EDITOR ’ S CHOICE
Field House terrace
FIELD HOUSE
SCHÖCK THERMAL BRIDGING SOLUTIONS FOR ‘ 21ST CENTURY COUNTRY HOUSE ’
Field House is a substantial and stunning new private home set in the Cotswolds The client brief was for a ‘ modern country house ’ and the scheme offers a 21st century vision of a traditional country house and its landscape . The avoidance of thermal bridging at various points in the design detailing was extremely important and the Schöck Isokorb , along with the new Schöck Sconnex product , are incorporated to provide the necessary insulation solutions .
The Field House scheme is located on grassland used for animal stabling and creates a unique , site specific dwelling . Special consent was sought through the National Planning Policy Framework , which allows certain new homes to be built in the countryside and , as in this case , Areas of Outstanding National Beauty . Historically country houses tended to impose themselves on the landscape , but Field House is sensitively designed , becoming part of the landscape , rather than an imposition on it . In addition to integrating with the landscaping , other traditional themes that have been reinterpreted as part of the modern design proposals are the arrival forecourt ; the gate house ; the principal courtyard and the stepped garden terraces . Also , what in an earlier century would have been gardens or an idealised landscape , the design here forms a real environment providing habitats for wildlife , especially endangered species , to flourish . The main living space of the house contains a feature rammed earth wall that
A graphic of the Sconnex type W in position
supports the concrete roof terrace structure above . The external walls of the house are constructed from rammed concrete , a dry concrete mix that is compacted between shutters . Sustainability was important and the engineers worked closely with the architect to reduce the embodied carbon in the house by refining the carbon heavy parts of the structure . For example by adding in an additional column to reduce the floor slab thickness by 100mm ; and specifying a concrete mix that reduced the embodied carbon .
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