RESEARCH
+
CONCEPT
RESEARCH
+
CONCEPT
CONTENTS. Research 01 02 03 04
1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4
Ironbridge Power Station Introduction History, Structure & Construction Locals Views How It Works
05 06 07 08 09
2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5
Ironbridge Gorge Site Geology Ecosystems Wildlife Industrial History
10 11 12 13
3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4
Structures Like Cooling Towers Caves Monoliths Religious Buildings Oculus
14 15 16 17 18
4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5
Monoliths Groups Materials Form Case study: P. Zumthor Case study: D Chipperfield
19 20 21 22 23
5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5
Reflective Spaces Religious buildings Non religious buildings Nature Safety Scale
Concept 24
6.0 6.1
Cooling Tower Structure Model
25 26 27
7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3
Cycles Samsara Water Materials
28 29 30 31 32 33
8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6
Transitions Introduction Temperature Sound Light Movement Conclusion
34 35 36 37
9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4
Models Site Model: Making Site Model: Complete Building Model: Making Building Model: Complete
IRONBRIDGE POWER STATION
“
Certainly, it has to be said that this was a cut above the average industrial construction. While buildings of this nature are normally a clear case of function over form, the architects who worked on Ironbridge B took great care to ensure the new power station merged into its natural surroundings with minimal impact. The towers were constructed at great expense using concrete to which a costly red pigment had been added, giving them a distinctive pinkish hue that blended in with the landscape.
�
IRONBRIDGE POWER STATION: INTRODUCTION. Located in central Shropshire, Ironbridge power station is known for its famous rust coloured towers, which were purposefully pigmented to blend into the local soils. The camouflage is especially successful during autumn when the leaves of the trees turn the same colour as the towers. The station has four, natural draught hyperboloid, cooling towers of which I will convert one in my design. Designed by architect Alan Clark and landscape architect Kenneth Booth and built 1963-68 the towers are 112 meters high, 86 meters at their base, 48 meters at the throat (the thinnest part of the tower) and 53 meters at the towers top. The towers were in use for 46 years and were shut down on the 20th November 2015.
01
Imagine connecting two circles with elastic strings, then twist the top circle and watch the elastic strings appear to curve. Chop off the top portion of the strings and this is the unseen steel structure in many cooling towers.
oling the first co t u o b a le c s arti g of a new Paper clippin .K. eU towers in th
IRONBRIDGE POWER STATION: HISTORY & STRUCTURE. The hyperboloid cooling tower was patented by the Dutch engineers Frederik van Iterson and Gerard Kuypers in 1918 and the first were built later that year near Heerlen. The shape of these structures is created with one sheet hyperboloid geometry which curves inward at the midsection and billows out at the top and bottom. Although curved on 2 axes the towers can be constructed with straight beams. The first in the United Kingdom were built in 1924 in Liverpool to cool water used at a coal-fired electrical power station. There are many benefits to this design structure, though it creates large amounts of unusable volume and is therefore more commonly used in purpose driven applications such as cooling towers.
Frederik van Iterson an d Gerard Kuypers 1918 initial drawings. 02
“
“
There’s quite a lot of nostalgia associated with the cooling towers, and people have tried to see if they can preserve them, but without a commercial use that is going to be difficult... due to the iconic nature of the towers and its history as a power station there is also support for the site being converted into a museum to preserve the heritage of the site and provide a well designed educational installation about the industrial revolution through to the present day to document industry in the early 21st Century.
“
“
Its location and rail links made it an excellent site for the power station but this also broadens its wider appeal as it is now considered for future uses... Passenger services ceased in the mid-1960s, and in recent decades the line has been mainly used to deliver coal to the power station. However, Telford Steam Railway has long expressed an ambition to take over the now disused western most track of the former double-track railway between the power station and Lightmoor Junction , linking up with its existing stations at Lawley and Horsehay.
IRONBRIDGE POWER STATION: LOCALS VIEWS.
37 24 17 14
% of people would like to see the building converted into a power station museum.
‘There is no great unhappiness here about the positioning of the cooling towers just around the corner. Ironbridge is the birthplace of industrialisation and to many it was highly appropriate to have the power station there. Locals views about the cooling towers are mixed as they would be anywhere, but there is a general sadness about the recent closure of the plant. Keith Newby, retired engineer, has spent the past six years trying to get the landmark cooling towers registered as listed buildings. “I believe the cooling towers are of architectural, civil engineering and historic interest as they represent the particular type of construction undertaken in the 20th century.”’
% of people want the station to be reopened and used as a fully working power station.
% of locals want the sight to be totally demolished, cleared and retuned to nature.
% of people would like the plant to be demolished but the cooling towers to be kept.
6 2
% of people would like the plant to be demolished and the site used for a new housing development.
% of people would like the plant to be demolished and the site used for a business park or shopping centre.
03
IRONBRIDGE POWER STATION: HOW IT WORKS. Natural draught cooling towers work on evaporative cooling. The hot water and steam from the plant is mixed with normal outside air which makes its way into the tower via the space between the ‘stilts’ at the base of the tower, when the two mix the steam condenses and the water cools, the water then falls to the pond at the base of the tower. Any excess steam that makes its way to the top of the tower is released into the atmosphere causing minor but measurable temperature and humidity differences in the local area. The funnel shape of the cooling tower forces the two airs temperatures to mix sooner so the hot steam from the plant condenses quicker and falls to the pool as liquid meaning less is lost to the environment. The only openings in the tower are at its base and its roof, the oculus like air outlet is at the top of the tower ans is the main source of light apart from the ring of openings at the base which allow cold fresh air into the tower. When operational the tower has a constant flow of free falling water which cascades and is collected in the pool at the base. This pool also catches any rain or snow that may fall into the tower. 04
IRONBRIDGE GORGE
20m
100m
500m
Map 1:5000 Roads Footpaths Rail
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: SITE. The power station cooling towers are situated on the south bank of the river, they is surrounded by dense woodland to the south and east, the river to the north and the other power station buildings to the west. The site can be accessed via a bridge close to the towers. Ironbridge village is located on the north bank of the river to the east.
52.629143 - 2. 503638
05
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: GEOLOGY. Ironbridge gorge is known as the Birthplace of the industrial revolution, this would not have happened here without the exposure of a multitude of natural resources in such close proximity to one another. At the end of the last Ice Age, water trapped beneath an ice sheet under high pressure eroded away the limestone, carving out the steep-sided gorge seen today. The process, exposed limestone, ironstone, sandstone, coal, shale, iron ore, basalt, mudstone and fireclay this erosion was so strong it changed the course of the River Severn which had previously flowed north. Due to all these natural resources being abundant in one relatively small area allowed the development of steelwork to progress at a fast rate and a cheaper way of manufacturing steel was discovered leading to the industrial revolution. Top, left to right; Limestone. Ironstone, Shale, Sandstone. Bottom left to right; Coal, Mudstone, Iron Ore, Clay.
06
Hay meadows were once a common sight through the locality, as elsewhere in Britain, but are now confined to small pockets of grassland. Traditionally mown to make hay in July and then grazed with livestock, they support many different plant species and are at their best during June and early July.
Several small heathlands which support a wide range of invertebrates. are scattered throughout the gorge. These areas are an important habitat for reptiles such as Common Lizard, Grass Snake and Slow Worm. They also harbour amphibians such as Great Crested Newt and toads.
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: ECOSYSTEMS. The diverse ecology of the site has lead to a diverse set of ecosystems. The slopes of the gorge are heavily wooded and are home to rare trees such as Large Leaved Lime and the Wild Service. Benthall Edge Woods surround the power stations cooling towers and are situated on the south side of the river Severn. This woods is an official Site of Special Scientific interest. This is because the woodland marks a clear transition between lowland and upland types. Oak, birch, rowan and holly dominate the upper slopes, while ash and wych elm are characteristic of the lower slopes. There are also small pockets of Hay meadows and heathland scattered throughout the woods adding to the diverse wildlife that lives in the gorge. Ancient woodland covers the slopes of most of the Ironbridge Gorge, giving the area its very special character. Although disturbed by past mining and quarrying, these woods stand on sites which have had a covering of trees for many hundreds of years. As a result, they often support rare and unusual plants and animals.
07
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: WILDLIFE. A you would expect from a diverse set of ecosystems a rich selection of wildlife call Ironbridge gorge and the river Severn that runs within it home. The forests are home to many well know animals such as the Badger and Fox but also some less well known like the Muntjac Deer. The hey meadows which are much less common than in the past support huge numbers of flowering plants, small mammals and birds of pray such as Owl species. Heathlands found in the gorge support huge numbers of insects and are home to 3 of the 6 native British reptiles. The river that runs between these slopes is just as full of wildlife, being home to otters, kingfishers and herons. All protected by the Severn Gorge Countryside Trust. Top, from left to right; Kingfisher, Otter, Grass Snake, Willow Tit. Bottom, from left to right; Slow Worm, Bullfinch, Muntjac Deer, Great Crested Newt, common Lizard.
08
IRONBRIDGE GORGE: INDUSTRIAL HISTORY. The birthplace of the Industrial Revolution was the Ironbridge gorge in Shropshire. During the 18th century, this area was rich with raw materials including coal, iron ore, water, sand and limestone (to flux the slag in the blast-furnaces) and clay. Darby was a Quaker ironmaster who had travelled from Bristol to take over the blast-furnace at Coalbrookdale. In 1709, Darby became the first person to smelt iron using coke as a fuel.. This proved to be one of the most
important technological breakthrough’s ever discovered as process meant that high-quality iron was available and affordable in quantities undreamt of using the traditional charcoal smelting. The greatest memorial to Darby’s achievements is the iron bridge itself, perhaps the best known industrial monument in Britain. The gorge is the location of the world monument that gives the town its name, before this the area was know as the Severn Gorge. The initial idea for the iron bridge came about in 1775, when a group of local businessmen met to discuss how communication between both sides of the river could be improved and construction started in 1777. Remnants of the Ironbridges industrial past can be found scattered all over the gorge. 09
STRUCTURES LIKE COOLING TOWERS
STRUCTURES LIKE COOLING TOWERS: CAVES. Cooling towers and caves have similarities, obvious from first sight. They are large cavernous spaces formed from earthy materials whether it be limestone or concrete. They are usually unusable and impractical spaces to. Two specific caves that I have looked at in comparison to cooling towers are the Cave of Swallows in Mexico and the Waitomo Caves in New Zealand. The only light in these spaces enters from high above the ground and floods down on the caverns. Another similarity is the presence of water, in wet cooling towers, like the ones at Ironbridge power station, there is always water in the collection pool at the towers base and even when they are no longer in use there is usually still some water, caves are almost always formed due to erosive water and so many caves have pools, streams or even waterfalls within them. Left; Cave of Swallows, Right; Waitomo Caves.
10
STRUCTURES LIKE COOLING TOWERS: MONOLITHS. Monoliths are defined as "an upright block" they work within their landscapes by standing against them. In the case of the Peter Zumthors Chapel the strong vertical language of the structure is a complete opposite to the flat landscape in which it sits, the building is purposefully taller than all surrounding trees in order to stand out and act as a beacon in much a similar at that older churches towers would have done. In the case of the cooling towers of Ironbridge the surrounding land is more curved and dramatic, the extreme steepness and height of the slopes allows the cooling towers to interact with the landscape in a way in which such large structures usually do not. Though they stand out against the landscape the scale of the land around means that they do not look entirely out of place.
11
STRUCTURES LIKE COOLING TOWERS: RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS. Churches are perhaps the most similar structures to cooling towers even if not at first sight. When entering with of these two buildings the first thing that becomes apparent is the scale, they are large open spaces and for different reasons both draw the eye upwards. In churches the pillars and vaulted ceiling force the eye up but having little in the way of horizontal features. In cooling towers the effect id achieved by having the only relief from concrete (the air outlet) being at the very apex of the building. Both buildings also have very little in the way of light coming through the walls, churches often have stained glass windows or very small windows on their walls however large inlets of light can often be found in the centre of the domed roofs.
12
STRUCTURES LIKE COOLING TOWERS: OCULUS. The oculus is a structural feature that has been used all over the world for thousands of years. Perhaps the most famous oculus is in the centre of the Pantheons dome in Rome however they can be seen in many other places. Most were used for the same reason that modern cooling towers use them today, they were used for ventilation, in a time when most sources of light and heat came from fire there needed to be ventilation to keep out the toxic smoke, thus the oculus was created. In the middle east Yakhchals were built in order to store ice, by allowing the hot air that had risen above the cooler air out the interior of the space was kept cooler allowing for the storage of ice, this oculus worked in much the same way as they do in modern cooling towers and for the same reasons. Left; Cooling Tower with mist. Centre; Yakhchal. Top; The Pantheon. Bottom; Spanish Neolithic Mound.
13
MONOLITHS
MONOLITHS: GROUPS. Does a monolith have to sit alone in its landscape? Taken out of the context of a city a skyscraper would be a good candidate for the title of monolithic, however when surrounded by other skyscrapers it melts into its surroundings and looses its sense of singularity. However The Jewish memorial in Berlin and Stonehenge manage to keep their monolithic qualities despite having multiple components. They achieve this is mainly due to them keeping the same dimensional language and choice of material, they many be separate but they act as one through their shared characteristics. the principle is the same with cooling towers, they are usually seen in groups but because they are all essentially identical they appear as one connected unit. Top; Stone Henge. Bottom; Ironbridge Power Station. Right; Berlin Jewish WWII Memorial.
14
MONOLITHS: MATERIALS. When it come to the external finish of monolithic buildings the use of a single material is most common. This may be because the original definition of a monolith describes them as a "block of stone" meaning one solid mass of rock. Applying this to a building means one external material should be used. NORD Architectures electric substation is a prime example, the use of a single material, brick, has given it a truly monolithic aesthetic but it is not purely the material that creates this. The building has a crisp and clear form created by high craftsmanship applied throughout the brick laying, so much co that it won the 2016 Brick Awards prize for ‘best brickwork in Britain’. Cooling towers share this single material exterior and seamless finish, to the same effect, in this respect they could also be called monolithic. Left; Ironbridge Power Station. Right Electric Substation.
15
MONOLITHS: FORM. "An upright block of stone" is how monoliths are defined "upright" implies that it must be taller then it is wide and it should be positioned in a way nature wouldn’t allow, there is a sense of mystery to them. In the examples to the left the mystery has gone, you can clearly see the floors in the Paris MBA building through the layout of its windows and therefore the interior workings can be read and the monolithic atmosphere is gone. This Chilean university building is a single material and stands alone but there are large punctuations in this building too, they are however deep and spread out across the wall less regularly and therefore the building is harder to read maintaining a monolithic facade. Cooling towers too have no external features and their blank walls give no indication of what may be inside.
16
The interior carries on the theme of detail via material texture, however here it is much more organic. Tree trunks once organised into a ‘teepee’ shape then burnt out have left the atmosphere og the interior dark and earthy. This space is highly comparable to the interior of a cooling tower, with the main course of light being an oculus and the single material, the only main difference is scale.
MONOLITHS: CASE STUDY, PETER ZUMTHOR. Monolith |ˈmɒn(ə)lɪθ| Noun: 1 a large single upright block of stone, especially one shaped into or serving as a pillar or monument. Origin: mid 19th century: from French monolithe, from Greek monolithos, from monos ‘single’ + lithos ‘stone’. Peter Zumthors Chapel in Germany can easily be described as monolithic with its exterior. Here I am looking at how the interior of the space works with the exterior. The interior though constructed from the same material as the exterior has a much different personality. The exterior of Peter Zumthors chapel is geometric, simple and bold, all the things vital to creating a monolith. It is taller than it is wide and stands out defiant against its surroundings. The layered concrete with mini ‘portholes’ supplies the only external details. Instead of any decoration, the details of this building comes solely from the material texture. It purposefully stands out taller than everything else around it and acts like a beacon, similar to the church towers of the past.
17
The stark, white, single material walls inside this building are the perfect backdrop for the art exhibited here which is more sculptural and organic. Here the art acts as the landscape and the walls act as the monolith, there is still and clear distinction between the two and the relationship seen previously is still present. This disconnection is reflected in the lip at the base of the walls and podiums which created the illusion of separation between the walls and flooring.
MONOLITHS: CASE STUDY, DAVID CHIPPERFIELD. Monolith |ˈmɒn(ə)lɪθ| Noun: 1 a large single upright block of stone, especially one shaped into or serving as a pillar or monument. Origin: mid 19th century: from French monolithe, from Greek monolithos, from monos ‘single’ + lithos ‘stone’. David Chipperfields Yorkshire art gallery is a fantastic example of how monolithic qualities usually only seen on the outside of buildings can be translated into the interior of them. The exterior of this art gallery has been broken up into separate blocks in order to help it blend into its surroundings, it does not stand out defiant like the chapel. It’s form has been influenced mainly by the use of the interior spaces. Because of these factors it is not the most externally monolithic structure I have looked into. However the monolithic nature of this building comes from its interiors.
18
REFLECTIVE SPACES
REFLECTIVE SPACES: RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS. In recent decades religious buildings have taken on much different forms that their traditional counterparts. Extravagant details and motifs have been replaces with stark blank interiors, by taking away possible detractions the spaces force the user become almost separate from their surroundings in order for contemplation and reflection in a way in which a traditional zen garden may do so. In both the Church of light and the Sancaklar Mosque the light let in is very controlled and creates soft calming atmospheres from what may otherwise be uninviting spaces. They both achieve this in different ways; the church lets in a slithers of light from its walls creating the traditional cross of Christianity however the mosque lets the light spill through the ceiling in a way similar to the oculi previously looked at. Left; Church of Light Right; Sancaklar Mosque
19
REFLECTIVE SPACES: NON RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS. Reflective spaces do not have to be religions many are labelled as spiritual and some are separate from religious connotations entirely. Here I look at two opposite ways to create the same outcome. Tadao Ando's Paris UNESCO meditation space is a classic Ando design, working with a positive (solid wall) and negative (void space) he has carved out a sterile casual of calmness in concrete. Wolfgang Buttress achieves the same outcome though a different approach, the hive at Kew gardens has many small speakers within it that create an organic buzzing and though you can see out you cannot touch or hear outside. Both spaces are cut off from their surroundings and that is what makes the meditation space work. They have a sense of privacy even when there are multiple people within, all external interactions are obscured some way. Left; Paris UNESCO Meditation Space Right; Hive
20
REFLECTIVE SPACES: NATURE. Nature is an important part of reflective spaces from traditional zen gardens to modern memorial spaces and ancient temples. Anywhere where there is a connection with nature a calming atmosphere is more likely to develop. In the Void temple Mexico the design uses the very minimum amount of physical intervention needed to create a 'space', the ring of concrete has no windows or roof and highlights the beauty of nature simply by framing it. Cooling towers may have a much different forms but an unfinished tower can remarkably resemble the concrete ring of the Void temple. You many not be able to see out of them but nature, specifically weather, can find its way into the towers easily, there are no roofs on cooling towers so mist rain and snow can all find themselves falling into the void. Left & Top; Void Temple. Bottom; Uncompleted Cooling Tower.
21
REFLECTIVE SPACES: SAFETY. The sense of security and safety in a reflective space is another important feature. Some examples of interiors that offer a strong sense of security; 2000 year old Scottish Brochs, Neanderthal Museum Spain, Peter Zumthors Therme vals and many of Tadao Ando's builds including the Koshino house. There are a number of factors that all of these spaces share. They are finished in a single material which is always a 'strong' material; stone or concrete possibly offering a sense of security because it reminds us of the most primitive shelter that humans took, caves. Another similarity with caves and another factor present in all is the controlled entry of light, there is little light penetrating the spaces and when it does it is trough small openings allowing for the control of its spread similar to what is found in cooling towers. Left; Scottish Broch. Centre; Neanderthal Museum. Top; There Vals. Bottom; Koshino House.
22
3
2 1
5
REFLECTIVE SPACES: SCALE.
4
On all previous pages when comparisons have been made between the cooling towers and other buildings on factor has been ignored. The scale of the towers are hard to imagine, they hare 112 meters tall with a base diameter of 86 meters. This means that even though the Peter Zumthor chapel may have many similarities with the cooling tower it is still one tenth the height. The chapel is a personal, intimate space and this cannot be replicated in the tower without careful thought due to the vast difference in scale. By far the closest building in scale is Lincoln Cathedrals central tower which is about two thirds the height of the cooling tower. These sectional comparisons are helpful in imagining the true scale of the buildings, there is a vast volume of space in the cooling tower which is rivalled by very little in the built environment. The idea of reflective spaces are that the user feels disconnected from them and the outside world in order to “create a place for the individual, a zone for oneself within society." – Tadao Ando 1. Peter Zumthors Bruder Klaus Chapel 2. Wolfgang Buttress' Hive 3. Thr Pantheon, Rome 4. Lincoln Cathedral tower 5. Ironbridge cooling tower Drawing scale 1:500 23
RESEARCH
+
CONCEPT
COOLING TOWER STRUCTURE
COOLING TOWER STRUCTURE: MODEL. In this model I recreate the steel structure found in cooling tower. Using elastic bands to connect two disks and then rotating one against the other with an imaginary axis running through the centre of disks, the elastic bands remain straight however the overall geometry becomes curved on two axis rather than just one this is known as a doubly ruled surface. Whilst looking at one of the single elements there is a clear start and finish to a simple straight lined journey, however when you zoom out a little it becomes clear that one leads to the next and so on and when looking a this model as a whole it appears seamless, the structure is continuously flowing there is not apparent start and end. This observation has lead me to look into the idea of repeating cycles and reincarnation.
24
CYCLES
CYCLES: SAMSARA. Samsara is a word that describes process of reincarnation and is linked with karma. In Sanskrit it translates as “wandering” or “world” and originates from the Sanskrit word Samsri which means to go towards, to go round, revolve, pass through a succession of states”. This succession of states refer to the reincarnation. Samsara can also be described as a flow or stream, or a course or circuit, a circuit being a roughly circular line, route, or movement that starts and finishes at the same place. From these descriptions I have created a model which manifests the words in physical form. A series of circles are placed on top of each other creating a double helix shape and are connected that the top and bottom so that there is a continuous flow.
25
CYCLES: WATER. When looking at cycles, perhaps the most common, which most people are taught in school, is the water cycle but this is not the only reason that it has been picked for investigation. The terms ‘flow, stream and movement that starts and ends in the same place’ are within the definition of samsara and can also be used to described cyclical processes, as well as this the water cycle is constantly played out in miniature inside cooling towers. Water represents the movement within the working cooling tower, a constant transitional cycle of evaporation condensation precipitation and collection albeit a chaotic one with all transitions happening constantly, when converted water will be replaced by people are the main component of movement this movement will remain linked within the new design.
26
CYCLES: MATERIALS. Materials go through cycles of weathering, woods silver metals rust and stone erodes. When metals are found in the earth they are in the from of ores, when we use them in sheets they have been refined into pure metals. However when left out in the elements these pure forms being to oxidise (rust) and transform into a state more natural, eventually they will dissolve completely and reform into their ores. Here I have created a model highlighting the process of the rusting of two metals. Steel oxidising and turning orange and copper oxidising turning bright blue these highlight the cyclical nature of materials and reflects what is happing to the site of Ironbridge cooling tower, the natural state of materials and environments will always be recovered by nature.
27
TRANSITIONS
ProtectionThe protective nature of the space should act almost like a womb. The user should feel protected, safe and small. This will be counter balanced by the harsh nature of its materials. This being said there will be no protection from the elements and no heating in the space. MaterialsThere will be a sense of coherence when it comes to the materials, a single material gives the impression of unity and adds to the feelings of safety.
Post conversion- The tower will be cold, relatively constantly. Another cue will be the temperature. There is to be no heating in the space, this lack of comfort will ease people on in their journey.
Pre conversion- The temperature is constantly warm, around 40-60 C as the water is cooled.
ScaleOne of the cues for the user to feel like they do not belong in the space will be the scale. There will be no furniture (other than ledges built into the structure itself suitable for seating) that gives any conventional human scale.
TimeThe user should stay long enough to reflect or mediate then move on. Overall it is a place that you eventually feel rejected from (womb), the user should want to stay but something tells them that they must move on.
TEMPERATURE
TRANSITIONS
Pre conversion- Water in the tower has a constant movement and there is no order to it and it is continuous
MOVEMENT
Post conversion- There should be an induced directional movement rather than the freedom of loose layout. This should almost hypnotise the user into following it, the user shouldn’t feel like they are being herded but they should follow the set out path.
Pre conversion- The sound is uncontrolled, a heavy flow of water is constantly pouring in the tower and splashing into the collection pool. Post conversion- The sound is more controlled, when the weather is dry there are no sounds apart from the wind blowing through the space. When it rains there is a gentle patter of rain drops hitting the new structure and some into the collection pool, it can then flow down the walls into the collection pool, creating a tranquil soothing sound.
SOUND
Pre conversion- There are no obstructions in the tower, the light floods in until it hits the machinery at the base of the tower.
TRANSITIONS: INTRODUCTION. When looking at all of the above cycles and connecting them with the building one thing is apparent, they are all experiencing transitional changes, whether they are continuous or have a clear start and finish. I have described how I expect the atmosphere and user interactions within my space to be through a series of criteria; sound, light, journey, movement, protection, time, scale, temperature and materials. Some of these are physically interactions and some emotional. From these there are only four present in the cooling tower before the conversion, the others need human interaction to exist, the protective nature of the cooling tower has always been there but with no users inside the tower it is not applicable.
LIGHT Post conversion- Natural light will still spill unobstructed through the oculus down into the towers however it is controlled when entering new spaces by carefully placed openings.
JourneyA large building can make users feel uncomfortable, a fight or flight instinct is triggered. The user will be put to ease by the clear simple one way journey though the space fighting initial reactions by inducing linear thought processes, the user can make sense of the space. This journey is the build up period for the user, their minds can loosen because they are given no options in the way of movement options, they are following a simple path and relaxing while walking it.
28
TRANSITIONS: TEMPERATURE. The inner workings of the tower meant that temperatures ranged from 40-60C°, in the proposed design there will be no heating and the temperature will be dictated by the weather. This has been represented here by tempering steel ans comparing it to non tempered steel. Tempering is where the metal is reheated for various purposes and in steel this results in dramatic colour changes.
29
TRANSITIONS: SOUND. Sound was consent as it accompanied the falling of the water however in the proposed the sound is minimal coming only from rain wind and users. Represented here by mesh wiring, the sounds in working towers is constant and echoing from all angles, however after the sounds will be more defined and identifiable.
30
TRANSITIONS: LIGHT. Light in the working tower was constantly hazed by the steam rising however it was never obscured in any meaningful manor, in the proposed design light will be restricted and controlled. Shown in this model as frosted acrylic against concrete strips, the acrylic representing the working towers lack of control over light, the only thing obscuring it being the steam rising and the concrete showing how light access will be restricted according to the new insertion.
31
TRANSITIONS: MOVEMENT. Movement in the cooling tower was a constant flow of water with no start or stop, people will replaces water as the agents of movement within the space and their journey will be much more linear, with a clear path. Here the constant vertical illusion of movement is shown through metal rods in close proximity to each other. The single rod on represents the linear journey that will take place in the new conversion.
32
TRANSITIONS: CONCLUSION. These models represents what was compared to what is proposed within the cooling tower. Movement, sound, temperature and light have all been explored and abstractly represented in these models. In all of these cases one thing is apparent, the design proposal will bring order to chaos. Elements wild and uncontrolled will be given meaning, this space will go through a transition in many ways physically, functionally and atmospherically
33
MODELS
SITE MODEL: MAKING. The first stage in creating my site model was to build a 3D model of the land that surrounds my buildings in 3D software programs. A CNC router then carved out a negative of this digital model into a block of foam. A frame was then build around this model and a laser cut piece of acrylic was added to represent the river that runs through the site. Dyed charcoal concrete was then poured into the mould. The towers that sit in this model were 3D printed and sanded down to be place in the concrete once it had cured.
34
SITE MODEL: COMPLETE.
35
BUILDING MODEL: MAKING. The first stage in creating my building model was to glue and clamp pieces of pine together, then lathe it to the shape of my chosen building. This was then halved and one half was placed into a frame. In this frame a textured piece of wood was used to create an imprint in the concrete that would be poured into it, this was to differentiate between what was above and below ground.
36
BUILDING MODEL: COMPLETE.
37