Trying to design buildings that meet both the demands of the client and of the planning authorities is never easy but one practice of architects that seems to be winning the battle is PDM Design.
The business was set up in a beautiful part of Devon by Philip Domville-Musters and has a target market of refurbishment, conservation work and new build in conjunction with self-builders across the County and throughout the south-west of England.
Philip explains, “Although we do some commercial work, probably about 20% of our turnover, most of our work is centred on producing green, sustainable designs that blend in with their surroundings. We are keen to make the maximum use of natural sustainable resources, such as cob and green oak in order to produce thermally efficient buildings as well as using technologies such as pv and renewable energy wherever possible.”
Two recent projects clearly illustrate the diversity of the work carried out by the practice. The first was Windyridge, a site that has been owned by the same family for three generations. The latest generation decided to demolish the dilapidated asbestos clad 1930’s beach bungalow and build a replacement and, in so doing, created a live brief, which is code for everyone wanted a different slant on the design! So this was a fun and challenging project on many levels.
“Taste and style were not prescribed but emerged through a rigorous application of some core philosophy,” said Philip. “We made context the design driver. The family collectively agreed they disliked new houses and new looking houses and so we set about designing a house that was site specific and a strong response to the dramatic surroundings of Braunton Burrows. The site had a number of challenges, not least the UK’s only Termite colony, 50m away! The site was also made up of wind blown sand to a depth of 14m and so we adopted the idea of an interlocking sheet pile, or “coffer dam” construction as this gave the opportunity for a basement level throughout the building.”
In contrast, PDM have recently completed the design for three waste resorting buildings in Exeter for Devon Contract Waste. The office building runs on wood pellet bricks made from pulverised cardboard extracted from the waste streams. This burns slowly but has a high calorific value and is used to heat the building and to provide the hot water. All of the electricity is provided by pv units.
Again, Philip comments, “We have done a lot of installations with pv on farms and on residential buildings. However, the government is changing the legislation and so, from 1 July 2011, only residential properties will benefit which is a shame for farmers have found that by installing pv on their barns they can get a 6% return upon the investment. We have also just completed a house using Sylindra cylindrical collectors filled with pv materials. This we believe is the next generation of pv technology.
For further information please telephone 01392 873846 or visit www.pdmdesign.co.uk
