Shifting Paradigms and High Tech: Revisiting the University of Salford Centenary Building with Sustainability in Mind

Yioutani-Iacovides, Maria; Moustaka, Athina; Walker, Peter

Abstract

The Centenary Building was created to fuse design and technology, teaching at the University of Salford, as a hub for the Departments of Spatial, Graphic, and Industrial Design. The brief required the architect Stephen Hodder to align the building’s purpose and function-to its location, by bridging the gap between city and campus.
Rob Gregory comments that Hodder’s concept demonstrated “commitment to placemaking”, and “to articulation of craft and materials”- as an exercise “in structural expressionism” . Hugh Pearman characterises it as a “clever, highly articulated take on ‘pure’ modernism in glass, stainless steel, and concrete’, where the architect “considers the building’s three elements separately, layering the composition both horizontally and vertically”. “The studio spaces are good, light, and simple, with marvellous outlooks” .
The three parallel elements-a four-story rectangular zone for studios-seminars-service towers; a three-story zone for offices-technology suites; and a central linear atrium (or street) with circulation pathways-create a lively atmosphere.

Citation

Yioutani-Iacovides, M., Moustaka, A., & Walker, P. (2023, September). Shifting Paradigms and High Tech: Revisiting the University of Salford Centenary Building with Sustainability in Mind. Poster presented at HIGH TECH HERITAGE, I(M)PERMANCE OF INNOVATION ARCHITECTURE, ZURICH, SWITZERLAND

• Presentation Conference Type: Poster
• Conference Name: HIGH TECH HERITAGE, I(M)PERMANCE OF INNOVATION ARCHITECTURE
• Conference Location: ZURICH, SWITZERLAND
• Start Date: Sep 14, 2023
• End Date: Sep 16, 2024
• Deposit Date: Sep 5, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Oct 1, 2024
• Series Title: HIGH TECH HERITAGE, I(M)PERMANCE OF INNOVATION ARCHITECTURE
• Keywords: HIGH TECH HERITAGE