FRIDAY 22/03/2013 WWW.BDONLINE.CO.UK15FRIDAY 22/03/2013

WWW.BDONLINE.CO.UK TECHNICAL ROOFING14

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PROJECT ➜

FloorCarpetEpoxy paintLevelling screedScreedThermal insulationWaterproof membraneConcrete slab

Suspended ceiling

RoofGeotextile membraneRainwater outletSoil and plantingDrainage panels50mm Roofmate insulation

Waterproof membraneAsphalt layerConcrete screedConcrete slab80mm thermal insulation

ArchitectSouto de Moura Arquitectos /SumProjectLocationAmbassadeur Baertlaan 5Kortrijk, BelgiumCompleted2011

By Hugh Strange

Kortrijk’s Uitzicht crematorium,sited in open landscape outsidethe Belgian town, was won incompetition as part of the Flemishgovernment architect’s successfulOpen Call scheme. The brief forwinning architect Eduardo Soutode Moura, in association with local

practice SumProject, was for arural crematorium building inte-grated with a burial site.

The scheme incorporates largeand small congregation spacesand family rooms, together withback-of-house facilities includingoffices and the furnaces plus associated technical rooms fundamental to the working ofthe crematorium.

Souto de Moura’s aim for theproject was to provide spaces for reflection without religious associations, to create a quietlydignified building that was neitherordinary nor mysterious.

The fundamental organisa-tional principle was to divide the

building between inward and out-ward-looking spaces. A series ofsparsely landscaped courtyards of various sizes, together with afamily of rooflights, create a pri-vate world for personal reflection.

These elements allowed variousdaylighting configurations todefine the interiors and room-likecourtyards. In contrast, a series oflarge windows open various publicrooms out to the countrysidewhere, in Souto de Moura’s words,“life is situated”.

The site is next to a large road,stepping down to a broad valley.The single-storey building is sitedat the lower level and is accessedby ramp from the street above.

Constructive section

The ramp, together with thebuilding exterior throughout, isconstructed from in-situ cast con-crete formed with vertical boardmarking. At key moments in thebuilding’s composition the finish isaltered — the point of departurefrom the street down into thebuilding, for instance, is discreetly

signified by a change to a smoothconcrete finish.

The step in the site’s sectionmeans the building protrudes only1m above the street level and vistasare maintained over the roof to thelandscape beyond. The resultingview from the street outwards isthat of a long and low concrete

wall, dramatically punctuated onlyby the sculpted form of the furnacechimney.

The roof is planted with plaingrass, the substantial weight of thesoil carried by a 400m concreteslab that is formed continuouslywith the external walls. The sim-plicity of the green roof plantingmatches the fields beyond, main-taining the idea of a recessivebuilding, quietly nestled into thetopography of the valley, that ispart of the broader landscape.

PROJECT TEAMArchitects Souto de Moura Arquitectos and SumProjectClient Psilon StructuresAfaconsult and SumProjectElectricity & hydraulicIngeniumOven installation Soresma

Site plan

Rooflight over the lectern in one of the congregation spaces.

Souto de Moura’s conceptual sketch of the building by the road.

The building’s low profileenables it to become partof the rural landscape.

The 400mconcrete roof is planted withplain grass.Kortrijk Crematorium

ParapetZinc flashingPrecast concreteLevelling mortarSoil for plantingWaterproof membrane50mm RoofmateinsulationGeotextile membraneConcrete wallLevelling screed

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