Designing Timber issue 10 for online - Flipbook - Page 47
———— U-BUILD: THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX ————
A truly Sustainable
Venture
It was demountability that
made U-Build a perfect 昀椀t
for Sustainable Workspaces,
part of Sustainable Ventures,
a non-pro昀椀t organisation
based in London’s County
Hall. They needed to 昀椀t out
their open-plan o昀케ce layout,
but only had a two-year
lease; after which they would
move to a larger o昀케ce a few
storeys further up. A U-Build
design could be put up, then
dismantled and reused in their
new space when the time came.
“County Hall proved that we
could intervene in an old listed
building and leave no trace,”
explains Ben. “We couldn’t mark
anything too signi昀椀cantly, or drill
holes in the wall, but we had to
make it comfortable enough for
several years."
Standard U-Build box types
were used for almost all of the
walls while a new innovation was
developed for the remainder: an
adjustable U-Build module known
as a ‘compression box’.
This tightens against the
concrete frame of the building
using a 昀氀at plate, and turns the
assembly into a solid partition,
without a single 昀椀xing into the
building. The adjustable nature of
the box serves a second function
– to close up small gaps – and
can also be 昀椀tted with a seal for
added acoustic performance.
As the partitions have no 昀椀xings,
the landlord classi昀椀ed them as
furniture, which did not break the
terms of the lease. As it happens,
U-Build was also used to build
actual furniture, including desks,
storage units, o昀케ce pods and
lockers.
The compression boxes
essentially sit as boards between
the void spaces. "We used a
special kind of rod system that
cranks everything up and pushes
everything together just on
compression: walls, ceiling and
昀氀oor," Ben says. "If you need to
take it out, you can just unscrew
it and 昀氀at pack everything up
again.”
A timber-based system
The panels can be cut out
of any material that will 昀椀t
on a CNC machine, but the
U-Build standard panels are
←
U-Build's simple DIY
approach is perfect for
o昀케ce 昀椀t-outs.
DESIGNING TIMBER
47
NOV/DEC 2025
UNDERSTANDING
if the structure is to be used
inside; or 昀椀tted with a weatherproof membrane and cladding
if outside. At the end of the
building’s useful life, the boxes
can be taken apart and moved,
recycled or sold to other
U-Builders.
