development includes a plaza with 4 retail units.
- It is a BREEAM Excellent rated building.
- Natural daylight and excellent acoustics to provide an outstanding working environment.