The new library at Queen’s University, Belfast, was among the examples of the economic revival of Belfast, Northern Ireland, according to an article which appeared today in Architecture Week.

With design techniques that exceed code requirements, the 190,000 s.f. project is expected to meet the stringent standards of the UK’s Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM).

Instead of a mechanical system, its natural ventilation system will reduce energy costs by fifty percent. The library’s sustainable elements also include automatically operated windows, atria, roof venting, and a night cooling strategy that utilizes exposed concrete structural slabs. Ground source heat pumps, with a raised floor system, efficiently deliver low temperature heat. ...[more]

Shepley Bulfinch was presented with the Palladio Award on March 7 at the annual Traditional Building Conference in Boston. The award was presented for the Paul Barret, Jr, Library at Rhodes College in Memphis, which Shepley Bulfinch designed in association with the Virginia firm of Hanbury Evans Wright and Vlattas.

The project was one of ten recognized in the sixth annual Palladio Awards competition for outstanding work in traditional design. It will be featured in the June 2007 issue of Traditional Building magazine.

Design Principal Ralph Jackson accepted the award on behalf of Shepley Bulfinch from Traditional Building publisher Peter Miller. The design team also included James Hunnewell, AIA, Principal ...[more]

Boston, MA – Shepley Bulfinch has received the prestigious Palladio Award for the Paul Barret, Jr, Library at Rhodes College in Memphis, which it designed in association with the Norfolk, Virginia, firm of Hanbury Evans Wright and Vlattas.

The project was one of ten recognized in the sixth annual Palladio Awards competition for outstanding work in traditional design.

The Shepley Bulfinch design team includes James Hunnewell, AIA, Principal in Charge; Ralph Jackson, FAIA, Principal for Design; Kevin Triplett, AIA, Project Designer; and Joseph Bille, Interior Designer.

The award will be presented at a ceremony at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston on Wednesday, March 7, as part of the Traditional Building Conference. ...[more]

The Howe Library in Hanover, New Hampshire, was one of three singled out for special mention in the February 1 issue of the Library Journal feature on “Best Small Libraries in America”. The winning entry was the Grand County Public Library in Moab, Utah.

The 18,700 s.f. Howe Library, which was originally designed by Shepley Bulfinch in 1974, was substantially renovated and expanded by the firm to accommodate the growing Hanover community and its changing needs. The design includes space for library and community activities, and features an expanded children’s room, a young adult room, and a reading loft.

Janette Blackburn and Carole Wedge

This article appeared in the November 2005 issue of Information Outlook.

Design as Catalyst: Fostering Collaboration and Commuinity in Special Libraries

The Library as Place

Geoffrey Freeman