5 points of a Newtecnic architecture

1. An architecture of context – use of below ground space to anchor the building structure and environment into the surrounding infrastructure. Context is created by embedding the building into the site – as well as accommodating its massing and forms with that of its neighbours.

2. An architecture of spatial arrangement that reflects the processes within the building, but flexible in responding to change. An expression of processes of contemporary work and cultural patterns in the spatial arrangements.

3. An architecture of envelopes that are independent of spatial arrangement, not an expression of a specific spatial arrangement as would be viewed in section. Internal arrangements and envelope are performing different tasks – the facades are not treated as a map of the interior, but instead complementing the interior.

4. An architecture of a visual layering of both floors and walls, cut away to create links between floors and a sense of the ‘whole’ experienced from the interior rather than the exterior. The exterior is viewed by the passer-by, and belongs to the experience of the city dweller, worker or visitor.

5. An architecture of landscape. Nature is introduced into every project – as terraces or interior landscaped spaces; both create connections between space used in common and space which is programmed for specific uses.

Interdisciplinary design

Theoretical approach, technical authority; new knowledge generated by the company is shared in the Modern Construction series of university textbooks, papers and technical notes.

Research and development; providing a more technically advanced solution than would otherwise be possible.

Preparation for local fabrication and reduction of environmental impact; allows high performance, technically advanced buildings, with design flair, at a regular budget.

Comprehensive scope; from brief to tender stage; frequently novated for shop drawings. The approach adopted by Newtecnic suits near-future architectural and engineering design of complex forms.

Design development; architectural and engineering design activities are supported by physical modelling and prototyping, with both established and new techniques of fabrication.

1. 25 years’ experience as multidisciplinary engineers and designers

The firm has 25 years’ experience as multidisciplinary engineers and designers on high-profile, large-scale projects around the world, following the founders’ experience of 10 years each in senior roles in world-leading architecture practices in Paris. The firm has been ranked in third place in the NCE list of Top 100 companies in this field.

2. Combining architectural arrangement of spaces and engineering of built form

The method used by Newtecnic is the combination of principles of architectural arrangement of spaces and the engineering of their built form, in equal measure, as set out at Modern Construction Online.

3. Real-time solutions via interaction with project stakeholders at design workshops

Newtecnic conduct renowned design workshops, providing solutions in real-time through interaction with project stakeholders. Newtecnic bring in-house expertise to all workshops, combining technical authority, built project experience, and Newtecnic’s own library of typologies, technologies and testing. In 2020, Newtecnic were shortlisted for the NCE Awards’ Leader in Collaboration.

4. Near-future design language

The visually striking design language is described in its highly detailed outputs of drawings and specifications, serving as a user manual for project stakeholders.

5. Technical authority

Technical authority comes from the Modern Construction series of textbooks written by Newtecnic and published by leading publisher Birkhauser. The books are used in the architecture and engineering departments of most universities around the world.

6. Commitment to the evolving art of engineered construction

The firm demonstrated commitment to the evolving art of engineered construction through publication of its articles and papers in the technical press, authored by Newtecnic. The social value of the significance of the art of construction is central to the firm’s method of working.

1. At the concept design stage, Newtecnic optimises the palette of materials in order to create an elegance of appearance informed by considerations of weathering from the effects of rain and sun. Material selection can help to avoid pattern staining on the facades, allowing them to age gracefully rather than rely on an intense maintenance schedule. The choice of materials is usually reviewed from one of our own reference books used in the industry, the Modern Construction Handbook, which is in its sixth edition and is used in architecture schools and university engineering departments around the world. This reference, along with others in our Modern Construction Series published by Birkhauser, allows Newtecnic to inform the choice of materials, not just in terms of sizes and thicknesses available, but also how the proposed materials weather together.

 2. At this stage Newtecnic produces reports on benefits that can be brought by minor changes to the build-up of assemblies and systems.

 3. At the design development stage, cleaning and maintenance systems are developed from proposals already made by Newtecnic at the concept design stage. The task is focussed on how the completed project can be cleaned economically, as the system can add significant cost if not addressed at this stage. We develop as economic and as visually minimal an intervention as possible.

The specific approach to design at Newtecnic is to understand and design all aspects of a building as a single ‘organism’ rather than as separate, loosely connected parts. The design process starts with loose connections, but the design evolves into a single unified ‘organism’, creating a design which is more efficient, cheaper, more useful and better looking than buildings which are designed as a juxtaposition of systems. This aim is achieved by designing each component as internal spaces (from a brief or program); walls, roofs, structure, environmental controls and equipment. When this assembly is loosely fit together, we look for connections between them by looking for efficiencies of combining strategies, functions or assemblies that work well together. The design then starts to evolve of its own accord, avoiding the visual randomness associated with some aspects of contemporary design.

In short, we look at the ‘behaviour’ of the strategies and how their behaviours can work in harmony or with a natural efficiency. An example is where parts fit together almost ‘naturally’ rather than being forced together by the designer’s will rather than coming together by applying the principles of craft: an efficiency resulting in an elegance, an economy and a certain ease of use. These traditional architectural principles of firmness, commodity and delight are based in the craft of building, without the aid of applied decoration. Applied decoration gives a deliberately false impression of a building’s form in relation to its purpose, functions or use. Newtecnic is mindful that buildings are a ‘sketch’ or approximation of some greater intention; their designs should point to what is missing in the design – what would be there if more advanced technologies were available. Newtecnic designs aim to use the minimum amount of material or the minimum number of components in order to achieve their objective of being as useful as possible to the user of the building.

The characteristic non-rectilinear forms within a Newtecnic design, enables internal circulation routes to allow spaces to be experienced as forms that are oriented to the field of view. Spaces are arranged for the viewer to experience: the user is the focus of parts of the building, rather than being the passive viewer of a building form that makes no reference to the user. This experience contrasts with walking through, or under, a large static object that is not concerned with how the form or space is perceived.

Newtecnic books are available for reference at Modern Construction Online.