Transforming the Birmingham skyline

John Sisk & Son and MODA completed Birmingham’s tallest residential tower, The Mercian in July 2022. 

The 42-storey high tower was designed by Birmingham-based Glenn Howells Architects and delivered by Sisk. The Mercian is home to 481 intergenerational apartments for rent, including studios to three-beds.

The first major tower in Birmingham city centre at 42 storeys, The Mercian has delivered an ambitious Chicago-style building which includes 35,000 sq. ft of mixed commercial, retail and leisure space.

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The Mercian

The Mercian book - Birmingham's tallest residential tower

The Mercian is Birmingham’s highest residential tower at 42 storeys high

High rise technology

The project utilised high-rise technology including the Doka SCP core construction rig, four-storey Hunnebeck safe screens with integrated staircase, formwork hoist and lightweight Dokadek panel falsework. It also includes 3,678 unitised panels installed, all constructed offsite.

Moda, The Mercian comprises two concrete lift and staircase cores. The main core up to level 42 was delivered at a rate of one level per eight working days. The secondary core up to level 14 was delivered at a rate of one level per five working days.

The Mercian, November 2020

"We thank Sisk for delivering the building to a fantastic standard without major delays or cost increases, and we look forward to working together to bring the next Moda development, Great Charles Street, to this great city.”

Tony Brooks, MD, MODA living

Top-tier amenities, epic views and a 200-metre rooftop running track; one of the first in the UK’s housing market

Local jobs for local people

Onsite training hub

Supported by a £100,000 fund from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), Sisk worked alongside partners at the Birmingham City Council Employment Access Team, the National Careers Service, the Construction Industry Training Body (CITB), Jobcentre Plus and the Department of Work and Pensions, to help maximise employment and training opportunities. The on-site training hub which provided free construction training and a guaranteed job interview after completing a
20-day course.

“It was refreshing to work with a contractor like Sisk who have social value and local employment drivers in their core values; they wanted us to achieve our targets too. To create employment for over 300 local people is phenomenal."

Jayne Hanson
Employer Engagement, Birmingham City Council
300

Local people employed

24

Apprentices

22

Work placements

Christmas handmade toys

We are delighted to be able to team up with Moda to deliver our handmade toys to West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre. One of our greatest success stories has been our ability to give back to the many communities in which we work through our longstanding Sisk Christmas toy story. 

The toys are handmade by our apprentice carpenters and joiners, utilising the skills taught to them at our training centre. We would also like to thank all our supply chain partners who have donated a further 70 commercial toys as part of our donation the West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre.