24 PROJECT REPORT: COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS
T
he new Aztec 1000 building at Bristol’s Aztec West business park is very much of its time. It has
a cool, understated look, facades that respond to the orientation, and generous gym and eating spaces. It bears very little resemblance to the type of brash, brightly coloured – and environmentally reckless – building that was common from the period of its completion – the 1980s. And yet, the bones of just such a building are contained within the new facility. Architect Scott Brownrigg has kept the 1980s frame, extending the building both upwards and outwards. Ed Hayden, director at Scott Brownrigg, explains, “As a company, we take a ‘retain and refurbish first’ approach. We ask: ‘Can we retain it flexibly?’” In this case, he says: “It would have been very easy to demolish and rebuild from scratch.” Instead, the practice worked closely with the client, Commercial Estates Group (CEG), to retain the frame and extend from there.
There was no question of keeping the building in its original form since it was not fit for today’s needs. Indeed, it had not been a success. A two-storey, L-shaped structure, its steel frame was exposed
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externally, causing cold bridging. The building was originally designed to be naturally ventilated, but this ventilation came from opening a series of sliding doors. The security implications deterred occupants from doing this. As a result, the building overheated and air conditioning was retrofitted.
The other main issue was with the plan. The core sat at the junction of the ‘L’ and blocked communication between the two wings. This was a building that was, at the time of construction, intended for single occupancy, making this problem severe. Other drawbacks included a lightweight roof, making it impossible to plant on it, and a low floor-to-ceiling height. At only 2,600 mm, this was less than the BCO minimum standard of 2,750 mm. The distance from the finished floor level to the underside of the structural steel was about 2,800 mm. For all these reasons, the building had ceased to be viable and was abandoned. CEG approached Scott Brownrigg, a practice who it had worked with before, to find a solution that would improve the attractiveness of the building and provide more space and a better environmental performance.
ADF JUNE 2024
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