FEATURE WOOD AWARDS 2021
Accoya Pavilion Aims High
The Built: East Pavilion in Belfast, Northern Ireland, was designed by OGU Architects and Donald McCrory Architects and celebrates the rich industrial heritage of the city.
B
uilt: East was the winning design in The Belfast Flare
Built: East Pavilion Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland Architect: OGU Architects + Donald McCrory Architects Client: EastSide Partnership Structural engineer: O’Connor Sutton Cronin Main contractor: Farrans Construction
competition run by the Royal Society of Ulster Architects. With cultural identity being a divisive issue, it was important to find cultural common ground shared across
the neighbouring communities. The site has a rich industrial history,
Joinery & wood supplier: BPJ Group Timber Distributor: International Timber Roof engineering and installation: Fabrite Concrete: Moore Concrete Products Species: Accoya
and the Belfast truss represents the area’s history of manufacturing ingenuity. Originally designed to make use of waste ship building timber, the Belfast truss also inspired the team to make careful use of resources. Many of the city’s largest factories had such a roof, including the Belfast Ropeworks which previously faced the site. Each element evokes memories of the area’s industrial structures. Rather than a nostalgic look backwards, it draws attention to Northern Ireland’s emerging construction innovation and contributes to the local economy. The pavilion is an assembly of three elements, each crafted in a local factory. Traditional craft skills combined with innovative technologies created bespoke building components that could be rapidly assembled on site. 1:1 scale prototypes were CNC produced to develop the design of each truss and joint. The entire roof structure was assembled in the factory before being dismantled and transported to site. The pop-up pavilion was constructed from sustainable and versatile Accoya®, supplied by International Timber, the UK’s leading importer and distributor of bespoke, sustainable timber and panel products, and their sister company, merchants JP Corry. Accoya is a highly reliable and durable timber which does not swell, shrink or distort, and can last in
Chris Upson, Director at OGU Architects, adds: “The design was our
climate for more than 50 years. It also has unrivalled sustainability, with
winning entry in a pavilion design competition run by the Royal Society of
FSC® and Cradle to Cradle Gold™ certification.
Ulster Architects and sponsored by JP Corry. The aim was to support design
David Hogg of International Timber said: “I’m so pleased that this
culture and emerging architecture practices in the city. It was fantastic to
brilliant project is being recognised at the Wood Awards. A lot of hard
see our vision come to life, and the result is a striking architectural asset to
work went into supporting the architects to select the most practical
Belfast that will be enjoyed by many for a long time to come.”
timber sections, balancing aesthetics and cost-effectiveness and the More at www.internationaltimber.com
project went really smoothly.”
Timber Construction Magazine
Winter 2021
24
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