No. 08 Covered Slip

no. 08 covered slip the revival of CHD

elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design

No. 08 Slip The revival of chd

1618 Chatham Dockyard was first operational at the site we know today after being relocated downstream from the Tudor Yard, C.1547, after the Royal Navy’s need for more space to build dry docks.

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The No. 08 slip project marks the final project of my undergraduate diploma. situated at the edge of the medway river where a series of covered slipways for the british navy were once placed, this project proposes a covered slipway to mark the new phase of the Chatham Historic Dockyard, as a cultural, historical, touristic and social site.

Chatham is located south of london a bit before the joiniing of the thames and the medway rivers, once a very important location for the empire, now is in need for an urgent renewal project since the departure of the navy in the 80’s.

The Dockyard was heavily rebuilt as new facilities were required after becoming Britain’s Principal shipbuilding and repair yard since its role as fleet base passed to the new Portsmouth and Plymouth Docks.

1696/1702 The North an South Mast ponds are dug out to season ships masts underwater. These are the earliest surviving visible structures on the site.

1755 1755 saw the timber framed and clad mast house.

The frame was built using repurposed joists from deconstructed ships.

1765 HMS Victory completed ath Chatham after the frame seasoning in the uncorvered dock for the duration of the Seven Years War.

1775 The Timber Seasoning Sheds are the first erected building of its type and are to be replicated all over Britain. Now they are the last standing.

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No. 03 slip

Upnor Castle

Hoo Forts

Kentish Countryside

The oldest surviving slip on the site, in similar construction as the desmantled no. 01 and 02 slips. These were built by the local workers of the dockyards and has a chracteristic timber frame.

Influence was taken from the design of these slips.

1813 No. 2 slip in front of the commisioners house (now covred) is the first of the 8 slips in CHD to be covered using a wooden frame structure in order to prevent dry rot on His Majesties Ships.

1815 No. 1 Slip follows its neighbour soon after to be covered.

No.5 Pump House

1838 No. 3 slip is now covered in a similar design and is now the oldest surviving covered slip on CHD.

1848 Slips 4, 5 ad 6 are covered as a group with new victorian technology, the cast iron frame. This took only 1 year to build and complete.

1855 No. 7 slip is the last to be covered using a wrought iron frame. This slip is now the last slip to remain in operation for boat repairs.

Rochester Castle

Chatham

Chatham Historic Dockyard 1905 Following extensive new buildings being erected for new ship building technology such as steam powered and metal hulls, the last battleship to be built in CHD, HMS Africa is launched from the No. 8 slip.

1908 The first submarine, the C17 was launched from the No. 7 slip. This breathed new life into the dockyard as a specialism in submarine building which spanned two

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world wars and the nuclear age. 57 further submarines

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are to be built and launched from Chatham.

1966

command of the oceans

Due to what many think was an accident by workers on CHD, the No.2 covered slip catches fire and burns down. Thus destroying the worlds oldest surviving

After analysing the site and better undertsanding its needs and demands, it was clear The need for a more modern building dissassociated from the naval activities once hosted on the site. The no. 08 slip would be a building to characterise the new phase of the Historic Dockyards, and would add to the series of the strong historical buildings dotted around the edge of the medway river.

elliott ritchie

The newly refurbished building sitting between the mast houses is currently the front face of the dockyard. Influence was taken from the design compliment it makes to the existing architecture.

covered slip.

1984 Chatham Dockyard officially closes, causing 7,000 workers to face unemployment in the local community.

ar558: Architectural design

CHATHAM HISTORIC DOCKS The massing of no. 08 slip is a direct copy of the recurring warehouse typology, slightly scaled down to a more human scale

The hip of the roof follows the current pattern of movement as it addresses the existing events happening west of the building

The massing proposal of the no. 08 slip copies the roof pitch of the adjacent slip and brings it closer to human scale - as it is a building for people, not ships

elliott ritchie

The revival of chd the roof is designed to avoid direct sunlight thus overheating, but equipped with polycarbonate skylights to maximise natural lighting

The pitch is twisted into forming identical mirrored skewed gable ends, breaking away from the riverside elevation

The building’s interconnected side entrances allowing for the riverfront to be populated and facilitating cross-over

The internal make-up will create a series of public functions and events that better address the Dockyard, inducing a vibrant urban working, learning and social environment

ar558: Architectural design

PROPOSAL IN WIDER CONTEXT

The revival of chd

The placement of the building that would mark the revival of Chatham Historic dockyard is crucial in translating the importance of the new phase of the site post-navy occupation. on the east of the no. 07 slip, the existing slipway is along the edge of the sites formal entrance, where tickets are sold and collected and would strengthen the river’s edge and the massive scale of the buildings on site. The mast pond directly across the road south of the building acts as the genius loci of the site, where everything revolves around. the no. 08 slip would be a great addition to introduce the site’s new programmes and enhance the exisiting architecture. The charred timber cladding chosen for the external mass also evokes the tragic history of the no. 02 slip, that burnt down in 1966.

Circulation diagram - lateral stairs are both for seating and movement, while the lateral ramps are narrow inducing upwards movement

The no. 08 slip is perfectly suited to its location as it takes into account existing site typologies and introduces design strategies to best invite people inside. The urban passage located on both sides of the building connect both western and eastern sides inducing movement around and between the slips, differently of what is in use now. The overall layout of the building prioritises the view towards Medway river and CHD.

The layout of the building’s programme - activites and areas are coordinated to intersect and create interactions between users to produce dynamic spaces

south- north elevation through the site

elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design

LOWER FLOORS The revival of chd

elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design

UPPER FLOORS The revival of chd

elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design

the slip’s programme

Shelter

entrance stairs

Cores

The extruded external shell offers shelter to the public, currently lacking on site.

offers immediate seating to those entering the building for the first time.

four cores on the inner edges of the building host fire stairs, lifts and wcs

elliott ritchie

The revival of chd

Auditorium stairs

crows nest

Bookshop

restaurant area

Urban passage

Slipway stairs

links the co-working spaces and urban garden: an informal working space

the pods on the sides of the building are silent areas of working or studying.

On the ground floor an open bookshop opens up a reading area with a river view.

At the bottom of the slipway to host events, a restaurant accomodates users.

Allows for safe transit between east and west sides of the building.

combination of planters, seats and stairs, can be used as seats for events.

ar558: Architectural design

The revival of chd

the outer shell

1 - Shou Sugi Ban Rain Screen 2 - 50mm Air Gap 3 - 200mm Mineral Wool Insulation 4 - 20mm Plywood Sheet 5 - Steel Foundation Connector 6 - Dark Grey Flashing 7 - Shim Block 8 - Clay 9 - Gravel 10 - Perforated Drain 11 - Soil 12 - Concrete Floor 13 - Concrete Foundation 14 - Rigid Insulation 15 - Rebar Reinforcement

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elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design

the outer shell

elliott ritchie

The revival of chd

ar558: Architectural design

environmental strategy

The revival of chd

The design of the no. 08 slip utilises the strong cold winds from the river through the openable colycarbonate roof windows. internal heat from the building risers and gets drawn out by the cross ventilation from the lateral of the building. Single sided ventilation is possible in the rentable office spaces. the transparent thermoplastic Polycarbonate windows diffuse sunlight and block100% of UV rays. These panels are resistant to heat, sunlight, snow, and rain, which enable them to last for many years without fading or discolouring and also work very well for greenhouses, diffusing a lot of light and keeping the heat in. it is lightweight and durable, with high optical clarity, high-impact and high-heat resistance, as well as excellent flammability resistance. an Open Water Heat Pump system works by recovering the heat energy stored naturally in the river’s water. The water then passes through heat pumps to yield its low grade heat before being returned to the river with a temperature change of 3°C.

elliott ritchie

ar558: Architectural design