Case studies matching "columns"

Some 92,000 Cwt Y Bugail slates feature on a ground-breaking new/old roof. Formerly a seedy area worth avoiding, London’s Kings Cross has now been transformed into a go-to destination for office workers, students and tourists. Developer Argent’s regeneration of the area has sensitively re-purposed the early Victorian railway buildings into variously, a college campus, supermarket and offices, in which the interior changes are radical but the exteriors have been left largely unaltered. Not so for Coal Drops Yard, a pair of elongated Victorian coal warehouses originally built to distribute coal from the North of England across London. Here, the pitched roofs of two almost-parallel buildings, 150m and 100m in length and 39m apart, have been reconfigured to curve up at their northern ends and gently kiss each other. Designed by Heatherwick Studio, the roofs peel upwards and extend into the middle of the space between the two buildings. A new floorplate sits below the roof structure, with glazing filling the gap between the two, creating a third level of retail. The new roofs of the ornate cast-iron and brick structures have been slated with 92,000 new versions of the original Welsh Slates – 500mm x 250mm Cwt Y Bugails from the manufacturer’s Llan Ffestiniog quarry in North Wales – by Banbury-based specialist sub-contractor Attleys Roofing. Attleys already had some Kings Cross experience, using 6,400 500mm x 300mm Heather Blues from Welsh Slate’s main Penrhyn quarry for the re-roof of the nearby German Gymnasium - the first purpose-built gym in England - which is now enjoying a new lease of life as a designer restaurant. Coal Drops Yard was a whole new ball game, testing Attleys to the limit, but the result is an extraordinary reinterpretation of the canal-side site. Main contractor BAM Construction was responsible for the structure of the new roofline. More than 50 new steel columns were carefully threaded through the existing structure to support the roof independently of the building, a point cloud survey being carried out to help calculate where to put the columns without clashing with the existing building fabric. Primary support is provided by a set of large cranked beams supported on cores in each building which join in the middle over the yard. There are four primary beams, two on each building. These dip down towards the centre to create the valley between the two roof structures and have been nicknamed “giraffe beams” in reference to their angled neck and head - the structure looks like two giraffes rubbing noses together. Tie beams at floor level take the tensile loads generated by the weight of the roof. The giraffe beams support two ribbon trusses that define the upper and lower edge of each roof structure and connect in the middle over the yard at the lower edge. These are 7m deep in the middle and taper to 5m at the ends where these join the existing roof. Tubular steel sections were used to create the trusses because of the complex geometry. The new floorplate below the roof is suspended from above using macalloy bars and is tapered towards the perimeter to minimise the impact on the view. More than 60 panels of full-height structural glazing between the floor and new roof are stepped rather than curved or faceted for aesthetic reasons and has the added benefit of hiding the macalloy bars. Temporary trusses were erected to support the giraffe beam assembly and ribbon trusses during construction. The giraffe beam assembly was erected first. The ribbon trusses were brought to site as components, bolted together on the ground into fully-assembled sections complete with rafters, craned into position and bolted together where they meet in the middle. The whole roof structure was then de-propped. Visually, it was important to maintain a seamless transition from the existing roof to the new section so the original timber roof trusses were retained where possible, with some localised strengthening required where the timber had been damaged. The gap between the existing and new roof structure was then boarded over ready for the new Welsh slates.The two roofs are bolted together where they meet in the middle. Heatherwick Studio chose to position the new roof element at the northern ends of the two buildings as the eastern building had been devastated by a fire in 1985. Used more recently for warehousing and nightclubs, they were largely abandoned in the 1990s. Group leader Lisa Finlay said: “Our challenge was to radically remodel this Victorian infrastructure to meet the needs of a modern urban development without losing what made them special. To do this, we focused on understanding their original function and how they were adapted over time so we could appreciate how best to preserve and reuse the existing fabric, whilst also introducing new elements. One of which is an entirely free-standing new structure threaded through the historic buildings, from which a spectacular new third level is suspended.” Attleys were on site for a total of almost 18 months. The roof pitch of the original sections of roof was 28° but as the curves swept around and met in the middle this changed to 47°. Thereafter the length also decreased from 8.4m to 6.9m at the kissing point where the two curved roofs met but the same number of courses of slates (44) had to be maintained. This meant Attleys had to decrease the gauges and not only cut the sides of the slates to take them around the curve but also the tops of the slates to maintain the same number of courses. No clever nailing or hidden bibbing was required to stop rainwater flowing diagonally at this point as the pitch was so steep. Attleys’ managing director Shaun Attley met with Heatherwick Studio and BAM’s design team up to two years prior to commencement on site to discuss the design issues and how to achieve the aesthetics requested while using the products selected. Shaun advised the project team that the Cwt Y Bugail slates could not be used for their initial roof design which exceeded a 90° pitch so it was re-designed to ensure that where the eaves met it was at a pitch commensurate with Welsh Slate’s fixing recommendations and warranties. Due to space being at a premium, all the Cwt Y Bugail slates were cut off-site at Attleys’ depot in Banbury. To do this, Attleys had to calculate how much of the slates needed cutting off. This was done by taking measurements from the steel work underneath - from steel to steel at the eaves and steel to steel at the ridge which was generally over 10-15m depending where you were on the curve (on the internal curve or external curve). The kissing point determined how the slates were cut to ensure the perp lines and side laps were maintained. And because the roof pitch was increasing while the rafter length was decreasing, Attleys also had to cut the tops of the slates down so they suited the decreasing gauges. A total of 32,000 of the 90,000 slates used on the project had to be cut with hand guillotines so the dressed edge could be maintained around the curve which comprised 1,600m2 of the total 4,600m2. Shaun Attley said: “Our timescale for the sections of roof was provided to BAM Construction and this was put into their overall programme with all other sub-contractors but unfortunately our commencement on site was delayed due to previous issues in the construction of the steel frame prior to us starting. “This meant we were up against the clock in trying to pull back time to ensure the overall programme was still met and we were asked by BAM to find ways of doing as much as possible off-site and increasing labour and production on-site to pull back the time lost. By working together with other sub-contractors and the main contractor we managed to finish a week earlier than our anticipated 43-week overall programme.” He added: “The project was challenging at the beginning to ensure we set the roof out properly but as the contract progressed it became easier. Welsh slates are easy to work, and we work with them all the time, but in this case it was challenging getting the slates to course all the way round. Attleys’ SMSTS-trained supervisor ran the day-to-day safety, conducting Toolbox talks every morning and attending daily safety briefings by BAM Construction staff and supervisors from all trades on site to brief each other of any risks and ensure trades were not disrupting one another. The team of 10 Attleys operatives, which included two NVQ Level 2 apprentices, carried out daily visual inspections of tools and all power tools were PAT tested every three months. Shaun Attley visited weekly to inspect the job for workmanship and production and also to gather feedback on any safety issues or to see if any safety measures could be instigated to improve the overall safety for their and other operatives on site. “We found some of these measures not only improved safety but also helped improve production,” said Shaun. Attleys also had an independent safety inspector (from The Health & Safety People) visit site monthly to see if there were any safety improvements they could recommend. Far from handling eight million tonnes of coal a year, Coal Drops Yard is now forecast to pull in 12 million visitors a year.

Eikon Design has successfully undertaken a major renovation of the Spirit AeroSystems main reception area, creating a stylish, energised space that integrates perfectly with the new corporate branding on its recently completed, world-class £28m Aerospace Innovation Centre.Spirit AeroSystems is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of Aerostructures for commercial airplanes, defence platforms, and business and regional jets. Eikon Design won the contract to design and project manage the reception area renovation.From the start, the designer felt that the refurbished reception area needed to reflect the dynamism and vitality projected by the Innovation Centre. The designers first thoughts were that they had to explore ways of using quality lighting and natural daylight on surfaces to create an impressive, engaging experience for visitors.The colour scheme - The designer Susan Anderson chose a neutral colour scheme that would reflect that used on the exterior of the Aerospace Innovation Centre, which was predominantly silver and grey. Surfaces – HARMONY pre-fixed slatted acoustic felt . Susan wanted to bring the reception area to life with surfaces that had different textures, depending on the light available and where the visitor stood in the room. After researching the market, Susan chose the Harmony ribbed-felt wall acoustic panels which Saxen sourced from the manufacturers, Soundtect. They were the perfect solution – grey fibre slats on a black acoustic sheet, as they had the structure, texture and colour she was looking for. Plus they were hypoallergenic and non-toxic, with up to 1.0 NRC (noise reduction co-efficient) – and a totally sustainable addition to the project, having been manufactured third-generation from recycled PET.The PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles are first recycled into exhibition carpets and then, at the end of their short second life, converted again into highly efficient acoustic felt by carefully re-layering the fibres to use as the core for this impressive, elegant, ribbed acoustic treatment.The Harmony panels are manufactured with fireproofing built-in, because the original carpet fibres were already fireproof so this critical safety component is integral to the product and not simply sprayed on. The Cause was responsible for fitting all the ribbed Harmony wall panels.The wooden wall panels behind the reception desk were dated, so the designer decided to repurpose them.- they were prepped, base coat applied and sprayed with two beautiful tones of metallic silver by Scottish Architectural Spray painters. Visual contrast was provided by prepped and coated matt white wall areas. LightingHaving found the perfect panelling, the designer had to consider the lighting and the role it would play. She worked with Seren Lighting, using a combination of existing products and bespoke lighting in ways which were both innovative and functional – using light to define spaces and surfaces. Depending on the way they were lit – whether artificial light, natural light or a mixture of both – the texture on the Harmony panels created subtly different moods. Also, as there is a fair amount of daylight flooding into the reception, the atmosphere of the whole space changed with the passing of time and the amount of daylight with both the ribbed and silver metallic panels creating different atmospheres depending on where you stood. All the lights installed in the project follow ‘circular economy’ principles and can be cost-effectively maintained and serviced – parts can be replaced with no need to throw the whole light away and buy a new one. The reception deskFor most of the day in summer and for short periods in winter, the reception area is flooded with natural light from two sides, so lighting the reception desk workstation needed a careful response.The workstation was located behind the reception desk, so using standard lighting methods would have detracted from the overall impression and been unnecessary for long periods. In developing the solution, the designer followed the basic principle, ‘put light where you want it, when you need it’. So an LED ultra-effect strip in diffuse profile was used under the top surface of the reception desk which threw a subtle light onto where the receptionist was working on the computer. The receptionist can switch this strip on or off as appropriate.The Cause remodelled and reformatted the reception desk to the design, which involved removing the angled elements and large posts, and replacing them with a concealed door. They also fitted the reception desk surface with a stylish, matt, dark-grey laminate, installing the lighting, graphic panel and ribbed panelling to the front. The panelling’s flexibility ensured a perfect fit around the curve in the reception desk.The reception desk skirting was painted the same colour as the staircase handrail.The Wing LightsThese were designed to develop the Wing Lights from first principle. The Wing Lights deliver light upwards, so it bounces off the various surfaces to enhance the textures and reflective differences. They also project a visual link to the ‘star’ element of the Spirit AeroSystems logo and took several attempts to create the final geometric shape. However, the Wing Lights now act as dramatic focal point within the space, capturing the essence of Spirit AeroSystems’ business and the designers overall design vision.CeilingThe existing suspended ceiling was off-white in colour, and looked rather tired so it was spray-painted with a dark metallic silver, which transformed the appearance of the ceiling and changed the whole look of the reception area. Lighting the upper-level walkwayThere were issues with uneven wall surfaces on the upper-level walkway. The solution was to apply architecturally inspired Harmony, lit by dramatic custom-made LEDs, to create the total effect – an utterly stunning, modern wall. The lights used were twin gimbal heads – round lights that can swivel in two directions. These were specially adapted from standard lights in the Seren range. The twin gimbal heads were installed in false pockets, clad with ribbed-felt. They provide functional lighting to the walkway, while adding a dramatic effect on the wall panelling.Finally, a pelmet was constructed to conceal a new LED Cob profile, allowing it to wash diffused light between the ribbed features of the Harmony panelling.The panels above the pelmet were spray-painted silver – the same colour as the ceiling – to give a much more dramatic effect.Other features…The wooden bannister handrail was stripped back and layered with different metallic colours to give a changing surface effect with different shadows and highlights. It was then coated in a high-gloss lacquer. This introduced an accent of colour, which also reflected the company’s corporate colours.StructuresDominating the reception area are two high columns, one of which contains a lift. Given the solidity and simplicity of the shapes, the designer decided on a lighting solution that would create an architectural feel, so she used beam-controlled light bars at the top of the structures to project a subtle wash down the full length of the columns.Carpets and furnitureThe existing carpet tiles were removed and upgraded. They were colour coordinated with the new, striking Italian Quadrifoglio furniture, sourced through Saxen. This furniture was the cornerstone of the designers vision vision, and its style, shape, colours and textures tie the space together.ConclusionThe success of the project was very much down to careful planning, creative thought and good people working together. Products used: Freestyle. Harmony