MEET THE COLLABORATOR
We are collaborating with the Lendlease, who is currently working with the city council on the Townhall restoration project. They have vast experience in working with historic buildings, as well as architecture and master planning.

The main collaborator with Lendlease will be Tamara Karim who will be providing us with the necessary information regarding the project. She is interested in social value and inclusive growth-related subjects and she is working along with employees of the city council to provide opportunities for Mancunians to explore the history of Albert Square.

“Companies must start justifying their worth to society, with greater emphasis placed on environmental and social impact rather than straight economics." are the words of Dick Dusseldorp, Founder of Lendlease. So joining our group gives you an opportunity to engage with the history of Albert Square and creating an interactive design module to archive it.

SOCIAL VALUES
1.Revive and reintroduce historical artifacts around Manchester Town Hall to the wider community, particularly the younger generations

2.Connecting the community with the ‘story’ of the Manchester Town Hall and Albert Square using a digital platform and bridging this to the physical realm through an on-site installation as well QR code interface, making information accessible for all.

3.Enhancing the role of the square as an important landmark in Manchester as well as an interactive and educational space for the local community and tourists.

4. Preserving and replenishing green spaces in the city of Manchester to provide social spaces for the community

An insightful talk with Tony Ewings, the Project Manager from Stone Edge who is involved in the masonry refurbishment and Lee Bilson, the Heritage Consultant from Recclesia.
They shared their experiences of being involved in the restoration of Manchester Town Hall and they spoke about the craftsmanship required for the project. It was also quite interesting to know about the amount of intricate work of art involved in preserving and restoring the Town Hall.

The hexagonal cells were abstracted from the honeycomb since Worker Bee is a symbol of Manchester. We organised them around the main 5 statues which create windows from the past to the present.
The Hexagon Sheds are movable temporary pavilions (Mobile Urbanism) that can be around the central statue which can be around the central statue can act as a visitor experience centre.
Different zones could be created around every statue linking to the heritage factors of the site.

Locating the viewpoints to see the photographs of the old to connect it with the context and how it looks now. This might interest people in understanding the historical moments which took place in and around the Townhall. This is to create an interactive environment for the display of photographs and QR code

#1The initial concept
Designed by Payam Malakouti,
Sketched by Yousra Ennaanai.

Initially, we began with the idea to have an iconic space in between the square and the Townhall which would represent the people of Manchester. The Bee denotes Mancunian' hard work ethic and the city as a hive of activity. It has also come to represent the sense of unity in our great city. We tried wrapping the Albert Square, with the Honeycomb structure by framing each statue.

The concept #2
Design Team developed the ideas of creating a enjoyable experience for the people of Manchester
sketched by Charlotte Olivia Farrell

By locating the arrival points we managed to develop a trail for the visitor experience centre. We developed a serpentine form for the users to navigate through the Albert square by looking at the exhibits such as the Old & New photos as well as the usage of the QR code. But this design option was quite directional and constructive hence we tried developing this option further.

#3 The design development
DESIGN TEAM OPTION 3
Sketched by Charlotte Olivia Farrell

We tried locating the visitor experience centre behind the Albert statue, we dissected the initial volume to produce it. This turns it into a transitional as well as a congregation point for the visitors.
we designed the honeycomb pathway to navigate through Albert Square and we tried placing the viewpoints for the display of the photographs as well as the QR codes.

#4 The final design option
DESIGN TEAM
Sketched by Yousra Ennaanai.

we dissected the initial volume to produce the visitor experience centre behind the Albert square which eventually turned into an organic form. Underlining the spatial movement we wanted to elevate the user experiences.
While designing we got good exposure to the Rhino skills of one of our teammates. We learned a lot during the process of developing the form and creating interesting spaces.

The Evolution of the Membrane
DESIGN TEAM
Modelled by Payam Malakouti.

Taking into consideration the temporarily of the structure, since most of the year Albert square would be occupied with some activities. We incorporated our initial idea of the honeycomb into this design option.
To break the solidity, we designed a translucent membrane that could glow at night. we wanted to focus on both the night and the day life factor of Albert square.
While designing this, it nearly took three days to come up with the algorithm to attain the desired results. The team further worked on the structural detailing aspect of it.

The final output

Pretty happy with the output we obtained as it catered to all our concepts and ideas. we were able to create an iconic structure that was meant for the people of Manchester. It addressed the Nightlife of Albert square, creating a vibrant environment that could be clubbed with any other events happening in the Square.
The illustration representation the various design elements coming together as a whole.