dRMM

dRMM are working with developers Hadley Property Group and masterplanners Haworth Tompkins on 980 Great West Road, the regeneration of the GSK site in Brentford, west London. The vision is to create a truly mixed-use development, an integrated live and work ‘campus’. There is an aspiration to be an exemplar of the circular economy in practice, with integration of existing buildings and structures and the re-use of materials across the site. Having recently completed our own studio retrofit with circularity at the forefront, this aligns perfectly with our thinking. As well as HT, the design team includes Studio Egret West, Metropolitan Workshop LLP, Buro Happold, McGregor Coxall, Walsh - Structural, Civil & Geotechnical Engineers and Turley. Our three plots, on the east of the masterplan, will provide creative workspace and community uses alongside well over 200 homes as part of the wider site housing ambition. The plots are adjacent to the Chiswick flyover, the area under which will create a new character area and focal point of activity for the local community as well as visitors to the area. Planning is targeted for mid 2025. Judith Stichtenoth, director, said: dRMM are excited about Hadley’s vision and sustainability aspirations for the project, especially the circular economy strategy. In addition, the prospect of activating a fairly bleak and inaccessible area under the M4 will make such a big difference to the area. The way this project is being run is such a great template for how all projects could be run, with early involvement of the whole team, contributing to big and small moves. It makes for a genuinely collaborative experience and we're really enjoying it.

dRMM has moved. After three decades in SE1 we have relocated to Coate Street in Hackney. We have spent 2024 retrofitting a Victorian boot factory, and have consolidated our research on carbon, circularity and climate resilience into a workspace which mirrors our studio’s culture. We’re looking forward to sharing more about this project next year along with details about the completion of our first project in Berlin and the publication of our research project, Measuring Mass Timber. In the meantime, we wish everyone a happy holiday season and a good start to 2025.

I was very excited to visit the completed #WorkStack today - for which Alex de Rijke's highly effective concept sketch of stepping stacked logs was on the drawing board back in my days at dRMM! The result is a brilliantly innovative solution to constrained sites, by putting industrial units on-top of each other within a compact footprint- all made possible with lightweight structural cross-laminated-timber (CLT). The structure stores 343 metric tonnes of sequestered carbon, whilst making it viable for Greenwich Enterprise Board to provide essential creative, office and light-industrial work spaces at affordable rents. Inside, the raw CLT finish is left exposed; reducing the cyclical fit-out rip-out of finishes often seen in commercial lets. The building felt brand-spanking-newly completed despite being occupied for over 18 months, partly due to material robustness, but also the care to the building by its occupants. The units give flexibility for tenants to arrange and fill their space for any imaginable use, a welcome offer where workshop space in London is otherwise hard to find. We were fortunate to visit both a furniture and kimchi maker's workspaces, both of whom described the unique comfort and pleasure of working in such tactile and warm conditions (well insulated and heated by air source heat pump), complete with good daylight and views. Notably the relative humidity remains low and constant, which provides ideal conditions for both makers, where typical industrial workspaces have fluctuating temperatures and moisture levels. For me, this is a great example of how off-site timber can unlock difficult sites, competing demands for land use and the need to sustainably densify. Another example of how timber construction can maximise usable space in the city is exemplified in the recently launched 'Optoppen' project - a Dutch term translating as "topping up," through the addition of lightweight, low-carbon roof extensions. The project, supported by Built by Nature, brings together case studies and EU policies that encourage #Optoppen as well as a tool that allows you to calculate how much square meterage could be gained and carbon stored - go check it out!

12 Days of #Populo: Day 3! ❄️   This March we completed phase two of the #Didsbury, a stunning development which transforms East Ham's original 1939 Town Hall Annexe into 37 new build apartments boasting two additional floors, private outdoor spaces, art-deco accents, a peaceful communal courtyard, and fantastic transport links.   So proud of our project team and the architects at dRMM behind this build, which won a 'highly commended' award at last year's Love to Rent Build to Rent awards!   ✨ A true blend of history and modern living, The Didsbury's second phase showcases our commitment to thoughtful regeneration.   Here’s to transforming spaces and creating homes in 2025! 🏡   #EastHam #Regeneration #Newham

Great design team and a landmark site. So looking forward to continuing our work with Hadley Property Group on this.

📣 New Architextures Story 📣 📣 I've had the enormous pleasure of collaborating with timber pioneers dRMM over the years; my first commission at the Architectural Association with the exhibition Off the Shelf followed by Forest of Fabrication at the Building Centre in 2019. One of the exhibits in that show was the model for WorkStack, the subject of my latest story for Architextures ⭐   There are very few architects that have such a long-lasting and productive relationship with one material. Alex de Rijke and his practice dRMM have extolled the virtues of working with wood since their formation in 1995. The relationship is one that benefits us all, and the practice’s work articulated in this humble material has put timber at the centre of the discussion around building both sustainably and beautifully 🌳    WorkStack, dRMMs recently completed radical rethink of workspace for the Greenwich Enterprise Board, is already gathering plaudits with the Wood Awards giving the scheme top prize in the Commercial and Leisure category. WorkStack is an admirable example of how dRMM push the boundaries of what is possible with timber construction 💚   The practice worked closely with engineers Webb Yates Engineers with dynamic thermal modelling used to inform design development and material selection. Structural engineers Arup alongside consultants changebuilding integrated the architectural design with the structural and fire strategy and dRMM turned to long term collaborators F Parkinson Ltd to act as contractor on the project.   WorkStack is a world away from the typical metal shed workspaces that freeze their occupants in the winter and overheat in the summer months. The practice hope that WorkStack will counter the idea that workspace be pushed to the peripheries of our towns and cities, instead championing the benefits of a new and vibrant mixed-use urban development 👏 Stora Enso HASSLACHER NORICA TIMBER Images Credits, dRMM Studio - Fred Howarth Stories is your digital introduction to the material world with stories about the extraction, manufacture and real-life application of your favourite materials 🖋️ Read the article here 👉 https://bit.ly/4ijDX3D 

We’re delighted to introduce Elle Thompson as dRMM’s most recently qualified architect after completing her Part III studies at the University of Westminster. Elle has been with us for just over a year, and brings energy and diligence to everything she does – a powerhouse! Congrats Elle.

🏆 Best New Commercial Building | WorkStack by dRMM Rising from a compact urban site in Greenwich, London, WorkStack redefines urban industrial design with innovation and sustainability. Designed by dRMM, this visionary high-density industrial space, inspired by the protective form of a ‘log stack,’ has been crowned the Best New Commercial Building at the #WoodAwards24. 🌳 Sustainability at its Core · Constructed from stacked Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) boxes. · Achieves 21% less upfront embodied carbon than LETI's 2030 Design Target. 343 metric tonnes of carbon sequestered in the CLT structure. · Delivered in just 15 lorries and assembled in nine weeks by a small team. ✨ Design Highlights · The cantilevered form doubles as solar shading and a covered delivery area. · Exposed CLT walls and ceilings showcase the natural beauty of timber, enhancing biophilic benefits. · Efficient, panelised components minimise material use without compromising function or aesthetics. 🌟 The Wood Awards judges praised WorkStack for demonstrating timber’s potential in creating replicable, high-density industrial buildings suitable for urban spaces. Lead judge Jim Greaves (Hopkins Architects) said: “It is a highly original approach to urban industrial design, pragmatic and spatially efficient while showcasing the structural possibilities of engineered timber.” 👏 Congratulations to the project team who brought this ambitious vision to life. Discover more about WorkStack here: https://bit.ly/4eMFfRY View all our 2024 winners here: https://bit.ly/4fA8nNu 📍 Location: London ✨ Architect: dRMM 🏗️ Structural Engineer: Arup / changebuilding 🪵 Wood Supplier: HASSLACHER NORICA TIMBER / Stora Enso 🏢 Contractor: F Parkinson Ltd 🌳 Species: Spruce CLT and Glulam (Sweden, Austria, Germany), Birch and Spruce Plywood (Finland). PEFC certified 🌟 Client: Greenwich Enterprise Board ⚡️ Mechanical and Electrical Engineer: Webb Yates Engineers 🛠️ Offsite Construction Specialist: B&K Structures 📸 Photographs: Alex de Rijke / Fred Howarth

The ATLG welcomes the release of Phase 2 of the Grenfell Report and its recommendations for the design and construction industry. We have now released an open letter in support of the recommendations of the Report endorsed by 69 leading UK architectural practices, they constitute over 20% of the AJ100 list and employ over 2500 qualified architects. Read the full letter and list of endorsing practices at https://lnkd.in/eFZVfMbt Endorsing practices: 3DReid Acme Ackroyd Lowrie ADP Architecture AEW Architects & Designers Ltd Allford Hall Monaghan Morris Allies and Morrison Allison Brooks Architects Apt Archatech ltd ArchitecturePLB Architype Arup Architecture Atomik Architecture AWW Barr Gazetas Basha-Franklin BDP BGY Bond Bryan BPTW BSBG Architects Broadway Malyan Conran and Partners Corstorphine & Wright Cousins & Cousins COWEN + PARTNERS CPMG Architects Limited daab design Architects DAY Architectural Ltd dRMM ECD Architects EPR Architects FBM Architects Fereday Pollard Fletcher Priest Architects Floyd Slaski Architects Ltd Gensler Gort Scott GRID Architects Hawkins\Brown HKS Architects Ltd. HTA Design LLP IID Architects JTP LA London Lawray Architects Levitt Bernstein Maccreanor Lavington Morris+Company NBBJ Ltd. Pitman Tozer PRP Architects Scott Brownrigg Sonnemann Toon Architects SpecStudio Stanton WIlliams Studio Egret West Studio PDP Supervene Architects Ltd Turner.Works Urban Mesh Design ltd Waugh Thistleton Architects Weedon Architects White Ink Architects White Red Architects WW+P (Weston Williamson + Partners)

WorkStack, our light industrial project for the Greenwich Enterprise Board has won the Commercial and Leisure award, and was Highly Commended in the Structural category at the 2024 Wood Awards. The project in south-east London also picked up an Honourable Mention in the Production category at The Plan Magazine Awards, as well as recent wins at both the Structural Timber, and Offsite Awards. L-R Steve Wallis (dRMM), Judith Stichtenoth (dRMM), Michael Finlay (GEB), Adrian Campbell (changebuilding), Andrew Lerpiniere (Webb Yates Engineers), Jacqueline Wheeler (dRMM), Loyd Grossman (Master Carpenter) and Alex de Rijke (dRMM, at front)