Saunders Boston was appointed by the University of Exeter to design a new building for the Centre for Resilience Environment, Water and Waste (CREWW), which was established to undertake research into environmental challenges.
The design consists of a 3-storey structure comprising, laboratories, workshops and offices. The ambitious environmental objectives of the design empathises with the Institute’s ethos and are central to its inspiration. The downhill ‘cascade’ of the lightweight cladding, as the building steps down the sloping site, is intended to conceptualise the importance of water flowing over the earth. The circular windows reflect rising air bubbles emanating from cascading water.