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news: Corpus Christi Jesuit Community
The community has at last settled into its new home with the celebration of the first mass in the chapel and the gradual departure of the builders. The peace and tranquilty of the setting is finally filtering into the building as the spiritual life of the community has taken over from the frenetic activity involved in completing a building of such complexity.
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news: CCJC pitches for awards
The new Corpus Christi Jesuit Community building in Bournemouth is already attracting interest from various award giving authorities.
A recent visit by the Civic Trust jury will shortly be followed by assessment for the Lead wards and Brick Development Awards.
The RIBA are planning a visit before Christmas and the project is already slated for publication in a number of reviews.
In other quarters the project has generated differing opinions, the kids in the primary school next door have cristened the chapel roof - the Dalek !
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news: Corpus Christi Jesuit Community, Boscombe, Bournemouth
The new CCJC building is nearing completion. The first residents have moved in and the contractors, Mansell Construction Services, are completing the external works and the final snagging.
The building is a religious house focused on the needs of elderly priests who require constant nursing care.
The following extract from the original two page client brief set the tone for the project ;
\\\'The sense is strong that this place needs to be attractive, comfortable, well established but not overly lavish or exuberant. It should have an atmosphere of peace and of rest and be an easy place for meeting and prayer. The chapel should be central to the place (not necessarily geographically) but it is here that the group will meet each day for mass together. The dining room too and social areas should be comfortable, secure, continually stimulating. Living accommodation should be spacious, en-suite. It can be on two or more floors. It should be
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news: wrapping the box
After months of rain and wind the cladding of Long House nears completion. The sweet chestnut rainscreen cladding is fabricated from chestnut copse thinnings from managed woodland in West Sussex finger jointed together .
The suppliers, Inwood, also laminated the bespoke window frame sections from the same timber, the longest being a single 6.3 m piece.
The large low E double glazed units are supplied and installed by Glass UK into the site assembled frames.
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news: three days to build a house
Well almost. The solid timber structure for Long House in Longstock north Hampshire was erected in three days by Eurban having been fabricated by Merk in Germany. This returns to the prefabricate timber systems of the Middle Ages used to build the thatched cottages opposite, though they did not have the benefit of a 60 tonne crane of course.
The largest piece was a roof panel the length of the house measuring 14.5 m x 3.5 m and weighing 2.8 tonnes.
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news: underground rainwater harvesting
As the reality of global warming takes hold the need to build responsive and responsible buildings that minimize the impact on the environment increases. place is leading the way in the Test Valley area with the construction of new private house in Longstock nr. Stockbridge, which has sustainable principles at it very foundations. The three bedroom detached house will have the energy needs of a typical one bedroom flat thought the use of ground source heat pumps and solar collection panels coupled with thermally efficient construction techniques. The building work started in late September 2006 and by mid November 1 km. of underground heat collection pipes, 300 metres of under floor heating pipes along with highly effective sewage treatment plant and an underground rainwater harvesting system (see picture) as well as the house foundations and ground slabs had all been completed.