Set in a natural limestone gorge in the heart of Nottinghamshire Creswell Crags has been considered an area of outstanding beauty and a visitor ‘hotspot’ since the early eighteenth century. With a brief that demanded care and conservation of this stunning landscape, Buro Happold, the international multidisciplinary engineering consultancy, was tasked with delivering the recently opened new museum and visitors centre for the Creswell Heritage Trust.

Local materials
The practice was also tasked with delivering the centre against very clear client aspirations and tight budgetary constraints.  To minimise the impact on the surrounding area the new two storey steel framed superstructure housing the museum is located adjacent to an existing development. Cut back into the sloping site the two storey development nestles into the natural limestone strata that runs through the site. The impact of the building is further softened by the use of natural locally sourced materials.

Building form
The building’s superstructure comprises of a slender steel frame supported off spread footings founded on the underlying limestone strata. This is topped by a relatively complex stepped roof arrangement which provided OMI Architects with an opportunity to create planar ceiling arrangements that reflect the rectilinear and angular nature of the building form.  Punctuated with roof lights the stepped angular ceilings enhance internal spaces and maximise natural lighting to public areas within the museum. The final configuration of the new centre provides education classrooms, exhibition spaces, café, artefact storage and office accommodation for centre staff.

Sustainable solutions
Due to the remote and wild nature of the site every effort has been made to maximise the benefits of sustainable technologies.  The pre existing combined sewer system was unable to cope with the magnitude of storm water discharge from hard standing areas. Through collaboration with the Trust, the Environment Agency and landscape architects, Buro Happold was able to develop a considered approach to the issue of storm water management. The principle works involved the construction of a sustainable urban drainage system and civils infrastructure.

Andrew Isherwood, Associate at Buro Happold commented “The new visitor centre was a challenging project on an environmentally sensitive site. The structural solution addressed the site constraints to successfully deliver the architectural and client’s vision”.

Ancient beginnings
In the late nineteenth century the discovery of Neolithic paintings within the naturally formed limestone caves attracted archaeologists to the site, and together with this evidence, and substantial finds from the iron, bronze and Stone Age Creswell Crags was established as a historically significant site.

Ian Wall, Director of the Creswell Heritage Trust, commented “The new development represents a turning point for the museum, with state of the art displays within a building that reflects the significance of this internationally renowned Ice Age archaeological site, supporting the ambition for World Heritage Site inscription.”

Ends

Project team
Client: Creswell Heritage Trust
Architect: OMI Architects
Quantity Surveyor: Harvey and Co
Main Contractor: Tomlinsons
Buro Happold Services:
Structural engineering, building services engineering, computation and simulational analysis, geotechnical engineering, Buro Happold Project Management

Note to Editors
Buro Happold
Press Office and practice information at www.burohappold.com
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For more information, please contact the Press Office:
Hannah Adams
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Tel: +44 (0)113 2042 200
Email: hannah.adams@burohappold.com

Buro Happold is a multi-disciplinary international practice of consulting engineers established in 1976 offering civil and structural engineering, mechanical and electrical engineering, quantity surveying, building services and environmental engineering, health and safety management, infrastructure and traffic engineering, ground engineering, façade engineering, fire engineering, computational fluid dynamics analysis, inclusive design consultancy, project management, urban design and a range of specialist CAD services.