Engineering the Hux Shard from
Grand Designs
With a non-uniform geometric architecture inspired by Dartmoor’s wild granite tors, this complex home in Huxham, Devon represented a unique challenge for structural specialist TWP Consulting Engineers
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nspired by large sculptures in the countryside and the rocky outcrops of the nearby Dartmoor moors, The Hux Shard – as seen on Channel 4’s Grand Designs – offers a striking, geometric appearance. The exterior walls are formed of 34 shard-shaped sculptural panels, set in a jagged 70 metre line following the contours of the hill on which the property stands. It is the combination of these immense-sized shards and the exposed rural landscape that was perhaps one of the key challenges behind the project, with TWP Consulting Engineers appointed as the structural engineers on the project. 48
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Based in Exeter, TWP, a structural and civil engineering consultancy, was tasked with engineering both the property’s superstructure and substructure, from the foundations and floor plates to the primary timber frame, supporting steel connections and exterior shards. Speaking about the project, Nick Drew, Director at TWP said, “At TWP, we work on a wide range of projects, from simple extensions to multi-million pound commercial and industrial projects, as well as even a few art sculptures, with Tekla’s range of engineering software at the core of their delivery. This project, The Hux Shard, was certainly a fascinating and an
ambitious one, with a significant reliance on the engineering principle to create and bring the vision to life.”
Timber skeleton The building design required a series of large concrete pad foundations and steel short columns, which in turn supported the gigantic timber frame’s floor structure and roof. The primary building frame consisted of 282 glulam timbers, which were bolted together with steel brackets to form a wooden skeleton reaching over seven metres into the air. The Hux Shard’s exterior walls were then formed from 34 insulated timber shards, each around 600mm www.AECmag.com
03/02/2022 17:28
