Launch of new Invited Design Competition

The search is on to find architects or architectural practices on behalf of King’s College London for the redevelopment of the Quadrangle and its associated buildings at the college’s historic Strand Campus in London.

Currently the campus accommodates some 9,200 students and more than 1,500 staff.  Over the next five years the college plans to add a further 2,600 students, and the redevelopment of the quad site will therefore form a crucial part of King’s plans to provide high quality facilities.

This £20 million project to design and redevelop the site will provide an additional 3,700 square metres of teaching space and student facilities.

RIBA Competitions announced the launch of a new Invited Design Competition and for further details about the Strand Quadrangle Competition see the website www.architecture.com/competitions and follow the link to Live Competitions. The deadline for receipt of expressions of interest is 2pm on Friday 1 June 2012.   

On target to deliver sustainable health centre

Following the demolition of the Victorian baths in Warrington Town Centre, a new £7million primary care health resource is being created – with Balfour Beatty Engineering Services, BBES, on track to deliver sustainable initiatives and new technology as part of the mechanical and electrical package.

BBES will be supplying and installing all of the building services including gas, power, lighting and water as part of the project. BBES has a clear focus on delivering schemes that offer low environmental impact. Sustainable initiatives such as temperature monitoring, solar hot water and rainwater harvesting have also been integrated. The building will also feature an intelligent lighting system which incorporates PIR presence and daylight detectors designed to further increase energy efficiency.

Being built by Galliford Try for Renova Developments, a Public Private Partnership between the Fulcrum Group and the NHS, on behalf of client Warrington Primary Care Trust, the scheme forms part of the Halton & St Helens, Knowsley and Warrington LIFT Project. 

Once completed, the new building will accommodate two GP Practices servicing 9,000 registered patients and a pharmacy.

£13.5 million energy centre secures excellent rating

The Mott MacDonald designed £13.5 million environmentally-friendly Foresterhill Energy Centre at NHS Grampian’s new health campus in Aberdeen, has secured a BREEAM Excellent rating score of 83.32 per cent. The centre was also named best industrial building at the BREEAM Awards 2012.

Mott MacDonald, appointed lead design consultant by the project contractor Laing O’Rourke, provided full detailed engineering design for the scheme. When compared to meeting the increasing energy demand of the redeveloped site via the current supply arrangements, the new centre will reduce CO2 emissions by 9830 tonnes (16 per cent) and energy costs by £2.95 million (39 per cent).

The project was developed to service the further expansion of Europe’s largest medical teaching hospital complex which includes Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital and Aberdeen Maternity Hospital, along with the medical school and medical science departments of the University of Aberdeen.

Open door policy at cathedral

Ripon Cathedral in North Yorkshire has opened its doors to a bright new future following the recent completion of the Narthex Project. The privately funded project, delivered by York-based restoration firm William Anelay in conjunction with a number of local sub contractors and London-based Caroe Architecture, will be officially opened later this year.

The traditional Palm Sunday procession on Sunday 1 April saw the new West Front in use for the first time after a three month programme of works that has involved the installation of glass porches with engravings by artist Sally Scott, depicting scenes from the life of St Wilfrid, founder of Ripon Cathedral.

The Dean of Ripon, The Very Revd Keith Jukes, said: “The Narthex project has created a more welcoming entrance to the cathedral and will allow us to keep the doors permanently open during the daytime for the first time in almost 150 years.

“The new entrance area is now one of the most eye-catching of any cathedral in the country and it will let in the light as well as allowing tourists and the local community to witness the true majesty of the cathedral’s interior from outside.”

 For more details see website www.riponcathedral.org.uk.

Help the RIBA and Shelter end bad housing

The Royal Institute for British Architects is urging its chartered practices and members to register now for the 2012 run of Architect in the House. The charitable scheme gives homeowners an hour’s free consultation with a local RIBA architect in exchange for a suggested donation of £40 to Shelter.

George Clarke, a chartered architect, television presenter and Shelter ambassador who is supporting Architect in the House, said: “Whatever the project, architects can help to release a homeowner’s property potential by offering invaluable advice on everything from structural design to fixtures and fittings. Architect in the House is a great way for architects to make the most of their expert advice while raising money for Shelter at the same time. As a Shelter ambassador I’ve seen first-hand how the money raised by this scheme helps people in desperate housing need.”

Living in confined conditions has a devastating effect on family life, especially children’s safety, health and education. Shelter estimate that more than 650,000 households in Britain are overcrowded, this includes more than one million children in England alone.

Olympic Park gets gold for ethical wood sourcing

Soil Association Woodmark has announced certification for ethical wood sourcing at 19 different sites around the Olympic Park following a ground breaking, collaborative project. Sites include the Velodrome and track, the Aquatics Centre and all the bridges, fences and benches. 

The project involved over 12,500 cubic metres of timber – from European construction timber to Tropical hardwoods – and is a world first that involved adapting existing standards to suit a demanding and complex site.

The Olympic Delivery Authority worked with Soil Association Woodmark to achieve certification to Forest Stewardship Council and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification standards.

 Noah Bold, the ODA’s park operations environment and sustainability manager, said: “Right from the start we knew we wanted our construction work to have the smallest possible environmental footprint and supporting sustainable forest management around the world was a big part of that. We hope that other large scale developments can be inspired by the scale of what we have achieved and that ethical wood sourcing will become the norm for future Olympic sites and construction projects globally.”

Regeneration project benefits from modular engineering

A new flagship visitor centre at Heartlands, the £35m regeneration scheme for heritage tin mine workings in Cornwall, has been equipped with a pioneering building services solution from Pipe Center.

Heartlands, which opens to the public on 20 April, is located on a 19-acre site at Pool, near Redruth, encompassing the original mine at Robinson’s Shaft with traditional exposed workings and structural supports retained as part of the visitor attraction. Main contractor on the project is Midas Construction.

George Cox, who headed the project for building services contractor EIC, said: “A key requirement of the design was to retain the authentic mine workings with their steel and ironwork structures. The offsite modular approach offered an ideal solution, as it could be blended into the historical setting. It effectively becomes part of the scene without distracting from the impact or historical authenticity of the workings.”

The modular system, built offsite by Pipe Center’s specialist Modular Engineering business, includes electrical services and heating pipe work for low temperature hot water, fed by a district heating system running on pelletised woodchip biomass boilers.

Funded by grants from the Big Lottery Fund, Homes and Communities Agency and European Convergence funds, Cornwall Council’s Heartlands project will be managed as a social enterprise, with any profit generated through venue hire, trade and other events, reinvested in the project to boost the local economy.