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Article<br />
Modular solutions take<br />
the chill off the Antarctic<br />
Funding has been secured by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education for a new Polish Antarctic Station designed by<br />
Kuryłowicz & Associates. The project is to be located on Admiralty Bay, on the southern part of the island of King George in the South<br />
Shetland Archipelago, about 120 km from the Antarctic coast, 14 000 km from Poland.<br />
FACT FILE<br />
Client: Institute of Biology and<br />
Biochemistry PAN (Polish Academy<br />
of Science)<br />
Usable area: 1348m 2<br />
Building volume: 4490m 3<br />
Architecture:<br />
Kuryłowicz & Associates<br />
Building Services:<br />
Buro Happold<br />
Structural Engineers:<br />
Buro Happold<br />
The design of the station is shaped by a<br />
detailed functional program, the extreme<br />
environmental conditions of the site and<br />
by a modular construction strategy which has<br />
been imposed by site access restrictions.<br />
The result is a highly efficient tripartite<br />
ensemble which provides scientists with rational<br />
research space as well as a ‘home away from<br />
home’ atmosphere while the sinuous shape of<br />
the building’s exterior envelope seeks to capture<br />
the mystery of arctic life and articulate the thrill<br />
of exploration for its visitors.<br />
The station’s shell is made from prefabricated<br />
panels of timber, layers of acoustic and thermal<br />
insulation and is finished in a robust skin of<br />
copper/aluminum alloy sheets which is resistant<br />
to wind, high-speed projectiles and sea breeze<br />
corrosion, allowing easy maintenance and<br />
achieving a desired gold/brass aesthetic<br />
reminiscent of futurist sculpture.<br />
The islands extremely difficult weather<br />
conditions, which consist of: high katabatic<br />
winds, sub-zero temperatures and high levels of<br />
atmospheric precipitation as well as the<br />
absence of the necessary technical<br />
infrastructure on site, mean that the building is<br />
designed in a modular system. The modules will<br />
be pre-assembled in Poland, then transported to<br />
the island in parts via sea containers and then<br />
will be put together by a construction crew<br />
without the use of heavy equipment.<br />
Construction will take place during an annual<br />
weather window which lasts for three months<br />
from November to March.<br />
34 Feb 2019 <strong>M11</strong>
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