remodelling

Student Mentoring & Site Visit to 227 Winchester Road!

For the second year in a row we are hosting students from Bath University and UWE as part of the innovative RIBA Student Mentoring scheme organised by the team at RIBA South West Forge Design Studio. Following two office based sessions we visited site this week at 227 Winchester Road.

Having recently received planning permission for the comprehensive re-design and re-building of the original house, our client has made a meaningful start on site. The demolition of a substantial part of the original house has been completed and the reduced dig is underway in preparation for the piling rig.

Proposed Ground Floor Plan

Proposed First Floor Plan

The new design will create approx. 5,000sqft of accommodation, providing 6 bedrooms, 2 reception rooms and a large multi-function kitchen/dining/lounge area in a split level arrangement which takes advantage of the subtle change in level on the site.

The house follows an inter-locking, cranked plan which wraps around the generous garden with excellent orientation to capture the evening sun. The house will be served by an air source heat pump, underfloor heating and solar pv arrays on the roof.

We are excited to see the proposals for this innovative, contemporary design emerge from the excavations, stand by for a major transformation in 2020!!

Project Handover, Cambridge

Forge Design Studio have been working with Volker Fitzpatrick on a major re-modelling and refurbishment project for a higher education client in Cambridge.

The project required an extensive de-cant programme to vacate the occupied spaces. This involved working closely with the Estates Team and the Contractor’s Site Team to gain an appreciation and understanding of the whole campus. The main campus has been an operational live environment through-out the process which has entailed out-of-hours working and a great deal of flexibility on the part of the Contractor.

It has been a highly technical project involving retro-fitting steelwork and FDS have been involved in all aspects of the project – from strategic accommodation studies to detailed surveys of existing furniture, fittings and equipment within existing spaces. We have produced sketch options, g.a’s, specifications, detailed schedules and working drawings. We also carried out monthly site visits and spot checks to review progress and assist with quality control.

Volker Fitzpatrick made great progress on the major re-modelling and refurbishment and kept ahead of schedule. We carried out our final site visits as the end of June, and the project is due for handover shortly.

Sancerre Barn – Permission Granted – First one of the New Year!!

Forge Design Studio is delighted to confirm that one of the first e-mails received on our return to work in 2019 was confirmation that approval had been granted for the re-modelling and refurbishment of the Barn Conversion at Cold Harbour Farm.

Located in the rural village of Ashwell the commission came from a recommendation from Sarah and Douglas at North Brook End Stud. Always nice to be introduced by an existing client!

The owners had bought the Barn in the knowledge that a substantial amount of work might be needed to turn it into their dream home. We have worked closely with them to create a completely new plan arrangement which will create the type of free-flowing, welcoming contemporary space that they were seeking.

The re-organisation of the existing bedrooms and removal of a long dark corridor together with the new rear extension will substantially improve the arrangement of public living and private spaces. We’ve also opened-up the relationship to the outside garden spaces, both front and back.

We look forward to developing the working drawings and assisting our clients in the procurement and construction of the scheme.