A trading estate with data centres on it
Slough Trading Estate dates from 1920 and has grown to a 353 acre site with around 13,000 workers and about 350 firms, according to the BBC's centenary report. Mars, Ferrari, Stanley Black & Decker and O2 have all been listed among its businesses, and Virtus, Iron Mountain and GTR are named as top tenants. Together that makes the estate the first address to look at when you size up Slough demand for steelwork.
More recent building has been data centres. The council adopted a simplified planning zone for them in November 2024, and approved schemes include generator gantries and plant enclosures on each building. That kind of plant is steel work we understand. We build to your drawing with coded welders and BS EN 1090 control, give an itemised written quote within 24 hours in the working week, and confirm lead time in writing. Commercial and trade only.
What Slough's occupiers send out for steel
- Data centre operators and contractors Standby generator sets, switchgear and cooling plant need enclosures, skids, gantry steel and access stairs. Contractors order supply-only steelwork for their own installers to fit.
- Logistics and records storage Warehouse tenants and storage operators order yard stores, cage frames, canopy frames and modified containers for plant, welfare or tool storage, sized to the unit and yard.
- Manufacturers on the trading estate Food, engineering and tool makers on the estate buy machine bases, equipment frames, guarding and handrails, in repeat batches where the drawing is already settled.
- Fit-out and mechanical contractors Contractors working in existing buildings order plant platforms, lifting frames, brackets and walkways made to site dimensions and supplied for them to fit.
Larger jobs from a data centre and logistics town
A generator or battery enclosure for a data centre can be a single big unit or a set of matching units, each with doors, louvres, lifting points and a named finish. Gantries, access stairs and walkway sections for rooftop or yard plant are the other regular order. Logistics tenants tend to want repeatable items: cage frames, canopy frames or a few modified containers. Plasma cutting and bending are in-house, laser-cut parts come from suppliers, and finishes run from primed through RAL wet spray and powder coat to hot-dip galvanised, which we arrange.
Container conversions for Slough yards and plant
Slough operators use containers as plant rooms, battery and switchgear housings, stores and welfare units. We frame structural openings into the rails so a roller shutter or double door is carried by a steel frame. We link, stack, cut down, repair and repaint. You can supply the units or we source them. With capacity around 8 units a week, a multi-unit order is realistic. See container modifications.
Slough Borough Council is the planning authority. The council decides larger commercial schemes at committee, and a container used as a plant room or store on an existing site may still need consent depending on use and duration. Ask its planning team, or use a pre-application enquiry, before ordering. If your site sits within the data centre simplified planning zone, check what that covers. We cannot give planning advice.
Enclosures and frames for Slough plant
For Slough we lead with enclosures: generator, acoustic, plant, battery and switchgear housings built to your drawing, with the ventilation and door layout you specify. Structural items are made under BS EN 1090 control and can be UKCA or CE marked. We also fabricate skids, machine bases, lifting frames and supply-only stairs, fire escapes and handrails. See steel enclosures. Lead time is confirmed in writing.
Where Slough's industrial steel is used
Slough Trading Estate is the main address, with SEGRO as landlord and a Bath Road data centre campus approved in 2024. Others on the directory list are Britannia Industrial Estate, Horton Trading Estate, Langley Business Centre, McKay Trading Estate, Perth Trading Estate, Polygon Business Centre, Portland Business Centre and Whittle Park. Industrial agents describe Slough as one of the UK's most established logistics locations, close to Heathrow and the M4.
Why a Bedford workshop can cost Slough less
Cutting, welding, finishing and checking all happen in our own 12,000 sq ft workshop, so no stage is passed to a subcontractor with its own margin. Delivery to Slough goes through our logistics partners and shows as its own line on the quote. Put the two together and the total often comes in below a local fabricator, which is easy to check: send us the same drawing you've sent them.
Delivery and site visits in Slough
We organise deliveries to Slough through our logistics partners, leaving Marston Moretaine for a run of 51 road miles, about 62 minutes by car via the M1, M25 and A412. A loaded lorry takes longer, and M25 delays are common, so we agree a slot with you that suits the estate's gate and booking rules. Making and delivering in one chain often puts our price below fabricators on the doorstep.
Trading estate roads are busy with HGVs, and many sites have security gates and booked delivery slots. Give our engineers the gate rules, any height or weight limits and the offloading point when they visit to look at the job. Tell us what lifting is on site and we agree the drop with you. Your installer fixes the steel or sets the container. We do not install.
How a job runs
- 01.Send the drawing
PDF or CAD, a dimensioned sketch, or a photo of the old part. Quantities and the site postcode help.
- 02.Itemised quote in 24 hours
Material, fabrication, finish and haulage broken out line by line, with the lead time confirmed in writing.
- 03.Agree spec and finish
Sections, tolerances, weld spec and finish confirmed before anything is cut.
- 04.Fabricated inside our unit
Cut, welded and assembled by coded welders in our 12,000 sq ft Marston Moretaine workshop.
- 05.Check and paperwork
Dimensionally checked before dispatch; welder qualification and mill certificates on request.
- 06.Delivered to site
We organise delivery to your site through our logistics partners, or you can collect from the yard if that suits. One-offs and batches both welcome.
Work we take on
- Container modifications: conversions and modifications to drawing, single units or batches
- Structural openings: side openings, doors, roller shutters, linking and cut-downs
- Container repairs: panel, door and rail repairs and repaints for depots and fleets
- Steel enclosures: generator, acoustic, plant and battery housings
- Skids and frames: skids, machine bases, lifting frames and supports
- Commercial fabrication: fabrication to drawing, structural steelwork, one-offs and batches
- Stairs and fire escapes: supplied ready for your installer to fit
- Walkways and railings: handrails, platforms and ladders, supplied to fit
Frequently asked questions
Can you build generator enclosures for a Slough data centre?
Yes. We build generator, acoustic, plant, battery and switchgear enclosures to your drawing. Send ventilation, door and lifting details and we price each item in an itemised written quote within 24 hours.
Will you deliver to our Slough site?
Yes. Based in Bedford, we organise delivery to Slough through our logistics partners, 51 road miles away by the M1, M25 and A412, and engineers can visit first to see the job. Booking slots and gate rules are agreed with you in advance.
Will a modified container need consent in Slough?
It can, depending on use and how long it stays. Slough Borough Council decides, so ask before you order. We build the container to your drawing, and planning remains with you.
Can containers be stacked or linked for a plant room?
Yes. We link and stack units, cut openings framed into the rails, and fit doors, windows and roller shutters. Customers can supply units, or we source them.
What happens when the steel arrives at a Slough site?
It goes to the point agreed with you. Tell us what access and lifting is available on site and we plan the drop around it. Your contractor positions and fixes the steel, since we do not install.
Nearby areas
We also quote for firms in High Wycombe, Watford, Reading, Hemel Hempstead and Southampton. See every town on the areas we serve page.