The Boat House at Ripple Retreat

Ripple Retreat is a holiday home for families of young cancer patients in Scotland, located on the banks of Loch Venachar. A labour of love by Edinburgh-based charity It’s Good 2 Give, run by Lynne and Ian McNicoll, Ripple Retreat offers families a place they can be together in a calm, beautiful setting at no cost to them.

A LABOUR OF LOVE COLLABORATION

Howick client Newton Steel Framing, Scotland’s only NHBC approved steel frame company, was approached by project architects Kettle Collective to assist in the realisation of the site’s Boat House element. Ripple Retreat boasts stunning architecture which blends seamlessly with its wild environment, and Newton collaborated closely with Kettle Collective from the early design stages.

The Boat House building is of a form not traditionally the domain of light steel frame, incorporating sharply raking walls, none of which run parallel, to frame a large picture window. Newton and Kettle Collective worked together to address the challenges of manufacturing a non-orthogonal building cost-efficiently, accurately, quickly, and with virtually no waste – all benefits of utilising light steel frame, and Howick machinery, in construction.

"The productivity of our Howick machinery means we can undertake any scope of project, from one-off bespoke structures through to much larger projects. All delivered in short timescales, with ease of assembly and cost efficiency. This means we can assist our customers in meeting their aspirations."   Newton Steel Framing Ltd.

FAST, EFFECTIVE & DESIGNED TO LAST

A 3D model of the steel frame was produced, then pre-panellised steel frames were manufactured using the FRAMA™ 5600. These were delivered to site and erected in just one day, with no on-site cutting, measuring or adjustments required during the build.

Steel framing from Howick’s state of the art machinery is light, strong, and cost effective, making the process from design to end result easy.The versatility of design application is almost limitless. Lighter than wood, more pliable and able to be manipulated into almost any form, steel framing is leading the way in durable, affordable, and sustainably sound building practices.

Thanks to the exceptional quality of the steel framing produced by Howick’s FRAMA™ 5600, the team successfully delivered their vision, and the Newton team are delighted that Kettle Collective Architects has been shortlisted for this year’s Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) Awards 2018 for the Ripple Retreat.

“We believe the blend of proven machinery, technology and skills signal the future of the construction industry as we head toward ‘Industry 4.0’. We are meeting challenges of off-site construction, as well as design for manufacture and assembly.”  Newton Steel Framing Ltd.

Click here to read moreabout the Howick FRAMA 5600 used in this project