Construction Complete on 1st All-Timber Building in UK’s King’s Cross

Construction of the King’s Cross Sports Hall, a community sports center and gym, located at the northeast edge of the 67-acre King’s Cross development, has now completed in London, England. BAM Construct UK served as general contractor on the project.

The building, designed by Bennetts Associates alongside engineering company Arup, features an indoor sports hall and a health and fitness suite over two levels. The sports hall has been built to Sport England standards and can be used as four badminton courts, a basketball court, a volleyball court or a five-a-side football pitch. The building will be operated by Camden Council with the gym being managed by Better Gyms.

The building’s position, just three meters above the underground tunnels of the Thameslink railway line, created a unique design challenge meaning the building needed to be designed using lightweight materials and with shallow foundations. The Sports Hall is primarily constructed using a cross-laminated timber frame and glulam timber columns, a natural alternative to steel and concrete that is both lightweight and carbon friendly. It is clad in zinc and has a super-lightweight concrete substructure that runs perpendicular to the tunnels to prevent concentrated loads. The serrated roof and façades of the building are a nod to its railway context and heritage.

Designed to meet a near-zero carbon target, several innovative features were incorporated into the design, including various methods of ventilation and the use of glazing to provide daylight while reducing heat gains. The building also benefits from its connection to the King’s Cross Central District Heating and Cooling Network, an efficient system for heating all the buildings at King’s Cross, meaning conventional boilers are not required.

The building’s sustainability credentials are further bolstered by the fact it was designed to have multiple lives. When it opens, the gym and fitness suite on the upper floor will be open to the public, however for a time the sports hall will be the home of the Construction Skills Centre. This is a temporary fixture until the skills center moves to their new home in Euston, at which point the sports hall will open to the public.

Photo source: https://www.bennettsassociates.com.