Judge has now awarded museum more than £2m from Manchester-based AEW due to project’s major technical problems
Museum of Liverpool architect AEW has been ordered to pay a further £1.24m in damages under a new court ruling over the troubled project.
Last month, Judge Mr Justice Akenhead awarded the museum £1.1m in compensation because of major technical faults with its outside steps, seats and terraces.
Three-quarters of this cost is to be bourne by Manchester-based practice AEW after the judge said that joint venture contractor Pihl Galliford Try (PGT) should bear responsibility for 25% of the “common damage” considered.
Today’s ruling considered damages associated with flaws with some of the ceilings within the museum, which AEW has already admitted responsibility for.
The museum’s executive director Sharon Granville said: “Last month the court found in favour of National Museums Liverpool on all counts.
“We are very pleased with this latest settlement. In total we’ve had more than £2.3m awarded to us in damages with further sums in indemnities on top of that. Interest and costs will be awarded in October.
“This is great news for our visitors as it means we can rectify long-standing issues with the building and make areas accessible to the public in the near future.”
The £72m building - the largest newly built national museum in the UK for more than a century - opened in summer 2011 but has seen areas including the outside steps and terraces cordoned off for safety reasons ever since.
AEW was unavailable for comment, but reacting to last month’s verdict, Steve Burne, the firm’s managing director said he was “disappointed” with the outcome, but that it was being dealt with by AEW’s insurers and did not affect the ongoing health of the business.
“We take criticism seriously,” he said. “We pride ourselves on outstanding levels of service, a fact borne out by over 95% of our business being for repeat clients. The management structure of the company has completely changed since the events of 2009 and we have moved in a different direction in the last four years.”
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