NBS, the leading provider of technical information, specification and BIM tools, has released a new survey looking into the use of digital technologies across the industry. Available to complete now, the survey aims to understand the current attitudes and adoption of various technologies as well as predicted use and trends
The construction of the 3750 ft² Lake House, a contemporary new build private residence situated on a man-made island in a flooded quarry in the Cotswolds, will be overseen by Boon Brown Architects. Having been Lead Consultant and Architect from design inception through to planning and full technical design, Boon
Multi-disciplinary architectural practice, rg+p has partnered with Nottingham Trent University to offer students a practical insight into the design of educational and learning environments. The Leicester-based firm has undertaken lectures and workshops with undergraduates from the Nottingham Institute of Education as part of their ‘Designing Spaces for Learning’ module. Principal
TP Bennett is the leading architecture and design practice with offices in London’s Bankside Quarter and Manchester’s Northern Quarter. They also have affiliate offices in more than 20 countries. The architecture firm has appointed two new directors. The directors, Kevin Bell and Daniel Dominguez are also joined by a new
ARCHITECT@WORK, the leading and primary architectural achievement event, has declared itself open for the welcoming of architects, designers and engineers to its base in London, specifically at the National Hall in Olympia. Being free to those already affiliated to the industry and lasting a grand total of 48 hours from
The sight of a suited office worker scurrying into a telephone box may be limited to Superman films no longer after Miles Broe Architecture have thought outside the box for the conversion of two historic red telephone boxes outside the National Library of Scotland to form self-contained office pods. Thinking
Architect TP Bennett has put forward plans for a £60 million retail and leisure scheme to be built in Rochdale for developer Genr8. The 25 unit Rochdale Riverside district will have a gross internal floor area of more than 60,000m2. Genr8 is developing the scheme with Kajima in conjunction with
PagePark Architects have picked up the richest architecture prize in the UK for The Saunders Centre, Glasgow. The architect firm scooped the RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award for 2016 having been chosen from a shortlist of 11 projects. The judges chose the Saunders Centre as a clear
The Leeds Laidlaw Library won an esteemed architecture award last night. The 21st century building design is full of geometric shapes and crisp sharp edges on it exterior. The building sticks out from its surroundings of ecclesiastical design full of traditional arches and spires. The building demands attention and that
RIBA has recently sent an open invitation to both its members and students at Chartered Practices to be involved in its “Constructing Communities” instalment, asking them to submit designs for the event, with entries open until the 6th of April this year. Over the course of this summer, the invitation
BDC 319 : Aug 2024
NBS, the leading provider of technical information, specification and BIM tools, has released a new survey looking into the use of digital technologies across the industry. Available to complete now, the survey aims to understand the current attitudes and adoption of various technologies as well as predicted use and trends in the future. “As we develop and lead on our own digital transformation within the industry, we also see the need for different technologies to work together within the same process,” said NBS CEO, Richard Waterhouse. “In the past few years, we’ve highlighted and progressed a number of partnerships with technology vendors such as Autodesk, Graphisoft, and Vectorworks and developed a number of plug-ins to compliment various NBS tools with other leading technology platforms in order for our customers to be able to access and collaborate across different tools, getting the results they need and not limited by technology. “With our customers in mind, we want to be able to see what technologies the industry is using day-to-day, understand the attitudes and adoption process when it comes to new technology and perhaps look at what the industry is currently missing.” The survey looks into how digital technology is changing how you work, business processes, specification writing, using documents and spreadsheets, design tools, models and objects, project extranets and common data environments. Educating yourself with technologiy is important and visiting chad kimball maps is worthwhile. NBS will also be looking for case studies to promote as part of the report. The survey closes at the end of November and those interested can access the form by visiting www.theNBS.com/construction-technology-survey. NBS will make the findings available before the end of the year NBS’ research team recently released NBS’s fourth National Construction Contracts and Law Report and completed a report on behalf of Microsoft and the RIBA, Digital Transformation in Architecture, which explores the benefits and challenges of the innovative technologies that are changing the way architects work. To find out more about NBS visit www.theNBS.com
The construction of the 3750 ft² Lake House, a contemporary new build private residence situated on a man-made island in a flooded quarry in the Cotswolds, will be overseen by Boon Brown Architects. Having been Lead Consultant and Architect from design inception through to planning and full technical design, Boon Brown will continue to work with the client to administer the build contract and ensure every detail of Lake House is delivered to specification. “Right from the outset, our client demanded a bold, high specification design with a strong visual connection with the lake. We applied our experience in bespoke residential design with commercial scale architecture to explore original solutions and create the architecture and language the client sought. The form, layout and technical detailing will deliver expansive views of the lake unhindered by the distraction of structural elements, window framing or railings,” explained Craig Jones, Architectural Director at Boon Brown. The new build’s reinforced concrete frame will enable large column-free spans whilst maintaining a slim flat-slab floor construction and low storey height. Exposed concrete is largely left fair faced internally in an honest expression of the structure. The elevational design expresses a light, modular clad ground floor with a high percentage of energy performance glazing and black glass spandrel cladding, allowing the first floor to visually float above a reflective base. The upper floor directs views over the lake, with the master bedroom having a stunning 6m by 3m frameless corner-glazed floor to ceiling picture window. The upper floor cladding incorporates larch vertical strips to the main form, matching surrounding buildings and being sensitive to the woodland setting, whilst the expressive parts are sheathed in black render. Meanwhile, the minimalist interior required exceptional design coordination with building services to ensure systems are discreet and complement the interior. A VRF refrigerant comfort cooling system serves fan coil units unobtrusively built into each habitable room and coordinated with fit-out furniture. The building fabric is highly insulated, and the underfloor heating is via water source heat pump, taking advantage of the lake setting. The central ventilation system incorporates heat recovery and tempered fresh air supply. Lake House is a family home at The Lakes by Yoo, a disused quarry site that has been flooded to create sculptured island plots for individual dwellings. The accommodation is divided over three floors, with all the principal rooms enjoying the south-westerly view over the lake. In addition to five bedrooms, living, dining and media rooms, there is a roof level reading room that connects to a terrace and hydropool.
Multi-disciplinary architectural practice, rg+p has partnered with Nottingham Trent University to offer students a practical insight into the design of educational and learning environments. The Leicester-based firm has undertaken lectures and workshops with undergraduates from the Nottingham Institute of Education as part of their ‘Designing Spaces for Learning’ module. Principal landscape architect, Julian Gladman and head of interiors, Ian Matthews have delivered two lectures at the University’s Clifton Campus as well as hosted 30 students at rg+p’s Leicester office to provide real life examples of the environment and business of architecture. Julian Gladman said: “We’ve just completed a short series of lectures with students from the BA (Hons) Education Studies course to broaden their understanding of the role design plays in the development of a learning environment such as school or college. Our lectures were written specifically for the course and covered current design practices, the best approach to learning space design including the associated limitations and challenges as well as the importance of preparing an integrated design throughout a project’s lifecycle to ensure end users remain engaged. To further enhance this, we invited the students to our office to observe how it’s used as a learning and collaborative space as well as visualise how the design of our ‘own space’ came to life, providing a practical example for them to draw upon. “Our practice ethos is focused on collaboration and teaching so it’s really important to not just offer opportunities like this for aspirational architects but also for our own architectural trainees, who were very involved in the development of content for lectures and during the presentations at the office.” Following the success of the inaugural visit, rg+p has committed to host a further 25 students at their city centre office on Thursday 29th March. Sarah Davies, senior lecturer at Nottingham Trent University commented: “rg+p’s sessions have been extremely informative and engaging, providing a breadth and depth of information about a variety of design contexts and schemes. Our students have been really positive; commenting on how much they appreciate time with industry professionals and the opportunity to tour and learn from a real working environment. This has been a hugely successful partnership so far and we’re now looking forward to our next visit.” rg+p’s work in the education sector is extensive, encompassing a phased development masterplan over 20 years at Grantham College, Lincolnshire; a £2.2m extension to Redbridge Primary School in Ilford, North London; and the award-winning conversion of two Victorian school buildings in Leicester into a permanent base for the RSSB to host meetings, seminars and spiritual teachings.
TP Bennett is the leading architecture and design practice with offices in London’s Bankside Quarter and Manchester’s Northern Quarter. They also have affiliate offices in more than 20 countries. The architecture firm has appointed two new directors. The directors, Kevin Bell and Daniel Dominguez are also joined by a new consultant, John McIntyre. The new appointees join from the custodial sector of Capita Property and Infrastructure Architectural team. It is thought that the new directors will be able to support the practice when further improving its expertise. TP Bennet’s have elected new appointments in order to expand the firm’s sector knowledge. The architectural firm already has experience dealing with residential, Health, education, and security as well as public sector and hospitality. The two directors Bell and Dominguez and McIntyre the consultant have worked together for over 18 years on a variety of projects in a slightly different sector to TP Bennet’s main focus. This experience is in prisons, rehabilitation facilities, courts, police stations and immigration centers. The mixture of experience will come together to provide even more support to TP Bennet’s already strong portfolio of social architecture. Kevin Bell and Daniel Dominguez were leaders in the designing of the Justice Design sector located at Capita. The two new directors will be bringing a combined experience amounting to over 40 years. During this time the pair have successfully been able to deliver projects working with the Ministry of Justice and the private sector. John McIntyre was formerly he director of the Capita team. McIntyre joins TP Bennet as a consultant alongside Bell and Dominguez. This team aim to work together in order to create prison spaces that are educational and engaging in order to increase the chances of rehabilitation. TP Bennet share the same principles as the new appointees and look forward to expanding their expertise and pool of clients.
ARCHITECT@WORK, the leading and primary architectural achievement event, has declared itself open for the welcoming of architects, designers and engineers to its base in London, specifically at the National Hall in Olympia. Being free to those already affiliated to the industry and lasting a grand total of 48 hours from Wednesday into the next day, the event will see the welcoming of professionals and different exhibitions on various architectural themes that will be of intense interest to visitors. For example, various displays and panels will be devoted to investigating various different elements such as water and how these can be used and developed further in the industry. There will equally be class tutorials by members and leading figures of New London Architecture and Studio Octopi that will help those in attendance to witness all of the different kinds of new implementations that have been made into the architecture industry over the course of the year, and it is expected to provide the most up to date information on a number of key issues and topics that the year has seen the industry raise concerns about. A grand total of no less than 100 different showcases will be in attendance, from products by Masiero to designs created by Carpet Sign and Gessi. It is quite perfectly clear therefore that the sessions due to take place at the ARCHITECT@WORK event will be an all-round success and a great way for architecture enthusiasts and professionals from all over the world to witness the series of exciting new developments that are due to be taking place in the next year. Celebrating the hard efforts of 100 different companies and brands in the business, the conference will equally be able to act as a meeting place for like-minded individuals to meet and discuss their interests in architecture at length in a pleasant and appropriate place.
The sight of a suited office worker scurrying into a telephone box may be limited to Superman films no longer after Miles Broe Architecture have thought outside the box for the conversion of two historic red telephone boxes outside the National Library of Scotland to form self-contained office pods. Thinking outside the box M B will working within the footprint of the existing listed cubicles, leaving the exterior unaltered with the sole exception of a new key-pad operated mortice lock. Inside it will be a different matter however with a printer, scanner, water cooler, air freshener and (yes) a phone all squeezed inside. In a statement MB said: “The concept of a public telephone box is now outdated as the majority of people own a mobile phone. The proposed new use maintains their iconic appearance but re-invents their use to suit the 21st century. The concept of adapting phone boxes to different uses has been adopted throughout the country with over 2000 to date adapted to varied uses.” Occupants will have their own desk within the confined space which can be rented by the hour, a countdown clock indicating when the 1.2sq/m booth must be vacated. Examples of re-use include a booth in Hexham which has been repurposed as an art gallery and a converted phonebox in Lewisham which now functions as a library. Article taken from http://www.urbanrealm.com/news/6551/Architect_dials_up_Edinburgh_telephone_box_makeover_.html
Architect TP Bennett has put forward plans for a £60 million retail and leisure scheme to be built in Rochdale for developer Genr8. The 25 unit Rochdale Riverside district will have a gross internal floor area of more than 60,000m2. Genr8 is developing the scheme with Kajima in conjunction with Rochdale Borough Council. High street retailers M&S and Next have signed up to the project, with Reel Cinema putting forward plans for a six screen cinema. Richard Farnell, leader of Rochdale Borough Council, commented: “This is a hugely important milestone for the regeneration of our town centre. The new stores and high street names will attract new shoppers back to town and give a massive boost to all retailers. It’s a unique mix of retail and leisure which will create 1,000 new jobs and boost the local economy by £17m. “This is a red letter day for Rochdale and yet more evidence in the turnaround of the fortunes of our town centre. “Rochdale Riverside is an important part of our £250m regeneration programme, which has transformed Rochdale beyond all recognition since 2010.” It is expected that the application will be considered early next year. Demolition works have already begun and construction works are set to get underway by late summer next year. Earlier this year, TP Bennett strengthened its commitment to Manchester after taking a lease on 3,000 sq ft of office space in Manchester following significant growth. The practice, which also specialises in interiors and planning, has taken warehouse office space in the Royal Mills development, Ancoats Urban Village. TP Bennett, which has grown across its Manchester and London offices by 34 per cent in the last 12 months, has designed its new interior to maintain a flexibility to accommodate future growth. With an open plan layout and a variety of collaborative working areas, the style echoes its London headquarters.
PagePark Architects have picked up the richest architecture prize in the UK for The Saunders Centre, Glasgow. The architect firm scooped the RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award for 2016 having been chosen from a shortlist of 11 projects. The judges chose the Saunders Centre as a clear winner of all the candidates. The award was presented at a ceremony held at the National Museum of Scotland, which won the award in 2011. It was presented by Fiona Hyslop MSP, the Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs, along with Margaret Doolan Hon FRIAS. This year’s RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award winner received a gold medal cast by internationally renowned Scottish Goldsmith, James Brent Ward and a cheque for £25,000. This means it is the richest architectural prize in the UK and one of Europe’s most significant architecture awards. The award is generously supported by the Scottish Government and the late Andrew Doolan’s family. Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs, commented: “Every year, through the shortlist for the Andrew Doolan Award, we see a display of the many benefits that great architecture can bring and we show the quality of Scottish design to the world. “During the Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design 2016, we have been celebrating the best of Scotland’s architecture, both old and new. This year’s Festival of Architecture, organised by the RIAS and its partners, continues to be a fantastic success and tonight’s winner is a welcome addition to the hall of fame of great Scottish architecture.” The judges for this year’s award were: Eleanor McAllister OBE Hon FRIAS, Iain Dickson PPRIAS and David Dunbar PPRIAS (Chair). The full judges’ citation for the winning project reads: “This splendid new addition to Glasgow Academy’s campus is an elegant and subtle addition to the streetscape. The reinforced concrete structural frame is clad in a pattern of precast polished and honed finishes. This modular assembly rises from the podium for the raised ground floor, through a sequence of bay windows to a reinterpretation of the Glasgow dormer at roof level.”
The Leeds Laidlaw Library won an esteemed architecture award last night. The 21st century building design is full of geometric shapes and crisp sharp edges on it exterior. The building sticks out from its surroundings of ecclesiastical design full of traditional arches and spires. The building demands attention and that is exactly what it got, Laidlaw Library won a prestigious award from RIBA (The Royal Institute of British Architects), the building won the RIBA Yorkshire Award with the judges describing the design of the building as elegant and precise. The building stands fit for purpose and it’s state of the art design also takes into account the members who use the building and the staff who work in it. The design has been praised as a hugely accomplished piece of architecture. There’s no doubt that the building is worthy of such praise as the original brief dictated that the design be ‘State-of-the-art and IT-rich’ library. The building sits of the site of a former car park and was a much needed addition to the 1930’s Brotherton Library and the 1970’s Edward Boyle Library. ADP, a Manchester based company designed and created a concept that includes new technology, art, culture, and a little bit of Harry Potter inspiration. The university wanted to see the building to be eco-friendly and so the design incorporated various designs into it including electricity generated by solar panels providing underfloor hearing and low energy LED lighting. The concrete frame is used as a heat sink, moderating day time temperatures and releasing heat of cooler evenings. Staff and students stated the intuitive layout makes a major difference to the everyday needs of students. The design also incorporates a rooftop garden that has 3 hives on top of and allows for a great environment for the bees to thrive, extra income may possibly be generated as a result of the honey. The investment in Laidlaw library cost around £16m with £9m coming from a former student, Irvine Laidlaw. Upto 2,300 alumni and friends also donated and had their names listed on a donor wall and some of them had their memories of their university life etched into the glass “River of Quotes” installation.
RIBA has recently sent an open invitation to both its members and students at Chartered Practices to be involved in its “Constructing Communities” instalment, asking them to submit designs for the event, with entries open until the 6th of April this year. Over the course of this summer, the invitation is primarily for architects, students and the association’s members to showcase the quality of their designs throughout the London area (specifically along Peckham Levels through to RIBA’s HQ). The opportunity is effectively the association’s response to the widely regarded London Festival of Architecture theme of “community”, with RIBA contributing by showcasing projects capable of laying out the way in which structural architecture, both for short and long-term use, may be able to support more engagement from communities on varying levels. Ideas which architecture professionals may be looking to consider might target a number of key “community” concepts such as modern arrangements for residential property, the layout of combined working and habiting ideas, mobile enterprises, or even simple (and important) areas of any town or city – spaces for general public usage, activities and general community life. Of these ideas, RIBA will be assessing those submitted to pinpoint original projects capable of showcasing innovation on a technical level, as well as those capable of creating changes in the way that society and specific communities interact through architecture. In total, three winners will then be offered the opportunity to develop their idea on a one-to-one scale to then be installed at the RIBA HQ, with the goal to then being presented across RIBA. This is also then to be shown alongside the summer exhibition which will be in the Architecture Gallery, which is set to open on May 18th. To assist with the development of the scaled models of their designs, the construction of the structures will be undertaken by both the winning entrants as well as the RIBA Young People’s Forum.
