HIGHLY COMMENDED - BEST EDUCATION BUILDING- RIAI AWARDS 2017

We were asked to look at this existing Business School located on the first floor of a 1980s block in a third level campus.  The existing rooms layouts were poorly organised and inflexible; circulation was via a confusing network of dead end corridors deprived of light, views and character.  On top of this, the existing lecture rooms below at ground floor required extensive sizable ductwork to penetrate the entire floorplate in obstructive locations.

To minimise initial cost and disruption, Our design strategy started with the proposal of forming a cranked linking central wall housing the irregularily placed ventilation ducts forming an expanding circulation space terminating in views to the wider campus. The generously sized circulation area provides informal spaces for sitting, idea-exchange and collaborating; existing blocked up rooflights are opened up again and existing ceilings stripped out to create a dynamic and contemporary business environment.  The classrooms are formed as two larger rooms allowing use as function room or exam halls by subdivision with folding partitions. These teaching spaces feature suspended acoustic panels and full wall width white boards in a design strategy that is functional, cost efficient and reflective of a growing demand for dynamic and flexible working and teaching environments.