On Friday 16 November The Institute of Structural Engineering will hold The Structural Awards 2018 in London. The shortlist includes 53 entries from over 115 projects, here is a quick overview of two of another two outstanding entries.
The Tea Hut
Structural designer: Applied Engineering Design Limited
Architect: Roxburgh McEwan Architects
Judge’s comments:
The judges felt that this modest building, in beautiful surroundings and overlooking a lake was an excellent example of intelligent, understated structural engineering. The simplicity of the solution and its apparent lightness of touch have allowed the Tea Hut to appear almost weightless and certainly unobtrusive as it sits delicately on the embankment. The submission showed the way that the engineers had considered a number of relevant options and were always mindful of the way that each could be installed on a very constrained site. The final choice delivers a simple, legible structural cantilever system that allows the building to project effortlessly towards the water. The engineers are to be congratulated on achieving so much with so little.
Another Time, By Antony Gormley
Structural designer: Considine Limited
Architect: del Renzio & del Renzio
Judge’s comments:
Sir Antony Gormley’s cast iron sculpture from his iconic series ‘Another Time’ is situated in the intertidal zone in the sea beyond Turner Contemporary art gallery in Margate, forming a focal point from the gallery. Visible from the vast gallery windows, the solitary cast figure is of Gormley’s own body and invites viewers to reflect upon the fundamental experience of being human.
The sculpture is positioned on the Fulsam Rock upon remnants of a former jetty, along which people promenaded above years ago, but which is now reclaimed by nature. At high tide, the sculpture is completely submerged beneath the sea, becoming revealed as low tide prevails. The success of the artwork requires a completely invisible anchorage yet one which is robust enough to deal with tidal and breaking wave loads.
Strict environmental and navigational constraints demanded a creative engineering solution that combines redundant concrete slabs of the existing jetty with a new galvanised-steel frame and in-situ colloidal concrete infill to provide the ‘secret’ mass foundation.
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