Willis Building (Ipswich)

Willis Building (Ipswich)

:"For the Willis Building in London, also designed by Norman Foster, see Willis Building (London)"

The Willis building in Ipswich, England (originally the Willis Faber and Dumas Headquarters ) is one of the earliest buildings designed by Norman Foster after establishing Foster Associates. Constructed between 1970 and 1975, it is now seen as a landmark in the development of the 'high tech' architectural style.

The building houses some 1300 office staff in open plan offices spread over three floors. The central escalator well leads up to a rooftop staff restaurant surrounded by a rooftop garden ( [http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/360/views/willis3.shtml 360 panorama] ). Originally there was also a swimming pool for employees to enjoy on their lunch break. This has now been covered up (not filled in due to it being a listed building) and the space is used for more offices. The swimming pool can be seen underneath the false floor.

The bulbous floorplan of the office block reflects the layout of the available site in the centre of Ipswich, which is sandwiched between several road junctions and the Grade I listed Unitarian Meeting House, one of Ipswich's oldest surviving buildings. In 1991 the Willis building became the youngest building to be given Grade I listed building status in Britain; at the time being one of only two listed buildings under 30 years of age. [cite web | title=PIONEERING MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES FOR MODERN LISTED BUILDINGS | url=http://ihbc.org.uk/context_archive/47/williscarroon.htm |publisher=Context | date = September 1995] Thus two of the town's Grade I listed buildings stand side by side.

The centre of the building is constructed from a grid of concrete pillars, 14 m (46 ft) apart, supporting cantilevered concrete slab floors. The exterior is clad in a dark smoked glass curtain wall.

References

* [http://www.concretecentre.com/main.asp?page=640 ConcreteCentre.com]
* [http://www.fosterandpartners.com/Projects/0102/Default.aspx Project description from Foster + Partner]

External links

*IoE|428675


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Willis Building — The Willis Building may refer to:*Willis Building (London), also known as 51 Lime Street, a skyscraper in London *Willis Building (Ipswich), a lowrise office building in Ipswich, one of the first to be designed by Norman Foster …   Wikipedia

  • Ipswich — For other uses, see Ipswich (disambiguation). Ipswich Borough of Ipswich Common Quay, Ipswich Docks …   Wikipedia

  • List of historic buildings and architects of the United Kingdom — The Historic buildings of the United Kingdom date from the stone age to the twenty first century AD, and tell the story of the architecture of the United Kingdom.See also: List of British architects Pre Historic buildings structures Roman… …   Wikipedia

  • Norman Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank — For other people named Norman Foster, see Norman Foster (disambiguation). The Lord Foster of Thames Bank Born 1 June 1935 (1935 06 01) (age 76) …   Wikipedia

  • Norman Foster (architecte) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Foster et Norman Foster. Norman Foster Norman Foster à Dresde en 2006 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Norman Foster — Lord Norman Foster Norman Foster en Dresde en el año 2006. Información personal Nacimiento 1 de junio de 1935 …   Wikipedia Español

  • Foster Associates — Hauptverwaltung der Swiss Re, London, von den Londonern „Gherkin“ (Gurke) getauft. Greater London Authorities Headquarters …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Foster and Partners — Hauptverwaltung der Swiss Re, London, von den Londonern „Gherkin“ (Gurke) getauft. Greater London Authorities Headquarters …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Dumas — is a Southern French topographic surname, with fused preposition and definite article du, for someone who lived in an isolated dwelling in the country rather than in a village, from Occitan mas farmstead (Late Latin mansum, mansus).[1] Contents 1 …   Wikipedia

  • 1975 en architecture — Années de l architecture : 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 Décennies de l architecture : 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”