SOMPZ uncertainties

The desired changes are all based around how noisy the building is. As user 1 stated, “One thing I would say about these rooms is that the noise does bounce around a lot, and so you really do pick up the background noise in here. There is not anything to soak it up due to the hard surfaces. The acoustics is probably the only down side” (NSP User 1). As well as the general noise bouncing off the solid surfaces, it was also noted by one user that the hand dryers in the toilet were on the other side of one of the office walls, which added to more noise complaints. Within the acoustic consultancy report pre–occupancy, it recommended that noise dampeners should be installed in all of the units.

These have since been put in. It also recommended that the walls should be made up of Metsec with

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Category Occurred Changes Desired Changes

Adjustable Furniture has been moved

The columns to be taken out of the internal space.

Refittable Sun reflecting film was added to the windows in one of the off the wall next to an office.

Convertible None None

Scalable None None

7.8. Summary

This case study shows the NSP building to be one that was designed to be adaptable. It also shows a forward thinking client that wanted to learn from the building and who was going to complete a POE in order to learn. This case study also shows that the architectural practice involved, while open to learning from other buildings, has shown little interest in wanting to learn from this building, despite there being lessons to be learnt. The evidence highlights that both the architectural practice and developer are interested in learning but in very different ways; with the developer keen to engage in their own building and learn from it; and the architect keen to move on, and continually learn from other buildings. These points offer useful insights on the kind of information that might help architects and ideas for feedback mechanisms. The learning outcomes relating to feedback with regards to adaptability in the case of the NSP building are:

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larger companies, which have had a detrimental impact on the planned culture of smaller companies working together. However, it is important to note that the building was able to deal with this change, meaning that the embedded adaptable design worked.

 The recession in the property market has also had an adverse effect on the building. The developers took a risk with building something different and wanted to use it as a vehicle for change within the industry, to show that a long term investment is profitable. However, due to the building currently working at a loss, this needs to play out for longer before the profitability of long term investments can be answered for this building.

 The developer shows themselves to be very keen to learn about the building. Being an owner/developer with aspirations to take a long term view of their buildings. Meaning that learning and improving is important for this organisation.

 The developer carries out a POE on all of its buildings. The POE is carried out once at around a year after the building is completed.

 The mechanical and electrical services are of a very high specification, in order to allow the wings to be easily divided. However, it is clear that these services are not being used optimally currently, due to two larger companies taking large floor areas within the development.

 The architect clearly states that they do not see the value in learning from their own buildings. They are keen to ‘let go’ of their buildings and move on to creating completely different buildings with no repetition.

 The architectural practice is very visually orientated when it comes to company values. This could suggest that they would prefer visual feedback.

 The architect had a preference for learning about the users of the building before it is designed, but not after the building is in use.

 No communication links between the architect and any of the building stakeholders were identified for the NSP.

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 A section on the architect, which includes a brief description of the architectural practice, followed by the ethos and values of the practice, and how these related to the E&SW.

 A section on feedback, exploring what was used and why it does not address adaptability.

 A section detailing how the model of communication/feedback links was constructed to show how all stakeholders interacted with each other.

 A section on the design strategy of the project and how this related to the elements of adaptability.

 An evaluation of the building’s adaptability, describing both the changes that occurred and changes that have not happened, but were desired. These changes are then evaluated based on the design strategy and ethos.

The lessons from the adaptability, architectural practice and feedback sections are then combined to illustrate the learning outcomes based on the E&SW project.

8.1.1. Participating Interviewees and Codes

This section details the generic names used for all of the different sources of information for E&SW, this was done to protect the names of participants.

Table 8.1 - Participant Interviewees and Generic Codes

Interviewee Case study assigned code

Senior Architect E&SW SA

Project Architect E&SW PA

Project Manager E&SW PM

Building Manager E&SW BM

User E&SW User (numbers will be used to identify

which user)

Documents E&SW Doc (numbers will be used to identify

which document)

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As the building was built specifically for E&SW, it meant that they could ask for certain design items to be included in the finished building. One idea they particularly wanted was the large atrium, which was to be key to showcasing the company’s identity. This is backed up from the project architect when he described the managing director’s vision for the atrium, he stated that the MD wanted people to walk into his building and for them to have an instant appreciation of what they were as an organisation.

One priority set by the building owner was that the building should be sustainable, which are further discussed in section 8.3.1. In addition to the sustainability agenda, the importance the owners places on the wellbeing of the staff is shown in the circulation strategy of the building, where the open plan office is serviced predominately by a staircase; in contrast the lifts are hidden away in a corridor at the extremity of the building. This subtle strategy was put in place to encourage the use of the stairs, as suggested here, “A simple arrangement of the building’s open plan office areas, atrium and core, results in a legible plan with a clear circulation strategy. Internal spaces are connected via a central staircase, which is located within the atrium to encourage people to use the stairs rather than the lift, thereby improving staff wellbeing” (E&SW Doc 1).