The Eden Project England : Architecture Information

The Eden Project The Eden Project is the largest plant enclosure in the world, built in the lightest and most ecological way possible. The project is situated in a 15-hectare landscaped site, formerly a worked-out Cornish clay pit. Four phases have been completed to date. Eden Project photo © SealandAerialPhotography The focus of the Eden Project is a sinuous sequence of 8 inter-linked geodesic domes threading around the site, encapsulating Humid Tropic and Warm Temperate regions. The biomes are an exercise in efficiency, both of space and material. The cladding panels – triplelayered pillows of high performance ETFE foil – allow maximum light transmission and minimum structure due to their exceptionally low weight. The biomes were completed in 2001 - a year after the Visitors’ Centre was finished. This building is a working showcase for methods of building with low impact on the environment: green roofing; gabion walling; rammed earth construction and timber cladding. During its first six months of opening, it attracted over half a million visitors to its showcase ‘Big Build’, which offered views of the construction of the biomes from its panoramic galleries. In 2002 Grimshaw completed phase three, the Foundation building. It was built to accommodate the increase in staffing levels, a direct consequence of Eden visitor numbers exceeding projections by 200%. The design meets extremely high sustainability targets. Under BREEAM for Offices 2002, it achieved a rating of ‘Excellent’. Eden Project photo © Grimshaw The fourth phase of the Eden Project, the Core, is an education centre completed in 2005. Designed with the sculptor, Peter Randall-Page, the building is in itself an expression of the geometric principles of plant growth, and represents a true collaboration between all members of the client, design and construction teams. A fifth phase, The Edge, is currently in design. It will contain plant life from the Dry Tropics alongside a series of permanent and temporary exhibits on climate change and other environmental issues Eden Project Cornwall - Building Information GRIMSHAW EDEN PROJECT PHASE 2 Humid Tropics and Warm Temperate Biomes and Link Building Project The Eden Project Phase 2: Humid Tropic and Warm Temperate Biomes Location Cornwall, UK Area 23,000m2 Contract Value £57m Design start date 05/1996 Site start date 10/1998 Completion date 03/2001 Client The Eden Project Ltd Eden Project Biomes (no larger image) image from RIAS May 2002 Address: The Eden Project, Bodelva, St Austell, Cornwall, UK PL24 2SG Project Team Company Chairman – Nicholas Grimshaw Director – Andrew Whalley Associate Director – Jolyon Brewis Senior Associate – Vincent Chang Associate(s) – David Kirkland, Michael Pawlyn Team members – Perry Hooper, Bill Horgan, Oliver Konrath, Juan Porral – Hermida, Jason Ahmed, Vanessa Bartulovic, Dean Boston, Chris Brieger, Amanda Davis, Florian Eckardt, Alex Haw, Angelika Kovacic, Quintin Lake, Richard Morrell, Tim Narey, Monica Niggemeyer, Martin Pirnie, Mustafa Salman, Killian O’Sullivan, Debra Penn, Tan Su Ling Structural Engineer Anthony Hunt Associates Services Engineer Ove Arup & Partners Quantity Surveyor Davis Langdon & Everest Project Manager Davis Langdon Management Main Contractor McAlpine Joint Venture Landscape Architect Land Use Consultants Planning Supervisor Aspen Burrow Crocker Fire Consultant Arup Fire Cladding Consultant Arup Façade Engineering Access Consultant Purcell Miller Tritton biome superstructure Mero UK plc Eden Project images / information from Grimshaw