BAM has won an £80m contract to build Birmingham’s tallest office tower at 103 Colmore Row.

BAM begins site surveys today, 12th February, alongside pre-construction design. The main substructure works are expected to start in June, with completion of the 26-storey building set for summer 2020.

103 Colmore Row, designed by architect Doone Silver Kerr, will have 223,631 sq ft of office space over 20 floors, and 7,665 sq ft of restaurant space on the ground and top floors At 105.5 metres high, with the apex 246m above sea level, it is the UK’s highest new office building under construction outside London.

The developer is a joint venture of Rockspring Property Investment Managers and Sterling Property Ventures.

BAM is also already busy in the neighbourhood. On one side of 103 Colmore Row is BAM’s £40m Two Chamberlain Square project and on the other side is its £100m Three Snowhill development. 103 Colmore Row is Rockspring’s second development in Birmingham. The European property investment manager is also behind the city’s first purpose-built private rental scheme, The Forum, in Southside.

103 Colmore Row is the site of the former NatWest Tower. The original proposals to develop the former building, empty since 2003, were shelved during the global economic downturn. Sterling acquired the site in November 2014 and, in partnership with Rockspring, has worked the new scheme through the planning process, a 24-month phase demolishing the former NatWest Tower and preparation of the substructure, and the procurement of the new building.

Rod Stiles, regional director for BAM Construction in the Midlands, said:

“Our appointment to create 103 Colmore Row means that BAM is engaged on about one quarter of a billion pounds of commercial developments within half a mile of each other in Birmingham’s central business district. This is a testament to our credentials and our track record in the city.

“We’ve been working with our partners at Sterling and Rockspring already and are keen to start what will be a memorable addition to Birmingham’s real estate.”