School of Architecture and the Built Environment breathes new life into former factory

Paying homage to the city’s industrial heritage, Associated Architects, which designed the multi-million-pound complex, chose Solus’ concrete-effect Hampstead tiles to adorn the atrium floor. The product’s worn and rugged aesthetics act as a subtle reference to a bygone era, reflecting the rich ancestry of the SoABE’s location. 

Laid in a large format, measuring 750x1500mm, their lightly clouded dove chroma creates a feeling of spaciousness, further enhanced by the stunning sawtooth roof which swathes the area in natural light and echoes the composition of the surviving brewery buildings.

A stunning open staircase, also featuring the hardwearing Hampstead tiles, provides an eye-catching focal point at the heart of the facility, and leads to the first floor, where undergraduates receive professional and industry-led training. Forward-thinking in its design, future flexibility is possible thanks to the use of temporary partitions which create the studio space. 

The interior’s stylish aesthetics extend to the washrooms on both levels, where Solus’ Sumac tiles have been applied to the floors and its Abyss tiles bedeck the walls. The limestoneeffect products, featuring shades of dusky and lead grey respectively, were both sourced from the ever-popular Travertine 1 range, their matt and bocciardato (bushhammered) finishes perfectly complementing one another. 

In the canteen, Solus’ delicate diamond shaped Snowtop tiles, selected from the Dewdrop range, create intriguing cuboid patterns on the walls behind the servery, their glossy finish providing a simple yet appealing aesthetic.