Re-roofing a live Manchester landmark — flat roofing the Midland Hotel.
How we delivered 5,000+ sq ft of commercial flat roofing at Manchester's Grade II-listed Midland Hotel while it stayed fully operational, with guests in residence throughout.
Case study · Commercial flat roofing — The Midland Hotel, Manchester · Grade II listed · 5,000+ sq ft · Operational throughout
Project at a glance
| Location | Manchester city centre |
| Property | The Midland Hotel (Grade II listed) |
| Sector | Hospitality / commercial |
| Material | High-performance single-ply warm-roof system |
| Scope | Large-scale flat roof renewal, 5,000+ sq ft |
| Constraint | Hotel fully operational, guests in residence |
| Access | Out-of-hours crane & hoist lifts |
The brief
A landmark roof that had to be replaced without closing the hotel.
The Midland is one of Manchester’s best-known buildings — a Grade II-listed Edwardian hotel in the heart of the city, run at the time under the Jurys Inn group. Its flat roof areas had reached the end of their serviceable life, with ageing membrane and tired detailing letting water track down into the floors below.
The challenge was never the roofing itself. It was the building. A city-centre hotel of this size does not close. Rooms were occupied every night of the programme, conference and function spaces were in use below us, and the building’s plant and extract systems had to keep running throughout. Add a listed façade, a busy public street at every elevation and working at height over a live operation, and the brief was clear: renew over 5,000 sq ft of flat roof to a modern, warrantable standard, and do it as if the works weren’t happening at all.
We were appointed for our commercial flat roofing experience on exactly this kind of sensitive, occupied building.
What we did
A phased, low-disruption flat roof renewal.
We surveyed the existing roof in full, agreed a phased programme with the hotel’s management and built the works around occupancy rather than around our own convenience. From there:
- Phased the roof into manageable bays — so only a small, fully protected area was ever open, keeping the building watertight day to day.
- Programmed crane and hoist lifts out of hours — bringing materials up and stripped waste down outside peak guest movements, with the street managed safely each time.
- Installed a high-performance warm-roof build-up — new insulation and a single-ply membrane, upgrading thermal performance and giving a long-life, fully bonded finish.
- Re-formed all upstands, outlets and flashings — dressing the system neatly around parapets, plinths and the building’s listed detailing.
- Worked around live plant and extract — sequencing the roof so kitchen and mechanical services stayed running throughout.
- Held strict edge protection and daily clean-down — leaving the roof safe and the public areas spotless at the end of every shift.
On site
The work in pictures.
Health and safety carried as much weight as the roofing on this job. Every lift was planned, every open edge protected, and the team worked to a method statement agreed with the hotel before a single fixing went in. Because we were working over occupied rooms and a public street, nothing went up or came down without the area below being managed first.
The result
A landmark roof renewed, with the doors never closed.
The Midland received over 5,000 sq ft of new, high-performance flat roofing — better insulated, fully weathertight and built to last — without a single night’s lost trading. Guests stayed, functions ran, the kitchens kept serving, and the listed building’s appearance was preserved throughout. The facilities team had a clean, watertight roof handed back in phases, with full documentation and a workmanship guarantee on top of the system warranty.
It’s the kind of commercial project we’re built for: large, technical, and carried out around a business that simply can’t stop. You’ll find more of our work across the UK in our portfolio.
Commercial roof to renew? If you manage a hotel, listed building or commercial property that needs flat roofing without the disruption, we’d be glad to take a look. Request a free survey or explore our commercial services.
Keep reading
- Commercial flat roofing — single-ply, felt and liquid systems for occupied and live buildings.
- Our services — domestic and commercial roofing across Edinburgh and the UK.
- All case studies — landmark roofs across Scotland & the UK.
Frequently asked questions
Can you re-roof a hotel or commercial building while it stays open?
Yes. Keeping a building trading is central to how we plan commercial work. We phase the roof, sequence noisy or heavy operations around occupancy, programme crane and hoist lifts out of hours, and keep the building watertight at every stage. On the Midland the hotel ran normally throughout, with guests in residence the whole time.
How do you handle flat roofing on a listed building?
Carefully, and with the right detailing. Listed status means the building's appearance and fabric have to be respected, so we dress the system neatly around existing features, keep modern upgrades discreet and work to the standards the building requires. We're happy to liaise with the client's surveyors or the relevant heritage body.
What flat-roof system do you use on commercial buildings?
It depends on the building, but for large commercial roofs we typically specify a high-performance warm-roof build-up with a single-ply membrane over new insulation. It upgrades thermal performance, gives a long, warrantable service life and copes well with foot traffic, plant and the detailing a roof like this demands.
How do you manage health and safety working at height over a live city-centre building?
Every job runs to an agreed method statement and risk assessment. Open edges are protected, lifts are planned and supervised, the street below is managed during any crane or hoist operation, and we clean down daily. On an occupied building over a public street, the safety plan is as important as the roofing itself.