Environmental Accolade
13.01.12
The Building Research Establishment have shortlisted Nicoll Russell Studios to design a Passivhaus at their new Innovation Park at Ravenscraig, Scotland.
The Brief for the Ravenscraig site was to design a detached residential Passivhaus which achieves Code Sustainable Homes Level 6. The threshold of construction costs: £1,500m2 excluding Photovoltaic’s. Total cost threshold £2,000m2 with locally sourced low embodied energy materials to be used where possible.
The Dundee Institute of Architects Awards 2011
14.11.11
Nicoll Russell Studios are short listed for at least four categories in this year’s DIA awards. These projects include their new environmentally friendly home for Hillcrest Housing Association in Dundee through to interior design projects like Clarks Bar Kitchen in North Lindsay Street, Dundee, a modest educational project in St Andrews through to the conversion of a former Council House.
Nicoll Russell Studios partner Willie Watt said “we have a lot of entries in this year’s awards and hope that we will do well across all categories. As in every year the competition will be stiff but we are keeping our fingers crossed that at least some of our projects will shine on the night.”
“The DIA awards are a great show case for the talent available in the local area, and this year many of our submitted projects are actually in the DIA Ambassador Award category which covers work by DIA members out with the DIA chapter area (the whole of Tayside and North East Fife). In this category we therefore have high hopes for our major projects like the Briggait in central Glasgow and the Howden Park Arts Centre in Livingston both of which have won a range of prestigious national awards.”
“It will no doubt come as a surprise to many that these projects have been designed in Dundee and that they have already won major awards such as the National Civic Trust’s Special Award for Scotland and the Edinburgh Architectural Association’s Best Building Award respectively. The awards will be announced at the DIA Awards Dinner on Thursday 17th November. On the night everyone in our practice will have butterflies in their stomachs because Hillcrest is also short listed for the prestigious Doolan Award which is announced on the same night in Edinburgh.”
“We are therefore hoping that Thursday is a very good night for us!”
Doolan Award Short List 2011
01.11.11
For the second year in a row a Nicoll Russell Studios project has been short listed for the UK’s richest architectural award, the prestigious Doolan Award which is run by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland and supported by the Scottish Government. This year the practice’s recently completed Head Quarters for Hillcrest Housing Association located in Dundee’s Technology Park has been selected to be part of this high profile grouping.
Nicoll Russell Studios’ partner Doug Binnie enthused “It is a privilege to be short listed for the Doolan Award, and to be short listed two years in a row is really quite something. We have high hopes for the building, because it has created an efficient and appropriate home for Hillcrest. They seem to be extremely happy with the completed building, the quality of its working environment and by its sustainable credentials. Hillcrest wanted the completed building to be the greenest building in Tayside and I think that ambition has been achieved.”
“Just as in last years awards Nicoll Russell’s project will be going head to head with another Dundee project in the form of Dundee House, this year we want to go one better and hope that our project will win”.
Procurex Scotland
26.10.11
Nicoll Russell Studios’ partner Willie Watt was a speaker at the Scottish Government’s annual National Public Procurement Conference at the SECC. Willie is currently assisting the Royal Incorporation of Architects’ President’s Commission on Public Procurement and sits on the Royal Institute of British Architects’ Procurement Reform Group. He has spoken widely on the subject at various business dinners and business lunches, CPD events and by invitation to individual companies.
The Roses Awards 2011
13.10.11
Nicoll Russell Studios’ recently completed Briggait project in central Glasgow, continues its success. Having won two awards from the Civic Trust including their Special Award for Scotland, the project went on to win the practice’s first ever award in the Scottish Design Awards the Briggait has now won the practice’s first ever award at the Roses Design Awards in Manchester.
A Nicoll Russell Studios’ spokesman said “this is terrific news. The client, WASPS, and the many artists they house in the building’s studios all seem very happy with how the completed project has turned out. It was a complex conservation project which has saved a large complex of Grade A listed buildings in the heart of Glasgow, but it also seems to have transcended those technical requirements to create a home for the arts which has a sense of purpose and palpable buzz”.
The project was joint first in the Roses Awards’ Conservation category winning the Silver Award.
RIAS Sustainability Accreditation
05.10.11
Senior Associate Gerry Farquharson has received the prestigious accolade of RIAS Sustainability Accreditation. He is now one of only 28 architects in Scotland who has achieved this accreditation.
Gerry’s Accreditation reflects his experience and knowledge gained in the practical implementation of a series of sustainable design projects, the most recent of which, Hillcrest Housing Association's new head quarters in Dundee, has received a coveted BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating. Since then Gerry has expanded upon these practical achievements by embarking in study towards a MSc in Advanced Sustainability of The Built Environment at The University of Dundee and attendance at a Certified European ‘Passivhaus’ Designer Course at The University of Strathclyde. The RIAS’s Accreditation in Sustainable Architecture puts him in the top one percent of the architectural profession with regards to Sustainability and complements the practice’s status as an Approved Certifier of Design (Energy) for domestic buildings and member of the Scottish Ecological Design Association.
Green issues are now a key component in every client's shopping list when considering a building development or refurbishment. Nicoll Russell Studios in-house green design manual has been created to reflect this, and we are delighted that we can offer our clients industry leading experience in the form of Gerry's input.
Hillcrest Housing Association Headquarters, Dundee - Now Complete
30.05.11
An exemplar of low carbon design; The Hillcrest HQ is a practical, sustainable, value for money headquarters for the Hillcrest Housing Association. Designed in synergy, delivered in partnership and enjoyed in use, the building’s flexible layout and physical elegance ably satisfy the Client’s requirements and aspirations.
Major Briggait Success
23.05.11
Nicoll Russell Studios' Briggait project has won a range of awards, but its success at the National Civic Trust Awards was particularly pleasing for the practice. The Briggait won both a National Civic Trust Award and the Civic Trust's Special Award for Scotland. Ric Russell enthused "our project was up against very strong competition both here in Scotland and from throughout Britain. It was therefore very pleasing to pick up two of the Trust's major awards in the one evening. We hope that we can build on this success and believe that the creative vision we offered which has brought fresh life into this much loved complex of grade A listed buildings in central Glasgow can be applied to secure the future of many fine buildings throughout Scotland."
Those successes have been underlined by the Architects' Journal reviewing the project in detail and illustrating the project on its front cover. The Briggait is also illustrated in Glasgow City Council's new guide to its 50 top landmarks.
Click here for some images and information about the project
Nicoll Russell Studios Break Duck At Scottish Design Awards
19.05.11
Nicoll Russell's award winning Briggait project has broken a 15 year duck for the practice at the Scottish Design Awards. Whilst Nicoll Russell Studios have won a number of RIBA awards during this time they have never progressed beyond the initial short list in the Scottish Design Awards. The Briggait broke this duck by winning a commendation in the 2011 awards building on its success in the RICS awards and in its double success at the National Civic Trust Awards.
The Briggait Voted as one of Glasgow’s Top 50 Landmarks and Best Buildings
21.09.10
The exciting announcement by Glasgow’s Lord Provost places the Nicoll Russell Studios recently completed arts and regeneration project alongside buildings of world quality. The initiative is led by the Mackintosh Heritage Group, working in partnership with key heritage organisations and with funding from Scottish Enterprise. Public nominations were reviewed by a panel of experts and the Briggait was judged worthy to be included onto the final list of Glasgow’s ‘Top 50 Landmarks’. The group’s aim is to enable people to explore Glasgow’s unique buildings through a series of trails and plaques and encourage visitors to come to Glasgow.
Nicoll Russell Studios Partner Willie Watt noted that “We are delighted that the project has been so well received so soon after it’s completion and we hope it will catalyse the redevelopment of the surrounding area.”
Howden Park Centre wins Building of the Year Award
02.04.10
The Howden Park Centre in Livingston has been named Building of the Year by the Edinburgh Architectural Association. The prestigious award was announced at a ceremony in the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh, on Thursday 1 April.
The Centre is West Lothian's major arts venue for professional and community groups as well as for functions, conferences and other events. It follows in the footsteps of a long line of award winning Arts buildings designed by the Studios, and includes a 300 seat Auditorium, Rehearsal, Dance, and Art studios, and the new home of Firefly Youth Theatre. It was funded by West Lothian Council and the Scottish Arts Council.
Scott Turpie, Partner at NRS, said "All at Nicoll Russell Studios are delighted that the efforts of the entire Project Team have been recognised in this way. Although we work throughout the UK and have completed many successful projects across the country, in our experience this client’s commitment to enhancing Community development through access to the Arts has been a unique and defining feature of the project. Feedback from the 50,000 visitors to the building in its first year has been tremendous and we wish all at Howden Park continued success for the years ahead".
Over 40 entries were submitted to the EAA awards this year and 12 short-listed projects across 3 categories were visited by the judging panel in February. The judging panel comprised Robert Black, President of the Edinburgh Architectural Association, Professor Andrew MacMillan OBE, leading landscape architect Eelco Hooftman and Ian Stewart, EAA Council Member. Robert Black said "It is gratifying and encouraging that the profession continues to achieve such a high standard of architecture across a wide variety of building types".
Click here for some images and information about the project
The Briggait Now Complete
01.04.10
The transformation of the city of Glasgow’s old fishmarket into a vibrant new home for up to 100 visual artists and cultural organisations is now complete. Professional photography of the completed building is now underway however in the mean time please have a look at our project page which contains some of our own photographs of the building nearing completion.
*update* Professional photography now complete
Howden Park Centre on Shortlist For Building of the Year
25.03.10
The Howden Park Centre is one of only four buildings shortlisted for the "Building of the Year" category in the 2010 EAA Awards.
Click here for some images and information about the project
New Nicoll Russell Studios Website!
18.12.09
Good bye old site .. Hello new! It had all been agreed the old website was past its sell by date and in much need of being revamped. Much to our delight Dave Tipping one of our designers in his own time presented us with a working prototype for a new site and set to work on creating the finished article. Lots of new projects have been added to the portfolio pages and these will be updated on a regular basis to show the broad range of exciting new projects the office is working on. We are currently developing the staff pages to include cvs but also to provide an insight into the personality and creativeness of each individual.
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