BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE 2019
THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW
Highlighting best practice
18 | LIAM RUSSELL ARCHITECTS
Our way of working
Successive projects, with a variety of
clients, from institutional to private
investors, from charities to schools,
have given the practice a breadth of
experience, allowing us to demonstrate
that, whatever the brief, creativity and
endeavour achieve the best results. I
have pursued architecture since my
youth. I worked on Canon Street’s LIFFE,
came within a signature of heading
to Sandhurst with the Royal Engineers
and worked on a variety of potentially
career-changing opportunities in other
fields. Yet each test of faith brought
me back to mypassion.
Since 2014, we have become a BIM
practice. Our largest commission,
Croydon’s £40-million project for
LaSalle and the HSBC Pension
fund in Dingwall Road, has proven
that the future of construction
can be integrated, sustainable and
cost-effective. The building has
just been shortlisted for a British
Construction Industry Award for Digital
Transformation Initiative of the year.
These awards are the most prestigious
awards in the built environment sector.
JJ Rhatigan engaged the practice via
novation and the project is nearing
completion, on time and on budget. It
is also a building that will achieve 35
per cent improvements against typical
building regulations and a BREEAM
“very good” rating, due to a partly
retained existing concrete frame, and
through its own on-site heating and
power production. We believe that
a more streamlined process and a
design and construction team, working
together with the client, will ultimately
provide the best results.
A benefit of BIM has been its impact
on the team – BIM’s non-adversarial
method of working, by engendering
a better team spirit, has led to a more
positive approach to “clashes”, and
has created better relationships within
the wider team, which has positively
impacted on the practice’s staff. Also, as
a practice with offices in three regions
spanning north to south, our people are
our pulse and we are a proud exponent
of diversity, our staff being selected by
virtue of their skill and attitude.
The state of the sector
The sector is currently experiencing the
impact of uncertain politics, and this
is unlikely to change soon. Counter-
intuitively, the industry responds well
Carolyn House, Croydon
We consider
ourselves one
of the few
practices that
look at
alternative
outcomes to
create genuine
value
“
“
19LIAM RUSSELL ARCHITECTS |
to red tape, certainly when it is forced
to innovate towards a better, more
sustainable future. The attitude of the
sector towards change is often maligned
as poor but this is unfair, in our opinion.
We belong to one of the UK’s largest
sectors, and, as with any comparable
sector in terms of size, change is
perceived to be ponderous. Perhaps so,
but it is desired by the sector for many
reasons, and we have been part of a
new vanguard for change as above.
One such innovation the practice
is investing in is smart technology.
We have just achieved planning for
the first council houses in the Adur
Borough in West Sussex for over 30
years. Smart technology was integral
to the design of these houses. By using
the latest sensors and algorithms, an
environment can be analysed in order to
optimise the infrastructure. This is done
by seamlessly linking technology to the
facility management team, increasing
the efficiency of the building for both
residents and owners. Critical parameters
include proper ventilation, correct room
temperature and suitable lighting. If any
of these criteria are not up to outlined
standards, alerts can be set to get these
rectified either remotely or, if necessary
with human intervention.
However, what brings the practice the
most joy is the safeguarding that the
technology provides for the building’s
occupants. Secure in the knowledge that
their home will be programmed at the
optimum levels for their circumstances
and constantly monitored, any changes
to habits and routines are picked up.
This might indicate that someone has
fallen, or been taken ill. For the elderly
or those living alone, this can be a
lifeline, providing comfort that they have
someone checking in on them with real-
time information at their fingertips, who
can implement any human intervention
that is required.
We believe this will revolutionise the way
both building owners and users think
about their resource and energy usage.
If the practice were to declare an
interest in Brexit, as I said recently to
my Scottish pal with my quarter Italian
wife, while standing in the French
town of Chartres on holiday – it would
be to remain. That said, one potential
negative side effect of a borderless
trading structure with the continent is
the blandness that non-geographical,
context-lacking architecture can have
on our towns and cities as a result
of the homogenisation of building
materials and techniques. This is not
the same as French Gothic making
its exquisite way to England in the
12th century where it was positively
impacted upon by a different set of
cultural principles; we are talking
about wholescale aping of architecture
from other places and without any real
mindfulness towards an original idea.
Can anyone genuinely say that
researching a place, through the
internet, as opposed to feeling its energy
or knowing its character, is better?
For example, can anyone say that
bricks made in Belgium can be more
sustainable than bricks made in Sussex?
Our practice is international and profit
is on the agenda. But, we must respond
to a genuine human instinct that seeks
comfort in cultural identity, among
other things, as society values integrity.
For a better future, we look forward
to playing our part in enhancing
architecture to be more of its place.
Our practice is
international
and profit is
on the agenda
“
“
Albion Street, West
Sussex
Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett
Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles
