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Last year AYA judges were so impressed with the work of NVB Architects that the practice won the Education Architect of the Year trophy.
In this series, we take a look at one of the team’s introductory projects and ask the company’s director, James McGillivray, to break down some of the biggest specification challenges to overcome.
What are the main requirements for a client profile? How do you meet these requirements through design and specifications?
Unlike a typical school, Haberdashers’ Boys’ School seeks an adult environment. They wanted excellent teaching facilities that would also promote social cohesion within the school community and provide new social spaces. They have conducted extensive research on optimizing learning environments and require open and transparent standardized flexible teaching spaces in order to shape good learning behaviors.
There was also a desire to shift the focus of the campus and create a new focal point in an underutilized corner of the school. The challenge was to create an important contemporary building close to a protected country house. Our starting point was careful consideration of form and proportion to accommodate the large number of accommodation required by the brief (46 classrooms). We must consider what the correct norms are to support contemporary teaching in heritage settings and how to resolve these potentially conflicting criteria.
What was the biggest specification challenge for this project?
To increase adaptability, the cast-in-place concrete structure was developed to avoid using columns that are thicker than the internal walls and instead create long sections of finned walls. Much of the concrete is exposed internally for aesthetics and thermal mass. Monitoring the quality of concrete is the biggest challenge.
Choosing a balanced palette of materials to complement the texture of concrete and its inevitable imperfections was key to overcoming the challenge. Viewed individually and up close, imperfections inevitably appear, but once a balanced material palette is adopted, these become less significant.
We put a lot of effort into detailing the joints, such as aligning the day joints of the baseboards with the tops of the baseboards, and precision-milled timber framing with rough concrete offsets. We also spent time with the client visiting precedent buildings with similar concrete standards to set expectations.
We chose a small but consistent palette of materials – brick, concrete, oak, zinc – and allowed the materials to remain what they are. The building was designed with the thought that it should have a long life and we wanted to ensure that it would age gracefully.
What are the three biggest specification considerations for the type of project? How does this apply specifically to your project?
In academic buildings, three key considerations are internal air quality (no one wants students to nod off), acoustics (reverberation and sound transmission) and balancing privacy and avoidance of distraction with child protection.
We use a supplementary heat recovery system to ensure proper ventilation in the classrooms and this system is carefully coordinated to maintain the calm and clean appearance required for school spirit.
Acoustics are critical to speech intelligibility in the classroom, but acoustics in circulation spaces also have a huge impact. Discipline in the school is great, but with over a thousand students potentially passing each other during shift time, the hallways can become a pretty crazy environment. The size of the circulation space is one factor in solving this problem, but acoustics are also critical.
Soundproof slatted wooden ceilings combined with carpet soften the acoustics and maintain a calm atmosphere. Incorporating lighting into the ceiling also ensures that a simple and calm look is maintained.
Good visibility between circulation areas and classrooms makes it easier to protect children, but has the potential to be distracting. Schools look at this the other way around, hoping that activities in the classroom will have good visibility to foster students’ curiosity and desire to learn. The large glass screen provides this and is positioned to reduce distractions.
What do you think is the biggest success of this project?
The buildings are essentially two large sets of classrooms, but what enhances the scheme is the quality and detailing of the spaces between the interior and the landscape. Careful management of the floor area meant we could keep horizontal and vertical circulation routes spacious and regular, and create generous seating and social areas both within and within the new courtyard.
Project details
architect NVB Architects
client Men’s Haberdashery School
project Manager Jones Lang LaSalle
planning consultant HGH consultation
estate consultant Allen Baxter Partners
structural engineer Overall engineering design
Mechanical Engineers FG Alden
electrical engineer duck and taylor
quality standards Robinson Lowe Francis (now MGAC)
acoustic consultant Clark Sanders
landscape architect NVB landscape
Chief designer Osa project
main contractor Walker Fitzpatrick
CAD software used (BIM) Revit
Our What Makes This Project series highlights the outstanding work of the Architect of the Year finalists. To keep up to date with the Architect of the Year Awards, visit here.
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