Developer Property Alliance Group has decided to demolish the concrete core of the largest of three planned clustered buildings because of concerns about the amount of rebar in the base.

The Manchester Uptown scheme on the wider Irwell Riverside site will consist of three sloping towers containing over 150 flats, fabricated as modules offsite and fitted around the three cores.

The Enquirer understands the core base was not strong enough and the developer alerted Salford Council.

Sources estimate the core may have cost £3m-£4m to build.

The condemned structure was built by civil engineering contractor Bemus Construction Services, which fell into administration three weeks ago with the loss of around 100 jobs.

But insiders say the problems stem from rebar design rather than build issues.

How the Uptown Manchester scheme will look when finished

A spokesperson for Alliance said: “Our project team has identified engineering issues at Uptown, so our priority is to rectify these as safely and efficiently as possible.

“This will require partial demolition of the development.”

The demolition work, which is being carried out by local firm PP O’Connor, will take around two weeks.

In the meantime, the off-site element of the construction programme will continue to reduce programme delay.

“This is an unfortunate situation, but we would like to reassure the local community that the site is safe and we are doing everything we can to minimise any potential disruption,” said the Alliance spokesperson.

“We will ensure residents are kept informed throughout the works and members of our team are available to address any queries or concerns.

“Although it is too early to confirm how this will impact the construction programme, we are confident the issues will be resolved quickly, avoiding a significant delay.”

Contractor FK Group is delivering the project.