The Signature Building, Titanic Belfast

Client: Harcourt Construction Ltd

Location: The Signature Building, Titanic Belfast

Sector: Leisure

Service: Air Tightness Consultancy / Air Tightness Testing

Background

Titanic Belfast is a world-class visitor attraction, opened to commemorate the centenary of the sinking of The Titanic. It is housed in the Signature Building, a complex and visually striking £90m structure. The Signature Building has an unusual architectural design both inside and out; externally its four sections each evoke the shape of a ship’s prow. Inside, a variety of spaces support the facility’s attractions, which include nine galleries, many with generous ceiling heights to support full-scale reconstructions, and two floors of conferencing and banqueting facilities. The building provides over 13,000 m2 of floor space in total and also includes a two-storey underground car park.

Project

Stroma was involved in the project throughout its construction, taking a proactive role in the development of the air tightness strategy. Our specialist engineers undertook three separate visual inspections of the site at different stages of the construction. This approach allowed the developer to gain confidence, in the progress of the air barrier at key stages within the build. Where there was a question on the robustness of a detail, it was possible to make checks by means of a sample test of the element in-situ. This process was extended to incorporate the whole envelope of the prestigious build, by inducting a pressure bias and using that to scrutinise the air barrier.

Outcome

Our engineers were able to identify potential areas of ai rleakage and make suggestions for remedial measures, providing timely advice to the Developer in order to ensure that the project was on track to achieve the nical Booklet F-required air permeability rating of 10 m3 /(m2 .hr) @ Pa.