Architecture, Building and Design

CONSTRUCTION & ENGINEERING

Training architects The studio works with architectural schools in London, Liverpool and Krakow, teaching and working with students. The UK produces the most creative and talented designers and technicians; but they do sometimes lack a basic understanding of the required duties and responsibilities once they start their professional careers. Our key ambition is to help equip them with the industry knowledge required to enable them to commence their career in the most productive way. Brexit Within the studio today 65% of our staff are from the EU, many of whom moved to the UK specifically to work with us. These highly skilled and highly qualified people are obviously concerned about their future, and a few have already decided to return home because of Brexit. The impact of this on us is huge, especially after training and investing in these people to upgrade their skills. We will continue to need to be able to recruit the very best people, from wherever they are, if we are to continue to offer the very highest level of services. environmental impact of buildings on the environment, both during their construction and in use. Legislation and building regulations are ensuring a constant reduction in the amount of C02 emissions a building produces. This focuses primarily on the materials used in construction and the equipment used to run the heating and ventilation systems. A building’s systems rely to a high degree on external factors and we are promoting a wider holistic approach, taking account of the fact that a building may exist for upwards of 100 years. The Environment There is a continuing rising importance on mitigating the

The design process involves many iterations to ensure a successful outcome

Many of the systems installed within a building are affected by external factors, a key one being vehicle pollution in cities. This currently determines how buildings are ventilated, meaning many buildings need to have sealed facades, with clean fresh air mechanically supplied to the internal spaces. While this solves today’s problems, vehicle technology is finally allowing for the development of electric cars, coupled with a rapid change in how car ownership is structured. Subject to legislation, we hope that, quite soon, car pollution could be a thing of the past in our cities. This opens huge possibilities for the engineering of buildings, allowing for the return of natural ventilation, stripping out costly mechanical ventilation systems and impacting on the overall design of our buildings. Factoring this development into our designs now, ensures that our buildings will be resilient to societal and technological changes and fit for purpose in the years ahead.

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We think that, in the next decade, car pollution could become a thing of the past in our cities. This opens huge possibilities for the engineering and design of buildings, allowing for the return of natural ventilation

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29 SIMON BOWDEN ARCHITECTURE |