Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/177297
photos: derek lepper Centre for Digital Media by Shannon Smart n Great Northern Way stands an asymmetrical wonder. Built to house students as they create, manipulate and rethink technology, the Centre for Digital Media was designed with innovation in mind. The building is perched on the edge of Vancouver's False Creek Flats. Bordered by Main and Clark streets to the west and east, and Prior Street and Great Northern Way to the north and south, the Flats haven't made headlines for architectural innovation. Historically, the area has been industrial: in the late 1800s, the Flats housed a rail yard and sawmill and, most recently, a portion of the area was owned by Finning International, an industrial distributor. In 2001, Finning set aside 18 acres of Flat land to be shared by the University of British Columbia, Simon Fraser University, BCIT and Emily Carr University. This donated space has become known as the Great Northern Way Campus, which has been rebranded as GNW Trust (GNWT). The Centre for Digital Media (CDM) is the first in a series of planned projects intended to transform the GNWT into a landscape of high-tech learning. The directors at the GNWT challenged the design and construction teams to create "a unique architectural response to the program," a building that would demonstrate via architecture who the users are. Most of the students will be earning their Masters of Digital Media degrees. Therefore, great attention was given to how the space might best keep up with the innovative minds that will populate its interior. According to the GNWT's director of development, Hanson Ng, the development process went smoothly. "All parties involved worked collaboratively to make our vision happen. The representatives from the MDM program were engaged from the beginning," which helped the team ensure the new space would "meet the programming needs for the growth of the program." The City of Vancouver, too, was supportive through the process. Ng also lauds the efforts of the design team, who "worked diligently through the details." The building is a 51,000-square-foot 'flagship statement' that sets the tone for the rest of the new campus or, as Ng, puts it, helps to "catalyze the re-development of the site." Gracefully sloping walls of white metal pay homage to the land's industrial history, while home-grown timber warms up the design while giving a nod to the natural landscape. "The rail yards and industrial character of the neighbourhood provided the O 86/ december 2012 p86-87Centre for Digital Media.indd 86 cue for the metal ribbon and wrap," notes architect Ron Lea of Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership. Lea appreciates the CDM's "simplicity, its boldness and its expression of a limited palette of contrasting materials." Inside, too, are details that hint at the Flats' industrial past: a stairwell constructed of steel mesh connects the school to the residential floors. The building is eye-catching, but the main impetus for the CDM was to create a great school. Robert Horvath, project manager for general contractor VanMar Constructors 1045 Inc., believes it will "provide a useful and comfortable environment for the students to learn and live in," and that the futuristic designs will be inspirational. "The structure," he says, "is a marriage of concrete, steel, and wood frame materials," while the "curved portions provide some interesting design conditions." Making a few assumptions about the interests of the students that will populate the CDM (there's a video game library on campus), it's likely that the futuristic exterior and carefully considered interior designs will be appreciated. In addition to ground-floor classrooms with the latest technological bells and whistles (high-resolution hookups, green screen facilities, private audio recording and editing studios, and flexible learning spaces with moveable, removable and writable walls), there are three floors of studentdesigned apartments. This "completely changes the character of the site," say Ng. He and the rest of the development team believe that the "building creates a distinct social advantage for the students." Unlike commuter students, those attending classes and residing in the CDM can remain "immersed in the learning environment, fostering lasting relationships...that will continue into their professional careers." It's a unique setup that Ng hopes will also "increase the attractiveness" of the MDM program among prospective students. In addition to being a place to learn and to live, certain features of the CDM bring educational functions into harmony with its unique form. The west wall," explains architect Lea, "was programmed for the projection of student projects," constructed from curved, white metal to allow for the best visuals possible. Lea makes it sound easy, but it wasn't. It took a stepped cantilever using both sloped and horizontal engineered wood members, designed by structural engineer John Pao to achieve the wooden frame on the western sloped wall. Similar ingenuity was required to create consistently aligned panels over the exterior of the structure, given the CDM's curves, and connecting the wood siding to the metal sections and installing the highly customized clear cedar panels were also intricate operations. Lighting, too, presented an opportunity for thinking creatively. Darcy Metz of Vancouver's Applied Engineering Solutions Ltd. recounts the complexity of incorporating the lighting into architecture he calls "original." It was a challenge, he says, "to integrate the lighting into the siding; into all the reveals and pockets that are part of the design." Working with familiar materials but in an original way, says Metz, made the project interesting. The CDM is targeting LEED Gold certification, an accreditation that matters to everyone involved. Ron Lea and the other architects of the Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership use the environmental principles behind LEED with "every project they pursue." VanMar Constructors 1045 Inc., too, used LEED as a guideline, and "used materials that are more environmentally friendly, reduce waste disposal in the environment, and help conserve natural water resources." Hanson Ng and the GNWT team consider sustainable development a priority, and with this project, "looked for ways to push the envelope" in increasing sustainability. ■ LOCATION 685 Great Northern Way Vancouver, B.C. OWNER GNW Trust GENERAL CONTRACTOR VanMar Constructors 1045 Inc. ARCHITECT Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership STRUCTURAL CONSULTANT Bogdonov Pao & Associates MECHANICAL CONSULTANT Sterling, Cooper & Associates ELECTRICAL CONSULTANT Applied Engineering Solutions Ltd. BUILDING ENVELOPE CONSULTANT exp Services Inc. LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT Perry + Associates TOTAL AREA 51,000 square feet TOTAL CONSTRUCTION COST Undisclosed Centre for Digital Media 11/16/12 3:49 PM