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We have a Code 6 house on the architect’s “drawing board” at the moment, (Code 6 is the highest band in the “Code for Sustainable Homes” and amongst other things it means that the house will be carbon neutral). The trouble is, this house is supposed to look like a nineteenth century barn conversion. The site is within a courtyard group of recently converted barns in residential use. The other barns have slate roofs and are a mixture of local stone and black stained horizontal weatherboarding. So… typical agricultural buildings then! There is a tiny bit of salvaged brick and stone on the site which will do for a modest plinth near ground level, but no slate. Extracting more walling stone and roofing slate from the ground is out of the question. Where do we go from here? Timber is becoming widely respected for building purpose due to the fact that, as they grow, trees trap CO2 and are therefore considered carbon neutral and a fully renewable material. We had adopted a timber frame for the structure early on but had the idea of using Western Red Cedar for all of the external cladding – walls of feather-edge boarding and shingles for the roof. We checked into the attributes of this timber and were thoroughly impressed with it’s C.V and it’s capabilities.
Western Red Cedar: The Data 1. Sustainability The first point to make is that a sustainable producer needs to be identified, but helpfully the WRECA (Western Red Cedar Export Association) provide product certification and chain of custody tracking to ensure excellent forest management and environmental protection. 2. Appearance When it comes out of the sawmill, cedar has a rich amber/ sienna brown colour with a satin sheen. (By the way it also smells terrific – great for lining saunas) This colour can be retained with a lot of effort and the application of various chemical concoctions to keep the impact of ultra violet light under control. However, left untreated it will turn grey – this gives an appearance not dis-similar from weathered Welsh slate. Also, grey timber cladding is actually more historically authentic than black boarding. For thousands of years people all over the world built with wood and left it exposed to the elements – it just went grey. Stain is a relatively new invention and quickly took the place of tar-based products. Some naturally occurring tar or pitch might have been used where available, but it wasn’t until coal tar began to be produced – as a by-product of turning coal into coke or gas – that economical quantities of tar came into circulation. So the “black barn” is a modern phenomenon, relatively speaking. 3. Intrinsic qualities Western red cedar (Thuja Plicata) fits the bill in many ways, including:- a. Low density – The cellular structure is very open making it less dense than most other softwoods, so the roof dead load is less and rafters can be smaller. b. Better insulation – As a function of the low density, the entrapped air insulates, keeping internal heat in, in winter and reducing solar gain in summer. c. Low shrinkabilty – The cell structure also creates an extremely stable material, twice as stable as other soft woods used in construction. It remains flat and straight after cutting and holds nails securely. d. Resin-free – Unlike other softwoods, there is virtually no pitch or resin in cedar. This means the unsightly bleeding of resin from knots is avoided. e. Self-preserving – The heartwood contains high levels of “Thujaplicins”, which are natural wood preservatives that protect against moisture, decay and insect attack. In fact these preservatives are toxic to fungi. f. Good workability – These trees produce an exceptionally consistent timber, close and uniform grain with few knots. It is less likely to split and warp as it is being worked compared to other soft woods. g. Resistance to fire – It has a higher resistance to the spread of flame than other soft woods and also a better rating for retarded smoke generation. h. Durability – The service life of cedar cladding is 40-60 years compared to 20-30 years for generic European Redwoods.
So Western Red Cedar wraps it up really – we couldn’t go wrong and look forward to putting it together on site. P.S It is also very useful for making all sorts of other things such as beehives, canoes, boat frames and guitars. Good luck.
We’re not fighting a losing battle just yet… As we gear up for the launch of our brand new retail design division, Rhubarb Retail, it’s becoming clear that what’s judged as “good” retail design is very subjective. This is what makes our retail team’s job so difficult, but what they do understand is that all shoppers have a choice… OK, I know that much is obvious to most, so let me explain: As shoppers, we all have the option to buy most things online, and yet despite the doom and gloom reports in the news, check out your local high street on a Saturday morning. It’s not completely deserted is it? Surely buying everything from the comfort of our own homes would prove more cost-effective for most. You don’t pay for the privilege of getting to the shops, you don’t have to brave the unpredictable British weather, and you can find what you’re looking for with a quick Google search. Despite this, the majority of people do visit the high street or shopping malls for more than just a quick purchase. Consciously or not, they are looking for a retail experience… of course this doesn’t apply to everyone, nor every purchase. But think about those products you really care about. You might research them online, but for a high-value purchase would you really hand over your hard-earned cash for something that you have never seen, touched, or tasted? Whether it’s the perfect dress, ingredients for the perfect dinner party, or the perfect car, you will want to go in-store and make sure that what you’re choosing is right for you, and the retail experience is key to this. It’s for this reason that all stores need to provide a shopping experience – whether it’s the treasure trove of trinkets in a gift shop, or visual splendor of product and packaging in a delicatessen, visual theatre helps. It smacks of quality and makes customers feel special, giving them the personal justification that they should spend money on this product over any others they’ve found. This understanding is what makes brands like Abercrombie & Fitch, Hotel Chocolat and Penhaligon’s etc so successful. Maybe if retail design services and advice were available more cost-effectively to the independent retailer, we would see more of these experiential store formats? The new House of Fraser ‘Buy and Collect’ concept could bring high end shopping in a smaller footprint / format back to the High Street. Street furniture or concierge services could allow shoppers to ‘park’ their shopping, or have it delivered to their car? For great retail design, we need ‘outside of the box’ thinking and a truly collaborative approach. This will put the life back into our High Streets. Chloe http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/chloe-woods/15/81/776
Nationwide Models Property Cost Savings We are pleased to announce a three year contract award from Nationwide Building Society for technical design and related services as part of it’s ongoing development of high quality space and utilisation data and design standards.
The contract includes the migration and linking of existing space and asset data into a single database using CADS SpaceStation software application to provide improved reporting on both Head Office and Branch space. The contract also includes the implementation of future branch design work into a BIM (building information modelling) format including consultancy and engagement with the existing Nationwide supply chain and integration into current and future information systems. Nationwide’s Business and Planning Transformation Manager Robert Cock takes up the story “Nationwide has a sizeable property portfolio across the UK and we recognised that moving our branch and administration space data into a single system will provide us with improved reporting and analysis and assist the delivery of cost savings to our members. C A Design ticked all our boxes in terms of know-how, existing services, software and innovative thinking we believed necessary to deliver these improvements to our business.” CADS Director Guy Moates adds “We are very proud to have been selected by Nationwide. The contract includes delivery of software, BIM consultancy, architectural design, 3D visualisation, surveys and space planning services and we believe C A Design is at the forefront of the market in offering a joined-up portfolio of in-house services that major property owners need to improve their understanding and use of facilities whilst lowering their on-going costs”.
For more information e-mail Guy Moates or call 014930 440444. I’ve just come across a really useful article from the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) with guidance on Appointing an Interior Designer I thought I’d share the article with you, since it is also relevant when choosing your retail designer. Together with the BIID article, Julie’s blog post on Retail Design, Planning and Location will help you to build a clear picture of how to select your designer or design team, and what to expect from the retail design and planning process. As you may know, the CADS group includes a team of expert interior retail designers and retail architects, under the 3d Architects brand. If you have any questions on any of the above information the team will be happy to help! Mel Our team over at 3d Architects were involved in a local development this year, during which they were faced with various interesting challenges relating to the architecture. Ken Wallace, Associate Director at 3d Architects, discusses these challenges and his approach to them below. We hope the case study might help you in the future when faced with any similar architecture, planning, or site development challenges. To start, this project required extensive negotiations with various departments of the local authorities – the issues faced included the following:
First of all, here’s a little background on the project: Pottergate is a medieval street in within the Norwich city walls to the north-west of the market and lies within the central conservation area. There had previously been planning permissions on the site, but this had expired and a new policy relating to the use of renewable energy prevented a simple extension of the old consent. Planning Permissions – the challenges The new owners of the site and the local authority officers were keen to improve on the previous planning permissions for the site, and instructed 3d Architects to take this forward. However we were immediately presented with constraints by the Conservation Officer, the County Archaeologist, the Highways Engineer and the Planning Officer! The planners were quite clear that due to the tight urban grain, the only acceptable site layout would be a pair of parallel blocks, one fronting the street and the other set back behind an internal courtyard.
The Conservation Issue The site context includes many Georgian and Victorian buildings, set on the back of the pavement and generally three storeys high. There are also listed buildings on both sides and opposite.
This archive photograph from around 100 years ago shows the site frontage behind the two nearest carriages. The old dwellings were destroyed during the Second World War and the site was not re-developed until the 1960’s when a printing works was built. An alley way through the frontage gave access to a Baptist chapel; this had an associated Sunday school building but also a cemetery. Our Architectural Proposal Our task was to generate a frontage compatible with the rhythm and strata of the adjoining buildings but not one that is a straight copy of the old townhouses. Working very closely with the local authorities the final solution saw the front block set on the back of the pavement, and conceived as a pair of townhouses with an adjoining building that incorporates a modest arched entrance to the courtyard. The whole block is three storeys high with the principal rooms arranged at the front. There is a strong vertical emphasis to the proportions, with a repeating pattern of windows and doors that echoes the rhythm of the Nineteenth Century neighbours. The materials for the walls and roof are sympathetic to the historic nature of the area, primarily red stock brick and clay pantiles.
Introducing the arched entrance allowed an increase in usable floor area whilst improving the continuity of the street frontage (which historically had only narrow breaks in it). The scale of the site access point in the previous approval was felt to be out of character with the old street. The rear block is of a different design but related through the language of the materials. The ground slopes away to the north so the rear building is set about 1.0m lower and is designed as two and a half storeys high thus lowering the eaves. The roof is also largely hipped to reduce the extent of over-shadowing on the neighbouring properties.
The scheme includes a range of sizes of apartments from 41 to 86 sq metres gross internal floor area. Some of the units also have the facility for “Working at Home”. The Archaeology Issue As a result of its location within the old city there is the possibility of various layers of archaeological material on the site. However, previous excavations had indicated that the construction of cellars in Victorian times had removed quite a lot of the earlier deposits. There is still a significant issue over the human remains in the old cemetery, compounded by the presence of a crypt, below the floor slab in the location of the former chapel, containing further burials. Dealing with a potentially archaeological site – our response We negotiated with the Ministry Of Justice to get clearance for the proposed foundations and arranged the site layout (e.g. the location of the courtyard garden and the parking spaces), to minimise the disturbance to the ground in the sensitive areas. We are co-ordinating further archaeological excavation work with the County Archaeologist so that all historic material uncovered during construction can be recorded for the local archive. We worked with a structural engineer to devise a piling scheme that had the minimum of impact on the ground, (bearing in mind that the ground conditions are not particularly favourable – a chalk layer is relatively near the surface).
The Highways Issue The city council would have preferred this to be a car-free development, however as a city-centre development, cars were recognised to be a necessary inclusion. The Highways Issue – A Compromise We ended up with eight parking spaces for the full development. Each flat has been given a cycle shed. There are also cycle bays for visitors. This is considered a highly sustainable location so the occupiers will benefit from easy access to all the facilities of the city centre. The re-design of the car parking area allowed for a larger communal garden and a reduced area of roadway, whilst still increasing the number of car spaces on the site. The client was keen to install a gate at the entrance to prevent un-authorised use of the car park; we were able to secure the planners and highways agreement to this. Dealing with refuse on site is an important issue and we were able to provide a solution that discretely accommodates the shared bins in accessible locations and allows for the current and future range of separation for re-cycling different materials. Ensuring the Conservation of Natural Resources The current planning policy on energy requires that at least 10% of the energy consumed by the development has to be provided on-site. Our starting point was to design buildings with very low levels of consumption of natural resources. They are highly insulated and placing the main rooms on the sunny front side makes the most of Solar Gain. Heat recovery ventilation systems are included. The front, southern roofs slopes are ideal for positioning photo-voltaic panels to recover energy from the sun that is converted to electricity. The calculations demonstrate that this comfortably exceeds the 10% threshold. This arrangement also takes advantage of the Feed-In Tariff scheme, selling surplus electricity back to the National Grid. Other renewable technologies were explored but found to be unsuitable for this urban location; wind turbines were ineffective in this city location, air-source heat pumps were too noisy, ground source heat pumps would disturb too much archaeology and deliveries and storage of fuel for biomass boilers was prohibitive. Solar thermal heating would have been viable but was likely to generate surplus energy that could not be harnessed. The development also incorporates low-energy lighting and domestic appliances as well as utilising the latest in low water-consumption bathroom and shower fittings. Other issues The site was previously fully occupied by the factory and its car park, but will now have a shared garden in the centre of the scheme, together with some small areas of private garden for some of the ground floor flats. The boundary brick walls will be repaired and strengthened. The soils on the site contain further risks which are also being addressed. There is Japanese Knotweed present so a considerable quantity of soil will be removed and replaced. There is also the potential for contamination of the ground related to the former printing works so a further investigation is being carried out before work starts on site. A Summary Pottergate is a pleasant street close to the heart of Norwich in an area that is currently benefitting from a period of regeneration. This scheme will provide a sympathetic reinstatement of the street scene, respecting the older buildings nearby. It sensitively handles the constraints that arise from being in a historically significant location, enhancing the location from a variety of viewpoints and gives a new lease of life to a site that has been overlooked for some time. If you’re faced with a similar architectural challenge, share your story with us in the comments section below. 3d Architects are also happy to offer advice and services to help you in negotiations with land owners, local authorities etc. You can find more information on their website: www.3darchitects.co.uk.
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