THE PODS, SCUNTHORPE
INSIDE THE PODS The Pods opened in July 2011 after an 18-month build. Facilities include:
■ Open reception area ■ Six-court sports hall ■ Split-level gym ■ Two fi tness studios and a health suite
■ 25m competition pool and a learner’s pool
■ Café with outdoor terrace ■ Creche
What were some of the challenges of the project? By its very nature, a sports hall is like a shoebox – so one challenge was to make the spaces work. In spite of its unu- sual shape, every inch of the building has been utilised. It has been designed so that wherever you are in the main areas of the building you can see the timber roof. We wanted to keep it as open and as visual as possible. Yet at the same time the curved shapes and exposed timbers make it feel very womb-like and comforting. We also had to address the issue of noise in such an open space – so we worked with the construction team to design special timber-slatted cassettes that fi t the roof pan- els and improve the acoustics.
What aspects of the design most please you? We had the issue of fi nding a suitable roof covering for the domes. Ourselves and specialist roof contractors developed a single-ply membrane solution that fi tted over the whole of the roof structure, creating a waterproof layer – and also by developing a weldable batten, this allowed us to fi t a number of different rainscreen roof coverings without having to penetrate the waterproof membrane. The dome fi nishes are very varied - one is covered in
green sedum, one is metal clad, two have timber shingles, the sports hall has a plastic roof and the entrance dome is glazed. So each dome has a different exterior expression. It also serves to bring the building down to a more organic human scale. Standing outside, it’s impossible to tell its size – it looks much smaller than it should, given what it contains.
ISSUE 1 2012 © cybertrek 2011
Have there been any surprises along the way? All the structures have come together to create wonderful interior spaces, some of which we did not even anticipate would exist – there’s a serendipitous element to all of it. The organic forms of the building create their own fun.
What are the project’s eco-credentials? We have natural ventilation through the building where possible, and insulation is twice that required by building regulations. We’ve also installed a biomass boiler that uses wood chips to heat the leisure centre, and there’s also grey water recycling so that water from the showers is used on the sedum roof and the surrounding vegetation.
How did you approach the outdoor design? The rejuvenation of the surrounding Central Park was led by Grant Associates from Bath. Nature is a central part of the design and very much in keeping with the concept of wellness. The domes sit in a lagoon, and an outdoor wildlife corridor has been created with trees, wild fl owers and bird boxes, which will hope- fully attract different species to the area and be a place the whole community can enjoy and learn from.
Where do you find your inspiration ? I keep up with all the exciting developments around the world, and love that we can create fantasy worlds that surprise and delight. It’s very different to creating civic buildings – with leisure design you think out of the box. ●
Read Leisure Management online
leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital 27
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