Building Design Partnership - Mixed-Use Development - Birmingham, The Mailbox
Date: 03 Sep 2004
BBC Birmingham's move from their Pebble Mill home to their new premises at The Mailbox is the first of a series of high profile BBC property developments to complete. (The Mailbox is a large mixed use development, formerly a 60s post office sorting office, in the centre of Birmingham).
Building Design Partnership was appointed in February 2001 to create a distinctive presence in the development which would attract and welcome the public while providing the best possible accommodation for BBC programme makers.
The 100,000 sq ft project, comprises integrated broadcasting (radio and television), technical/support and general office activities, with a public atrium space creating a focus and providing views into 'live' broadcasting studios.
BDP's design solution is to create a dramatic four-storey entrance space at the heart of the plan linking the entrance, located in the main shopping concourse of The Mailbox, with the broadcasting accommodation at all levels.
While BDP's involvement within this existing building has been mainly internal, the opportunity has been taken to modify the façade to increase the areas of glazing and, in particular, to provide a major 'picture window'. This is designed to both 'sign' the BBC presence in The Mailbox and to provide an open aspect to the south-west, both improving the quality of internal natural light and reinforcing the visual link to the public canal-side space.
On entering through the BBC 'shop front' which features a coffee bar and a shop, visitors will see through into the local radio studios at the lower level and the drama studio at the upper level, with the activities of the open plan offices, TV studio and edit suites fully visible via a full-height glass screen beyond.
The office accommodation is arranged over two levels, the higher of these is formed by suspended mezzanine floors or 'gondolas' floating within the double-height open plan space and thereby substantially increasing the available floor area. The gondolas use a highly innovative integrated design solution much like lightweight aircraft wing technology. They create a structure which is inherently stable but which at the same time provides highly integrated continuous service voids through which fresh air, power and data cabling can be distributed into the deep-plan office spaces.
Cooling is provided by means of chilled beams mounted at high level above the ceilings, with chilled ceiling panels under the gondolas. The cooling system is low energy, benefiting from the availability of 'free cooling' from the canal water.
Studios are built using a modular and lightweight construction and are designed to a very high acoustic standard.
BDP was appointed as architect, interior designer, structural and environmental engineer, lighting and acoustic consultant.
Design consultants IDEA have produced the furniture layouts for the open-plan offices, introducing a variety of vivid carpet colours to highlight particular features of the space and to delineate circulation routes. They have also made proposals for a series of state-of-the-art audio-visual and interactive displays for the entertainment of visitors in the public areas.
Photographer - Nick Guttridge
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