The Vickers Building sheffield скачать в хорошем качестве

The Vickers Building sheffield

The Vickers Building, Brightside Lane grade II listed building This building was completed in 1907 as the Head Office for the Vickers company. It was subsequently occupied by English Steel, British Steel and Sheffield Forgemasters. Steel works offices and workshops, including living accommodation for the Vickers family and their staff in the central block. Central office building 1906, by AF Watson for Vickers, Son & Co. Adjoining ranges 1911 for Vickers, Son & Maxim / Vickers Ltd. Steel frame with red brick cladding and ashlar dressings, with slate roof and various chimneys. EXTERIOR: main range, to right, 4 storeys plus basement; 28 window range. To left, lower 3 storey block; 19 window range. To left again, 2 storey gabled block; 3 window range. Ashlar plinth, moulded eaves cornice, parapet with pilasters and stone coping, concrete balconies with steel railings to 3 upper floors. Main block has a near symmetrical facade of 1:6:1:4:3:4:1:7:1 windows, the single bays and 3 central bays emphasized, the 3 right hand bays blind. 6-pane windows, on ground floor with quoined jambs, on first and second floors with eared brick architraves and sillbands, on third floor with lintel band. Basement has segment-headed barred windows with stepped keystones. End bays have 3-light upper windows with stone architraves, those to first floor segment-headed. Bays 9 and 21 have segment-headed keyed ground floor windows. Above them, 2 storey canted stone oriels. On third floor, corniced 3-light segment-headed windows flanked by pilasters carrying open pediments containing cartouches. 3 bay centre has polished stone ground floor with recessed round-arched doorway with fanlight flanked by Tuscan columns carrying cornice,and beyond, single side lights. Above, 2 storey canted stone oriel flanked by windows with eared architraves separated by rock-faced and rusticated pilasters. On third floor, windows with stone architraves set in tetrastyle in antis colonnade with dentilled pediment containing oculus. Above again, square ashlar turret with round arches and angle pilasters, topped with lead cupola. To right, ridge louvre with pyramidal lead cap and finial. Range to left, brick with stone dressings, has plinth, pilasters, cogged eaves band and coped parapet. Cast steel lintels to lower floors with keystones embossed "VSM" (Vickers, Son & Maxim) to right, and "V" (Vickers) to left, reflecting a change in the company's title which took place during construction. Lower floors have steel multi-pane windows except for the first floor right bay, which has two 6-pane sashes. Second floor has paired margin light sashes in each bay, the pair to right blocked. INTERIOR contains reinforced concrete floors and innovative heating and air conditioning systems. These include tile-lined air ducts and "vacuum steam" heating, and a ducted vacuum cleaning system with outlets throughout the building. Walls are largely clad in polished marble and terrazzo. Boardroom has green and grey marble walls and fireplace, and mahogany woodwork. Marble lined first floor corridor has arches at intervals, terrazzo floor and bronze-finished 3-light chandeliers. Second floor landing has marble clad triple arcade, with terrazzo stair and landing and marble clad balustrade and capping. Lift enclosure mainly concealed, but Art Nouveau style metal screen is visible on first floor landing. Office interiors have moveable partition walls. HISTORICAL NOTE: this building is important not only for its architectural quality and innovative use of materials, but for its historical association with the important Vickers firm and the British armaments industry of World Wars I and II. AF Watson, c1857-1932, was an assistant to Charles Hadfield of Sheffield, and was later in partnership with Edward Holmes, with whom he designed a number of board schools. He later designed a number of company offices and banks.