Exeter Central Station

RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE | STATION REFURBISHMENT
Exeter Central, Exeter, Devon • Completed Spring 2026

Exeter Central Station

Project Overview

Working for Sisk Rail, Cornerstone was appointed to carry out a complete strip-out and refurbishment of Exeter Central train station. Our package ran from demolition and alterations right through to carpentry, plastering, flooring, ceilings, plumbing and the general fit-out, taking the existing spaces back and handing them over fully refurbished.

The Brief

The station needed a full refurbishment delivered quickly and to a high standard, while staying operational for passengers and staff throughout. The brief was to strip out the tired existing finishes, carry out the alterations needed and deliver a clean, durable, well-finished fit-out. The works were phased to keep the station running, which made holding the programme and hitting every milestone vital.

At a Glance

Client

 Sisk Rail
Location

Exeter Central, Exeter
Sector Rail Infrastructure
Contract Value

£340,000
Programme 12 weeks
Completed Spring 2026
Services Strip-out, demolition, alterations, carpentry, plastering, flooring, ceilings, plumbing and general fit-out

 

The Challenge

With every stage from strip-out to final fit-out in our package, the job meant managing a long sequence of trades to a tight programme, all in a rail environment with strict safety controls and close coordination with the station team.

To hold the programme, we worked a mix of day and night shifts as the job required. Demolition and alterations were completed first, giving the carpentry, plastering, plumbing and ceiling trades clear access, with flooring and the final fit-out following on. Careful handovers between shifts kept each stage moving straight on from the last.

Floor finishes and power doors
Floor finishes and power doors

Scope of Works

01 Strip-out & demolition - 02 Structural alterations - 03 Carpentry - 04 Plastering
05 Flooring - 06 Ceilings - 07 Plumbing - 08 General fit-out

Click a thumbnail to enlarge.
Image 1 Demolition on night shifts
Image 2 Work in progress
Image 3 Staff facility upgrade
Image 4 New helpdesk installed

£340k
Contract value

12 wks
Programme

Day & night
Shifts worked to hold the programme

The Result

Exeter Central now has a fully refurbished concourse, with the strip-out, alterations and complete fit-out delivered on programme. The station team, GWR management and the client's project team were all complimentary about the finished works, and Network Rail's Asset Manager praised them on inspection.

Your teamwork, flexibility, and persistence made a real difference. There were some tough issues to deal with, but full credit to your team for pulling out the stops and geṄng the project over the line. The fact that there were only around 20 items picked up during the handover inspection for a project of this scale is testament to the quality of the works.
R.W., Sisk Rail