CONCRETE & STONEWORK
MULTIFUNCTIONAL
PAVING
PHOTOS – CHRIS HODSON
Careful design of the spaces
around buildings is as important
as the buildings themselves with
multifunctional paving that is both
practical and attractive, argues the
trade association Interpave.
Designers face a wide range
of demands for hard surfaces
serving housing developments.
Multifunctionality is key and care is
needed to anticipate and control the
size and frequency of vehicles using
various areas.
For example, new Building
Regulations Approved Documents B
(for England and taking effect at the
end of August) include requirements
for fire and rescue vehicle access.
Here, distances from buildings, as
well as width, height and turning
circles, are tabulated. The access
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paving must be designed to support
these heavy vehicles (for example,
12.5 tonnes including high-reach
appliances), albeit only on an
occasional basis. Of course, other
heavy vehicles for refuse/recycling
collection or furniture removal will
be more frequent visitors.
Practical and Aesthetic
Obviously, heavier-duty paving
design than just for pedestrians will
be needed for these vehicles. But
that doesn’t mean that housing and
other developments have to look
like industrial yards with a sea of
asphalt. Concrete block paving –
which for decades has been used
for the most demanding heavy-duty
applications including container
terminals – is uniquely placed to
satisfy both practical and aesthetic
demands. Here, distinct, modular
units and designed variations in
colour, texture and shape break
up areas giving visual interest and
a human scale not possible with
formless materials.
In recent years, Interpave’s
manufacturer members have
transformed this concept, moving
away from the simple, regular
patterns and colours of the 1970s
and 1980s. Today, precast concrete
paving offers an extensive palette of
styles, shapes, colours and textures –
whatever the loading and trafficking
requirements – enabling designers
to create places for people. The
challenge for designers is to use the
flexibility of precast concrete paving
to integrate the varied performance
demands of different areas within
an overall, coherent design.
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