Redland Green new build school project
The Challenge
As part of a significant investment programme in school buildings, Redland Green School in Bristol benefited from a major new build development, designed to deliver one of the most modern, state of the art learning environments in the South West.
Described as the ‘school under the hill’, the main teaching spine is situated under the existing hillside beneath a green sloping roof. In line with the sustainability agenda, the natural contours of the hill are carried over the spine to create an inspiring open air learning environment, which overlooks the city of Bristol and its surrounding countryside.
The building design incorporated ‘The Street’, an architectural vision that aimed to inspire learning but posed a reverberation challenge. Malcolm D’Crus, project architect at BDP, explains: “The Street was designed to be the main area where pupils would congregate, but it contained lots of hard surfaces. Without taking preventative measures, the noise level would have been unacceptable.”
However, because the acoustic treatment was to be detailed later on in the development, it was critical that it should integrate well with the interior environment.
The Solution
The fully bespoke CMS SuperPhon Acoustic Wall Panels were identified as the most effective solution to meet all of the project requirements.
Manufactured by CMS Acoustic Solutions, SuperPhon panels reduce noise by absorbing sound at the surface, combining these impressive acoustic capabilities with an aesthetically appealing woven textile finish.
At Redland Green, more than 200 panels were precision installed on the upper half of the walls, throughout the 100m x 5m Street. They were used in 32 different sizes, each at 25mm thick and covered in coloured fabric designed to integrate the panels into the scheme’s overall design.
Providing an effective means of controlling reverberation time and reflected sound in rooms, SuperPhon is ideal for use in educational buildings.
Results
Having opened its doors to the first wave of students, Redland Green School is now operational, and The Street is proving as popular as it is striking. In spite of being a bustling area, as the architects intended, the reverberation of sound remains controlled.
Moreover, as outlined in the specification criteria, the interior environment has stayed true to the architectural vision. This demonstrates that, in spite of being introduced later on in the development, SuperPhon has delivered a treatment that could have just as easily been included in the original design plans.
Product Case Study
