Worcester Library and History Centre
Worcester Library will be an integrated academic and public library, a county archive, retail and one stop shop, local authority hub.
The building will be low energy. It will be cooled by water from the nearby River Severn running through ceiling beams. Shaded solar chimneys will take stale, warm air out and bring sunlight in. Treated rainwater from the roof will be used for hand washing, WC flushing and the archaeology wash and silt trap which forms part of the archaeology service.
Thinking sustainability runs through every detail of the building.
Extensive landscaping includes water meadows designed for flooding.
Roof lights over the atrium introduce daylight and controlled sunlight to the centre of the building.
Voids cut through the floor plates allow good daylight penetration from the roof lights.
Acoustic treatment limits noise transfer through the voids.
Air enters around the building perimeter, rises through the voids due to buoyancy and exits via the roof cowls under negative wind pressure.
Pressure co-efficients from wind tunnel testing were fed into the computer model to determine air movement and thermal response.
Worcester Library and History Centre is one project in our continuing story of nearly 50 years of delivering exemplary low energy cultural and educational buildings.