Simon Fraser University, School for the Contemporary Arts, Vancouver BC

situation:

SFU required new teaching and performance facilities in a downtown “Woodward’s”retail building redevelopment.

assessment:

The six-level facility includes two performance theatres, a cinema, teaching studios, sound stage and offices; and required one of the theatres, the cinema and sound stage to be stacked atop of each other. The performance requirements made sound isolation paramount.

solution:

A “room within a room” method was applied: floating concrete slabs for floors, structurally separated inner walls and noise barrier ceilings. The base building and school’s fit-out were contractually separate, so coordination was required to ensure the acoustical designs were met throughout the building.

results:

The building is due to open January 2010.

testimonial:

“SFU Contemporary Arts at Woodward’s will add seven much needed performance and exhibit spaces to Vancouver’s rich cultural mix, and promises to be a magnet for arts enthusiasts across Canada and around the world.”

- SFU President Michael Stevenson