BRISTOL institute of FIlm Sir Basil Spence Project 2010
Architects Eirini Christofidou Aran Freestone Carolina Saludes
Engineer Richard Jackson
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CoNTENTS the Brief
The Site Bristol + Spike Island Analysis of the Site
6- 13 6-9 10- 13
Concept Development Mecca
14-19 14-17 18-19
Approach to site The Landscape in detail
20- 25 20- 23 24- 25
The Building in Context Long Section Elevations Plans
26- 43 26- 29 30- 31 32- 35 36- 43
The Concept
the Scheme
The Landscape
The Machine
44- 49
The Man Interior Views Short Section
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44- 45 46- 49
Materiality
Tectonics
50- 57
Structure
Environment
Axonometric The Strategy Details
60- 69
Env. Strategy The Strategy Environmental Sections Details Materials and Accoustics
Conclusion
52- 53 54- 55 56- 59
60- 61 62- 63 64- 65 66- 67
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INTRoduction “There’s the change from light to darkness, and the change from darkness to light... the same is true of the soul...� In our hectic lives with overflowing email inboxes, with devices that are smarter by the minute, under the tyrany of a ticking clock, we become fragmented. Over the years, there is a risk of living in the darkness and never daring to break the wall to allow for some light to come through our souls. Film enables viewers to embark on a journey that transfixes their senses and emotions; reality is suspended. The proposed Institute aims to act as an interval between light and darkness , between the outside world of Bristol and the fictional world of cinema. The cinematic experience calls for total darkness and secllusion. Darkness is used in space to allow for viewers to develop a dialogue between theimselves and the projected image of the world on the screen. Viewers complete their journey by gradually steppiing back into light, back into Bristol with hopefully a better understanding of their true selves.
THE SITE
Bristol + Spike island The site is located on Spike Island, a strip of land formed when the Floating Harbour was constructed in 1809. Defined by large bodies of water to the north, Floating Harbour, and the tidal New Cut of the River Avon to the south, Spike Island is part of the city’s centre. Connecting the commercial city centre to its historic industrial core and the suburbs, it is a transition zone. Having played a vital role in the city’s long industrial maritime tradition, Spike Island is part of the Harbourside Regeneration Area part of the City Docks Conservation Area. The rich maritime heritage is evident through the many buildings and artefacts which date from the 1800s with the SS Great Britain at the end of the island and the “L” and “M” sheds which now house the new Industrial Museum of Bristol. Spike Island is a playful layering of history and an intersection between urban and suburban. Former industrial warehouses give their place to art galleries, public spaces and private housing developments, thus transforming the character of the site. The proposed site outlined in this report is confined within the Wapping Wharf development and the Museum Square, along the riverside.
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Watershed
Brunnel’s SS Great Britain
Arnolfini Gallery Lloyds TSB Headquarters
Floating Harbour
Industrial Museum of Bristol
Spike Island Artspace
Site
CREATE Centre
Wapping Wharf Development
Map showing the South West of Bristol and most of Spike Island
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the site
History of the Site
History of Spike Island The history of the Site from the 18th Century, explaining the main happenings but also what influenced us when approaching the site. We were specially influenced by the boat making industry in the area and the role of Spike Island as a entrance gate of goods from all over the world to Bristol and England
New Gaol was built, but burnt down during the 1831 Bristol riots and has been replaced by Horfield Prison in 1883.
Jessop proposes the Floating Harbour scheme.
1701
1793
As trade blossomed, Bristol became a major port. Merchants spend their wealth in developing their city. Queen Square finished in 1701, displacing shipbuilding south of the river.
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1809
1816-1820
Work commenced on the Floating Harbour in 1804. In 1809 it opened, controling the tidal range of the river Avon. Spike Island was formed when the New Cut was constructed. It became the centre of industrial maritme activity.
1826 A dry dock was built at Wapping Wharf , known as Blanning’s Ship Yards.
Bristol Riots
The SS Great Britain project was launched by Brunnel on the Wharf.
1831
1843
1870-1890 Princes Wharf has formed as we know it today. A number of transit sheds were built during this period, including the Princes Granaries.
Prince Street Bridge,a hydraulic powered swing bridge replaced the existing timber bridge. 1872
Closure of the City Docks, ending a 1,000 years of maritime history.
During the Blitzes, a third of the city’s medieval part and buildings like the Princes Granary has been destroyed. 1875
The Fairbairn steam crane was erected.
1941
1948-1952 Reconstruction Period: the “L” and “M” sheds, now housing the Industrial Museum of Bristol, were constructed. By 1951 the Stothert & Pitt electric cranes were placed. A number of Guiness sheds were built.
1974
The Industrial Museum of Bristol is due to open in Spring 2011. 1975-present
2011
A Booming Art Scene: From 1976 Artspace Bristol was established on Spike Island. The art scene continued to grow throughout the 1980s, “gentrifying” large harbourside districts with similar cltrural projects. Since 1998, Spike Island hosts a number of internationally established art galleries.
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the site
Surrounding Building Use: Residential Commercial Leisure/Cultural Hotel Centres of Worship Retail at Ground Floor Site
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Study of Movement and People Flow:
Pedestrian Movement Vehicular Movement
Site
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the site
Surrounding Building Heights: Six Storeys Five Storeys Four Storeys Three Storeys Two Storeys One Storey Site
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Sun Path and Prevailing Winds
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THE CONCEPT THe Allegory of the Cave, PLato
“Picture human beings living in some sort of underground cave dwelling, with an entrance which is long, as wide as the cave, and open to the light. Here they live, from earliest childhood, with their legs and necks in chains, so that they have to stay where they are, looking only ahead of them, prevented by the chains from turning their heads...”
“...Think what their release from the chains and the cure for their ignorance would be like. When one of them was untied, and compelled suddenly to stand up, turn his head, start walking and look towards the light...”
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THE Brief
Similar to the allegory, the proposed Bristol Film Institute allows for a dialogue between the outer and inner world of cinema to exist. Acting as a screen, a mediator between the known world, the city of Bristol and the undiscovered core of the Institute, of films and film-making, is the building’s own skins.
Inverting the allegory of the cave, we suggest that we are all prisoners on the outside, in the “light”
Like Odysseus, our visitors embark on a journey from the city of Bristol, through the public realm and into film
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THE CONCEPT
The Diagram
The building becomes a skin, a container for the from a passive into an active viewer, involved in th out and the music starts to play, and with the first part of the w
A journey of liberation, of a man walking from darkness to light and from ignorance to knowledge.
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THE Brief VIew of the atrium, between the Institute and the cinemas
e illusion of cinema. The viewer is metamorphosed he magic of film. Entering the cinema, the lights dim scenes projected on the screen, you are no longer world outside.
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the concept
Mecca
Hateem: Remaining wall from Abraham’s original Ka’ba.
Hajj: The end of the pilgrimage asks pilgrims to walk around the Ka’ba seven times.
Shaazarwaan: 55 rings of brass fixed on it.
3 Pillars supporting the roof
Wall of Ka’ba
The door is elevated by 2.13 metres off the ground.
Black Stone Corner
Plan of the Ka’ba, the holiest building of Islam
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THE Brief
The Ka’ba - ةبعكلا An arabic word for cube, this small building is located within the courtyard of al-Haram Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It is the centre of the Islamic belief as all Muslims turn towards its direction during prayer. Surrounded by mountains and blessed with a spring of water, this shrine has been re-built by every tribe that controlled Mecca, as to protect sacred objects, like the Black Stone. The Quraysh tribe rebuilt the Ka’ba as we know it today, in the 7th Century, with alternating course of stone and wood. The exterior is still covered with a habrat cloth from Yemen. As years went by, more layers were added, mosques, a courtyard, protecting the holiest cornerstone in the Musilm world. It is considered the assembly and return of all people. Myths surrounding this shrine trespassed time;it is a pilgrimage to selfawareness, a journey of thousand miles.People are removed from their lives, slowly entering the modern extention of Mecca, moving towards the old city which protects the mosque, the courtyard and the Ka’ba. This journey is trully inspiring as there are different stages and different layers protecting what is holy and allowing pilgrims for a spiritual re-birth; all through the veils of a landscape and a building.
Mecca in 1910
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the brief
THE LANDSCAPE
Approach to Site
‘The building absorbs people, energy, light, during the day, releasing it at night...’
The diagram that shows how the Buidling interacts with the Landscape and with Bristol, and which would also be the base for our environmental strategy
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Layering of the building in progression to the cinemas. The timber building effectively ‘wraps around’ the concrete building, protecting it
THE scheme
The view of the North Facade of the building at night in front of the New Harbour and the MShed
The view of the concrete building from Gaol Bridge Street, on the South side of the site 23
LANDSCAPE
The landscape in detail Garden on First Floor Level
The Courtyard The Projection Rooms Shopping Area/ Access from Gaol Bridge Pool of water Illuminates at night thanks to light from projection rooms through Litracon material
Pool of water inside the atrium
The Piazza
Open space can act as a stage for public performances
Axonometric View of the Landscape
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Axonometric View of the Landscape with the Projection Room
THE scheme
The Cinema Building
Entrances to Cnemas
The Institute Building
Atrium Between the two buildings, providing access to the cinemas and exhibition space Ground Floor stays as part of the landscape, completely open Outdoor CafĂŠ
Axonometric View of the Landscape with the Concrete Building
Axonometric View of the Landscape with the whole Building
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THE machine
The Institute
South Facade
Service- Served Areas
Served Areas
Served areas are kept light and open plan, so they can benefit from the diffused light and the flexibility of the spaces. There are several structural, environmental and spatial advantages to having the service cores grouped together, including noise, bin collection and structural soundness.
Serviced Areas
Spatial Organisation The institute is organised so that the ground floor is kept entirely public and very little involved in the film world, aside from the entrance to the exhibition space. There is a café that spills out into the landscape, a shop and the main reception. As you progress up, though, the educational, cultural and financial possibilities unfold. The mediathèque is located on the second floor, with a full library and educational spaces. The first and third floor have foyer spaces that can be used for conferences or before the cinema. On the Fourth Floor are the administration and film production areas, designed so that there is and interaction between public, businessmen and film makers.
Admin + Film Production
Foyer + Restaurant Mediatèque
Mediatèque
Circulation
Main Staircase
The main means of circulation up and down the building is through the main staircase on the north side of the service core. The side stairs act as circulation stairs but also as fire escapes for both the institute and the cinemas. The cinemas have special access bridges on the sides that lead straight into the stairs Side Staircases/ Fire Escapes
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THE scheme The institute and the Piazza, public, transitional and a place of pilgrimage for those coming to the cinema...
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the machine
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The Cinemas
The courtyard. Personal, human scale space that has at its very core the essence of film, the projection room...
THE scheme
South Facade
Main Cinema
Small Cinema 1
Education orientated
Small Cinema 2 Business orientated
The Cinema Building The Concrete building contains the 4 main spaces for watching films. The ground floor houses the studio loop and the exhibition space, much more open to the public. The first floor contains the two smaller cinemas, one more education orientated, the other more luxurious, business orientated. The top floor is dedicated to the main cinema, which can contain up to 750 people and which is a symbol of the magic of cinema. There are several added environmental and structural arguments for this arrangement, explained in following sections.
Studio Loop + Exhibition Space
Spatial Organisation The Projection Room Main Cinema Projector Small Cinemas’ Projectors
The institute is organised so that the ground floor is kept entirely public and very little involved in the film world, aside from the entrance to the exhibition space. There is a café that spills out into the landscape, a shop and the main reception. As you progress up, though, the educational, cultural and financial possibilities unfold. The mediathèque is located on the second floor, with a full library and educational spaces. The first and third floor have foyer spaces that can be used for conferences or before the cinema. On the Fourth Floor are the administration and film production areas, designed so that there is and interaction between public, businessmen and film makers.
Studio Loop Projector
The Projection Room at night
Circulation The main means of circulation up and down the building is through the main staircase on the north side of the service core. The side stairs act as circulation stairs but also as fire escapes for both the institute and the cinemas. The cinemas have special access bridges on the sides that lead straight into the stairs
Light coming from the Litracon wall and reflecting on the water
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the machine
Long Section- The Procession
‘The Procession to the Cinemas, ending in the projectionist as the man inside the machine....’
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THE scheme
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the machine
Elevations at 1:500
North Elevation
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THE scheme
South Elevation
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the machine
Elevations at 1:500
West Elevation
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THE scheme
East Elevation
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the machine
Site Plan
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Site Plan at 1:500
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THE scheme
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the machine
Plans at 1:300
Key
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1. Entrance 2. Shop 3. Reception 4. CafĂŠ 5. Lifts 6. Atrium 7. WCs 8. Exhibition Space 9. Studio Loop 10. Projection Room 11. Foyer/ Seating Area 12. Bar 13. Lifts 14. Kitchen 15. WCs 16. Cinema 2 17. Cinema 3 18. Fire Escapes 19. Projection Room
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Ground Floor Plan
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THE scheme
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First Floor Plan
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the machine
Plans at 1:300
Key 1. Reception 2. Open plan Archive 3. Reading Areas 4. Workshop 1 5. Workshop 2 6. Computer Area 7. Lifts 8. WCs 9. Foyer 10. Restaurant 11. Lifts 12. Kitchen 13. WCs 14. Fire Escapes 15. Cinema 1 16. Projection Room
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Second Floor Plan
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THE scheme
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Third Floor Plan
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the machine
Plans at 1:300
Key
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1. Reception 2. Waiting Area 3. WCs 4. Offices 5. Common area 6. Recording Studio 7. Editing Area 8. Lifts
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Fourth Floor Plan
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THE scheme
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Roof Plan
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THE man
Internal vIews
The young man goies into the darknes....
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...to come back to the light of Bristol older and wiser....
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the man
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Short Section at 1:150
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the man
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Short Section
‘The region revealed to us by sight is the prison dwelling, and the light of the fire inside the dwelling is the power of the sun...’ Plato, Chapter VII of ‘The Republic’
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TEctonics
materiality
Axonometric
The Materials of the two buildings was kept as pure as possible, using engineered timber for the Institute Building and precast concrete panels for the Cinema Building. Both materials are used for what they perform at best and the amount of each used has been carefully considered, therefore making them extremely environmentally friendly.
Larch Cladding covering the Facades and the Roof of
the Institute. Larch is very durable so it is good for outdoor conditions.
Thin frame around the glazing and the insulation panels, attached to the glulam columns and beams
Triple glazed low-e glazing. This is in keeping with the idea of the Institute and the Cinema buildings being highly insulated
boxes with controlled openings.
Highly insulating sheep’s wool insulation. By using a natural though thicker material the Institute is kept very environmentally friendly in terms of the materiality.
EurbanŠ larch ceiling module exposed on the inside of the Institute
Glulam beams
Glulam columns joint vertically by loose timber flitch plates
Ground Floor slab with unbounded screed surface. There is no timber on the floor of the Ground floor to avoid deteriorating over time and to keep the material equal to that of the streets
Square flyash concrete composite piles
Exploded Isometric of the Institute Building 52
TEctonics PV panels fitted on the same grid as the concrete panels to create a homogeneous look throughout the Cinema Buidling Facade.
Pretensioned reinforced concrete beams. The beams are exposed on the inside of the cinema next to the accoustic panels
Separate concrete structure and racked seating. Arched concrete floor slabs. The seating on top of it allows for the ventilation to go through.
Concrete floor slabs and concrete beams exposed in the small cinemas below.
Exposed acoustic panels on the inside of the walls next to the concrete posts of the structure
Black LitraconŠ concrete suspended by steel lintels from the floor slab
Post and beam concrete structure. This structure runs through the entire building Ground Floor slab with unbonded screed surface
Square flyash concrete composite piles
Exploded Isometric of the Cinema Building 53
Structure
Structural Strategy
The cinema building, as shown previously, is a precast concrete frame construction and the Institute building, also shown previously, is an engineered timber frame construction.
Main structural elements accross the building on plan
The characteristics of the site, slightly slopped and with very poor soil conditions, informed our scheme from the very beginning, determining a foundation system of groups of piles. To make the performance of these piles as good as possible, and to avoid the excessive use of material, we opted for a grid system which also very early on informed the way the design was going to develop. A key decision in our scheme was to keep the footprint of the building to a minimum, thus making the grid of piles small. This decision then triggered the choice of material for the piles (concrete instead of timber), which makes it much stronger to withstand heavier loads. However, we chose to use a flyash concrete composite which would make it much more sustainable than normal concrete. Finally, the grid structure imposed by the piles determined the module of the timber frame structure, which also informed from early on the architectural development of the Institute building. The two buildings, the Institute and the Cinemas are structurally separate, which reduces problems such as different rates of thermal expansion of the different materials and different foundation settlement of the buildings. In addition to this, having separate structures avoids load carrying connections between frames, which would have made these connections very big, thus clashing with the idea of the threshold being clear of structural elements. The global stability of the building derives from the cross bracing elements along the two buildings. In the Institute the bracing is placed in between the sheep’s wool insulation between the glulam columns, which is then covered by the plywood and EurbanŠ panels. This cross bracing is thus not seen in the Institute building, as the glazed openings are kept free of bracing. The stiffness of the cross laminated timber floor decking is sufficient to carry any lateral loads from the unbraced areas of the wall to areas with bracing, as the distances are never more than 4 metres. In a similar way, the Cinema building derives stability from cross bracing of structural elements. Non moment carrying connections between precast structural elements are then reinforced with cross bracing, and because there are no openings on the external walls of the whole building, this bracing can be allocated all along the walls, making it a extremely stiff structure. The concrete slabs on each floor act as a deep beam that carries lateral wind loads on the facades of the building to the braced exterior walls. The depth of these slabs and the concrete beams also allow for acoustic insulation of the different cinemas.
Diagram of construction process As mentioned before, the grid system means the construction process of the building is eased out, making it quicker, less labour intensive and more environmentally friendly. The concrete panels can be transported to site using lorries and the timber members can be imported from continental Europe using the New Harbour in front of the site. Pre- augering of holes for driven piles
Pile driving
Load testing of piles
Floor slab joint cast to top of columns and ground floor is cross braced. Construction begins on First floor
Key
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Install ground beams and labyrinth walls, then ground floor columns, either timber or concrete
Cross bracing in Cinema building to reinforce post and beam structure Cross bracing in timber facade Crosslam Lateral Wall reinforcing timber structure
Cinema Grid System at 4.2 m Institute Grid System at 2 m Grid of piles on both buildings
TEctonics Construction Section at 1:200
Glazed roof iconsisting of thin frames attached to both buildings and low-e triple glazing for maximum insulation Cross laminated timber bridges connecting the two buildings. Inside the cross lam are the ventilation pipes .
Cross laminated timber stairs connecting all the floors
Thick insulation running all along the outer skin of the building Pv Panels on the roof of the building
Litracon Facade supported on steel lintels for a seamless effect
Labyrinth used for cooling in summer. It allows for less material to be used as that space doesn’t need to be filed with concrte and it compensates for the change of level in the landscape
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Materiality
Architectural Details
Detail One: Institute Building Facade 150x50 mm Larch Timber Cladding 50 mm Larch Counter-Battens Larch Timber Frame 150x 50 mm Larch Battens
Vapour Membrane
Plyboard
Pavatherm© Insulation Boards
50x50 mm Larch Battens
Pavatherm© Insulation Boards
Glulam Primary Structural Frame Timber I-Joists
Double glazing
The glazed facade on the Ground Floor opens up in warm weather, creting an outside café
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TEctonics Detail Two: Cinema Building Facade
50 mm Cavity Gap With Vapour Membrane Steel Lintels
100 mm Mineral Wool Insulation
100 mm Litracon Š Precast Panels
Inside of Cinema Building (top to bottom): Main Cinema, Small Cinema below, Studio Loop and Exhibition Space
Neoprene Bearing Compressive Insulation Pad Escapement Grill for the labyrinth. It also creates a shadow gap around the Cinema building, intended for archictectural purposes Pool of Water that runs all around the Cinema Building 200 mm Precast Flyash (Black) Concrete Panel The concrete bench is a continuation of the pool and the Cinema building, merging with the landscape
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Materiality
Architectural Details
Detail Three: Institute Building Roof 200 mm Rigid Insulation Board Felt on Plywood Decking Covered With Stone Chippings To Prevent Uplift From Wind and To Protect From Solar Radiation
Glass Roof
Gutter
Glulam Frame
PavathermŠ Rigid Insulation Board
Timber Joists
Vapour Control Air Plyboard Decking
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TEctonics Detail Four: Cinema Building Roof PV Panels Fixings PV Panels Fixed To Yimber Joists Plyboard
Vapour Barrier 200 mm Insulation Board
Timber Angle Fillet Metal Coping
PV Panels 3 Layers of Roofing Felt Timber Joists 400 mm Rigid Insulation
Precast Concrete Slab
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environment
Environmental strategy
Overview
In an attempt to design a building as close to zero-carbon as possible, a thorough environmental strategy has been implemented from the start. The overriding philosophy is a reduction in energy usage and heating/cooling demand. When there is a demand for electricity, heating and cooling, it has been attempted to supply it with the minimum environmental impact. The scheme is treated as a highly insulated closed system (average U-value = 0.13w/m2K) with controlled openings. Inside the system, the materials used for each building reflects the types of heat load-
Night Cooling The ground source heat pumps run at night to precool or preheat the buildings for next day, minimising the use of energy. The ventilation system also runs at night to take advantage of cool temperatures and a lower cost.
ings experienced. The concrete copes well with short periods of heavy loading heat gains, whereas the timber copes better with long periods of lower heat loading. There is mechanical heat recovery of exhaust air via exchanger ducts in the roof space of the inner building (as shown on the following page). For cooling there is an underground labyrinth of exposed concrete to chill incoming air and the timber building also uses cross-ventilation. The concrete building has its frame exposed internally to utilise thermal mass in smoothing the peaks of daily temperature variation, whilst the timber building is fed by ground source heat pumps (GSHP) to provide a low-level cooling or heating effect by utilising the ambient ground temperature.
About 75% of the annual electricity demand can be met through the annual electricity supply of an array of photovoltaic panels covering the roof of the buildings. However, the peaks of demand and supply do not coincide, so a feed-in tariff to the national grid is proposed to power the Institute Building’s equipment when it is overcast, offsetting this grid dependency by selling electricity when sun is shining in Summer. v
Electricity The demand for electricity is reduced by using low energy equipment and light bulbs such as LED lights. Building Management System will control the buildings’ lighting and openings to insure minimal electricity wastage. The large surface area of the Cinema Building (800m2) will be covered with Photo Voltaic panels on the roof which will produce excess electricity during the Summer, Autumn and Spring, which can be sold to the grid and then bought back during the winter months to meet all the electricity demands. Also low energy consuming projectors will be put in place to ensure that no excess heat is produced and that the electricity use will be kept to a minimum.
The Building Form A reduced building footprint reduced the number of piles required therefore reducing the amount of concrete needed to form the piles. A smaller surface area building, which is also beneficial structurally, means smaller fabric heat loss throughout the building, resulting in a more efficient environmental strategy Reusing the soil dug out from the piles and car parks in the Wapping Wharf development to landscape the site, creating the 1m height rise to prevent flooding of building and to create front public performance space.
Partial View of the Perspective Section through the Building
Lighting All served spaces in the Institute Building, where most of the daily activities take place, are glazed and orientated towards the North, providing constant diffused light throughout the day. The requirement for artificial lighting is therefore reduced and electricity demand lowered. The position and amount of glazing on the facade of the Timber building has been carefully designed and controlled, with a total of 50% of the facade being glazed, to ensure adequate light levels and freedom to play with the light and dark characteristics of the spaces.
Atrium The atrium provides a ventilation stack effect during summer months, which provides a natural air flow rate, pulling the warm air from the buildings and drawing fresh air from the labyrinth. This air flow can be supported by fans in the ventilation ducts. The glazing frame has openings to the inside of the concrete wall of the Cinema building to allow the air to go out, regulating the pressure of air that creates ventilation within the space
Humidification of Water The pool of water to the south of the site and the harbour to the North humidify the air before being pulled into the building. This works especially well in summer months, as the water can cool the air down. This aslo works very well in the Atrium, where the internal pool of water makes the stack effect work better in summer, and helps stabilise the temperature in winter. Note that the internal and external pools of water are separated by a concrete wall and glazing to avoid thermal bridging. 62
Environmental features on Building Plan
Environment
Key
Ventilation Ducts Ground Source Heat Pump Pipes Thermal Labyrinth Underneath the Building Water Pipes From Rainwater Harvesting Tanks
Environmental Features on Roof Plan
Key Photovoltaics Panels Rainwater Gutters Downpipes Distribution of Rainwater Harvesting
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Environmental Strategy
Environmental Sections
Thermal Labyrinth Environmental Strategy in Summer at 1:150
The thermal labyrinth is made from the ground beams between the pile caps. It preheats the air in summer and precools it in winter before entering the ventilation ducts. It uses recycled glass bottles with water inside to double the thermal capacity of the labyrinth and increase the contact surface area with the air passing through.
Key Warm Air Cold Air Ground Source Heat Pump Cooling
Ground Source Heat Pumps It is the most efficient way to heat or cool, with an energy coefficient of 3.The heating or cooling from the ground source heat pumps is delivered to the building through under floor metal tray radiators in the institute or under floor heating in the cinema floor slab. The pumps are installed within the concrete piles for ease of construction and cost.
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Thermal Labyrinth
Environment Heat Recovery Units During winter months, the ventilation ducts for intake and exhaust air run on top of one another through the roof and walls and as a result have a high contact surface area allowing for a heat recovery rate of 70%.
Environmental Strategy in Winter at 1:150
Fans and filters are housed within the vent ducts and since the ducts are placed on the inner skin of insulation, they are easily accessible for maintenance and filter changing.
Key Warm Air Cold Air Ground Source Heat Pump Heating Heat Recovery Units Labyrinth
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Environmental Strategy
Accoustics + Materials
Partial View of the Perspective Section through the Building
Acoustics
Acoustic Panelling exposed throughout the three cinemas
The main issues that had to be addressed in our building in terms of acoustics were insulation of the cinemas from the outside and, more importantly, insulation between the three cinemas. As seen before the three cinemas are treated as three separate boxes structurally so that noise can’t get through to each other be it by vibration or by sound. There will also be separate ventilation ducts installed on each of the cinemas to remove the risk of noise transfer through the ducts. The volume of each of the spaces and the difference in occupancy (750, 170 and 140 persons) and therefore furniture has a profound effect on the difference in the quality of sound on each of the spaces. The reverberation in the small 140 people cinema is then higher than the reverberation of the 750 people cinema. The studio loop downstairs is not protected with acoustic panels, a deliberate architectural move to make the reverberation much higher, giving a more spiritual and exhibition-like feel to the space. The sound can be heard all through the exhibition spaces. For architectural and structural reasons the black acoustic panels on the cinemas are exposed, which makes their performance much higher. Having the panels designed in strips means the spaces benefit from the thermal qualities of the concrete whilst at the same time benefitting from the acoustic advantages of the panels. Studio Loop not sound insulated for architectural reasons
Section analising Acoustics in the Cinema Building
Plan analising Acoustics in the Cinema Building
Key Concrete Insulation Acoustic Absorption Mineral Wool Insulation
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Environment The Thermal Performance of the Building
Materiality Larch There are multiple reasons (architectural structural and environmental) why we chose Larch as our main material for the Institute. Environmentally we looked first of all at how timber removes greenhouse gasses from the atmosphere (as it is made of 50% CO2), acting therefore as a carbon store. Also, engineered timber would allow us to construct a lightweight tall structure that would consequently reduce the footprint of our building, saving a lot of material for the foundations. For the type of timber, we opted for larch for a number of reasons. It is a very durable timber, perfect for the outdoor cladding. Also it barely needs any treating, saving in cost and environmental impact of chemical treatments. It is a timber manufactured within the UK, which means less transport usage and a guarantee of sustainability. Also, there has recently been a disease spreading amongst forests of larch in Snowdonia, so there is an exceptional availability.
The Larch cladding and beams within the context of the North Facade
LitraconŠ Key
Although mainly for architectural purposes, the Litracon also performs a small role in the sound environmental performance of the Building. During the day the Litracon, a material made out of 94% concrete and 6% fibre optic, allows light to come into the projector rooms, which are naturally dark, preventing artificial light to be needed inside.
Sheep’s Wool Insulation Timber Building Concrete Building
The LitraconŠ within the context of the South Facade
Thermal Performance The material properties of the two materials work in relation to the environmental in terms of the heat loading they receive. The Institute Building is exposed to smaller heat sources over a long period throughout the day, whereas the concrete cinema core is exposed to higher levels of heat gains over a shorter period.
Fly Ash Concrete A flyash concrete composite has been used instead of standard Portland concrete, as the excessive use of the latter is extremely damaging for the environment. We do however try to make the most of the environmental benefits of concrete, using it for large spans and for thermal mass.
The exposed concrete structure in the Cinema Building has a high thermal mass and can cope with the high heat loading over a short period by balancing it out using thermal storage. Timber in the institute has a poor thermal capacity and therefore has a quicker reaction time to heat and cool loading.
Architecturally, we were also really attracted to the aesthetics of fly ash concrete, as it ties in with the massive roughness of the Cinema Building
Timber acts as a carbon store, whereas concrete acts as an anti-carbon store Expressive structural feel to space inside, showing the contrast in the two materials, the light institute timber and the heavy concrete cinema core.
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Conclusion From the start of this project there was an aim to use the proposed building as a screen, a mediator between opposites which developed from the nature of a cinema theatre; reality is suspended while a film is being projected. This screen mediates between public and sacred spaces using light and darkness, reality and fiction, production and art. Sentiment and logic. A dialogue has been created between these opposites and it manifests itself through the layering of materials and thresholds of the building. An integrated environmental and structural strategy provided from the start the arhitectural narrative with a framework to develop from. By carefully selecting materials and construction techniques we have managed to design a building that collects energy and circulates it within itself, with minimal mechanical intervention. Overall we strived to create an integrated project where all three key elements (architecture, environmental and structural engineering) work and support each other.