Executives from the Assay Office Birmingham joined members of its Building Project team to mark a very significant event on as work began on the site of the new Assay Office building at Icknield Street.

The new £10m building will be the first new Assay Office in Birmingham for some 140 years and the development is being co-ordinated by Mark Wright of Trebor Developments, with the building designed by Glazzard Architects.  Galliford Try has been selected to construct the building, which has huge significance to Birmingham and to the jewellery industry.

Commenting on the Ground Breaking Ceremony Stella Layton said, “This is a very significant moment for the Assay Office Birmingham.  The new building will enable us to offer better facilities to our customers in terms of efficiency and security and much better working conditions for our staff.  It will provide a centre of excellence to the local trade and make our important private collection of silver and our library more accessible to researchers and enthusiasts.  The move is crucial to our future business development, offering a more flexible and more environmentally friendly facility to support our ambitions as we continue to grow our portfolio of innovative services to the jewellery, precious metal, gemstone and other associated trades.”

Mark Wright, Partner of Trebor Developments commented, “We are delighted to get the build of the new Assay Office underway with Galliford Try.  There is a real positive feeling in this part of the Jewellery Quarter Enterprise Zone with preparation works also underway on a number of adjacent sites and the recent sale of the Kettleworks building demonstrating that regeneration of this area is now happening.  Trebor is honoured to be managing this scheme for one of Birmingham’s oldest businesses as it continues to invest for the future.”

Founded by an Act of Parliament in 1773, the Assay Office still carries out its statutory duty of testing and hallmarking precious metal but has widened its scope considerably in the past decade, now offering assessment, authentication and valuation of precious metals, jewellery, watches, fashion accessories and gemstones.  Its independence and expertise set it apart from many of its competitors and under the leadership of new Chief Executive and Assay Master, Stella Layton, the Assay Office Birmingham is committed to continuous investment, improvement and growth.