Scroll down to see the latest news, events and musings from Hewitt Studios
Hewitt Studios have recently secured outline planning permission for a number of residential plots in Herefordshire.
The sites present a variety of self-build / development opportunities; detached, semi-detached, apartments, etc.
Some of the plots are now making their way to market – interested parties can find out more information here.
Our Crosslam Workshop for Herefordshire and Ludlow College at Holme Lacy is a finalist in the LABC Building Excellence Awards 2016. It has already attracted attention in the press, with Tree Hugger hailing it as ‘a model of how to build those B-class buildings with care, with sustainability in mind, and with style.’
Unusually for an industrial building, the workshop sports an innovative and efficient ‘flat-pack’ timber structure, which takes advantage of Cross Laminated Timber (CLT)’s omni-directional loading capability to cut all beams, columns, walls, and roof from a single 200mm thick board. This pre-fabricated, sustainable and attractive self-finished material allowed for a rapid on-site build (important as the College had a limited window of construction opportunity) with reduced foundation sizes, the flexibility for services to be fixed anywhere and the creation of a high-quality internal environment (with excellent acoustic properties).
The workshop also has a modest energy requirement in use, thanks to a highly insulated envelope, efficient services specification and 12kW of roof-mounted solar pv panels, all helping to secure its A-rated Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).
We are very pleased to have had two projects shortlisted in the 2016 RICS awards.
Our Flatpack Crosslam Workshops and Limpley Stoke Eco House have both been shortlisted in the Design through Innovation category – recognition of their pioneering approach to environmental sustainability.
The winners will be announced in late May 2016.
Congratulations to Bristol City Council and the North East Combined Authority, both of whom have been awarded funding by the Office for Low Emission Vehicle’s (OLEV) £40million Go Ultra Low Scheme for a raft of EV-friendly initiatives, including our K:Port EV charging hubs.
The K:Port hub has been jointly developed by Hewitt Studios and Charge Point Services Ltd and offers a fast-track, sustainable EV charging hub with integrated cafe / education space. It incorporates the latest generation rapid chargers (capable of charging an EV in 20-40 minutes) along with associated photovoltaic power generation and battery power storage, water harvesting and sustainable drainage, integrated low-power services and lighting, elements of landscape and planting, and a future-proof laminated timber structure.
Our sustainable design derives from the Japanese notion of ‘Komorebi’; the dappled light which occurs when sunlight shines through the leaves of a tree. The essence of the tree is apparent throughout the design, from the form of the canopy itself and the timbers which make up its structure, to the collection and use of rainwater and sunlight – this is photosynthetic architecture!
We are very excited to be developing the first K:Port hubs on three sites in the South West and two in the North East, with other nation-wide locations to follow.
We are thrilled to have been shortlisted in the B:D Architect of the Year Awards. We are once again finalists in the Sustainability category that we were fortunate enough to win last year.
The shortlisting is based on a portfolio submission of our recent projects including SGS Berkeley Green, KPort and our Flatpack Crosslam Workshops.
The awards will be announced on the 9th March as part of Ecobuild’s Architecture day, at a ceremony to be hosted by Stephen Fry.
We are keeping everything crossed..!
We are delighted to be contributing to the legno architettura (timber architecture) forum in Padua, Italy later this year.
Our HCA Arts Space will be featured in the exhibition alongside works from leading international architects, such as Kengo Kuma and Andrew Berman.
Hewitt Studios have recently gained planning consent for the conversion and extension of a redundant agricultural barn at Rushall Organics into a multipurpose events space. The space will act as facility for established rural pursuits such as shooting and fishing, as well as providing an education space from which to promote the farm’s unique ‘Organic’ story.
In line with the ethos of a fully organic farm, this responsible conversion aspires to be an exemplar ‘offgrid’ project, with a ‘zero-carbon’ heating target. The sensitive use of local agricultural building materials and a carefully considered landscape design, ensure that it is respectful of its surroundings, whilst allowing its users to enjoy the sublime hilltop location.
The project is scheduled for completion in 2016.