Doncaster's Earth Centre pays homage to Orkney neolithic buildings
Submitted by Andy B on Thursday, 16 August 2001 Page Views: 4629
Neolithic and Bronze AgeBy Bob RaeTINSLEY Wire could have taught prehistoric man a thing or two about construction.
The Sheffield-based wire and wire products group has just added a state of the art touch to an eye-catching conference complex at Doncaster's Earth Centre whose eco-friendly design pays homage to neolithic stone buildings on the Orkneys.
The complex is made up of a 150- seater circular auditorium, surrounded by three smaller satellite buildings for workshops and "breakout" sessions, set into the hillside next to the Centre's Planet Earth Galleries.
Although the architects for the project drew their inspiration from the ancient, corbelled stone buildings of Skara Brae, the showpiece complex is at the cutting edge of environmental design, built for maximum energy efficiency, using recycled materials wherever possible.
Shepcote Lane-based Tinsley Wire was called in to apply its expertise in land reinforcement to keep the walls - made from hundreds of fist-sized stones - rigid and free from any deformity.
Technical manager Roger Farmer responded by using an up to the minute version of techniques originally developed in medieval times for making fortifications out of woven wicker cylinders, called "gabions," filled with earth.
Instead of wicker, he used the latest flat welded mesh, made at Tinsley Wire's Sheffield plant, to make shaped baskets which could be filled with the stones and would be lighter and less obtrusive, but just as strong as other solutions.
According to Tinsley Wire's marketing manager, Simon Bedford the success of the project has sparked interest from other architects and consultants who want to use Tinsley Wire's modern gabion systems.
* Tinsley Wire is the UK's leading manufacturer of a wide range of steel wire and wire products. The company is owned by Belgian-based multinational Bekaert, which has 70 factories in 23 countries and employs 16,500 people world-wide.
Note: Source: This is Sheffield
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