A step ahead
Published: 04 December, 2008
Vertical circulation has played a huge part in a number of this year's multi-level shopping centre developments. Cabot Circus in Bristol, Liverpool One and Westfield London are among the schemes that have managed to make features out of their stairs, ramps, lifts, escalators and bridges that link one level to the next.
But if one centre sums up how the various methods of circulating from one floor to the next can culminate in an impressive piece of architecture then it's Victoria Square in Belfast. Architects BDP spent a decade working on the scheme from its inception in 1998 (with client Multi Development and the in-house architects T+T Design) to its completion in March 2008. Part of the challenge included planning and designing the building's vertical circulation. But rather than simply inserting escalators, stairs and lifts at the necessary points throughout the mall, BDP took the decision to make a feature out of the various vertical elements, ensuring that Victoria Square is an exciting and spectacular place to shop.
Consulting engineer Faber Maunsell provided the vertical circulation study for BDP, which helped the designers to understand how many lifts and escalators would be needed within the scheme and gave them a general idea of where they would be best placed. This was determined by looking at the number of shops and the number of customers these retailers would generate. "We took that as a guide to how the scheme has turned out," says architect director at BDP Doug Pilkington.
BDP focused the core of its vertical circulation within the iconic dome area of the scheme, where a variety of glass, timber and aluminium materials were used to create a spectacular and functional feature out of the vertical transportation. The most stunning features are the various 'lily pad' platforms at each level of the centre.
These pads, clad in timber and designed to appear as if they are floating, form the links between all the levels from which all the stairs, escalators and lifts extend. The final platform is the only exception as it is set in silver aluminium in order to distinguish it as a viewing platform only. "We wanted it to look like it was right in the sky," explains Pilkington. Customers can reach this platform either via spiral stairs or by a lift.
"The dome becomes a place that's a destination in its own right," he says. "Even though it functions as circulation space, it has extra added value and an extra function is the observation deck. All the other platforms in the dome have a circulation function and it's very much a 3D thing the way you get people up through that space. You can use the lifts, but the escalators are arranged in a way that they pick up a natural movement. As you circulate the dome you can access all the levels in a comfortable manner. It's not hard to work out how to get from one place to another vertically.
"The dome also picks up the circulation from the basement car park directly below and that's another piece of the jigsaw. The car park was deliberately placed below the scheme so it would inject people, via the lifts, into the main space of the scheme at whichever level they needed."
Pilkington points out that there is always a dilemma when it comes to a big space, such as that in the dome. "Stuff it full and it can be too much," he says, but on the same note, he adds that if there's nothing in that space it can be "barren and less interesting". BDP took the decision to focus the vertical circulation in this area rather than intrude on the retail footprint.
"People move through the space and that's a really good experience," says Pilkington. "You're getting all sorts of different views of the centre. Wherever you are there's something different going on. The circulation is there functionally and it also enhances the experience of shopping by using the spectacular setting. It's exciting looking around you from whichever escalator you're using at a given moment on. It's got you from A to B and is making the experience exciting as well."
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=== Clean moves ===
Rosemor International has recently developed two new models for cleaning escalators and travellators following customer feedback on its existing range.
Its new Rotomac 340 has twice as many brushes - 11 in total - which have halved the time it takes to clean an escalator. This model is the only machine available at present in the world designed to deep clean both the vertical and horizontal parts of an escalator step.
The step is cleaned using detergent suitable and safe for all escalators, scrubbed with the rotating brushes and then vacuumed before it is ready for use.
The Rotomac is currently used in a variety of locations including airports, shopping centres, railway stations, the London Underground, department stores and many other businesses worldwide. This year several machines were brought for London Heathrow Airport including the new Terminal 5.
The new Rotofast 540 is ideal for travellator or escalator maintenance - cleaning the horizontal part of the tread in just seconds.
"This machine will clean faster and better than anything else on the market," says Efi Rosen, managing director of Rosemor. "The machine incorporates counter-rotating brushes, which means it can easily clean the whole width of the travellator, quickly and efficiently."
The Rotofast 540 is consists of just one unit instead of the two required previously. The user can leave the machine unattended while it cleans the whole travellator, which is a huge advantage where staff are hard pressed with multiple duties.
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=== Feature presentation ===
Shopping centres are beginning to identify lifts as an ideal place to locate digital screens, as they have their shoppers' full attention.
Bell Systems supplies shopping centres with digital screens with sound, which combined with the audio-visual experience, they say is attention-grabbing, therefore enabling the centre to share information with the viewer.
The Bell Broadcasting Station offers news and entertainment channels, branded with the shopping centre logo, and contains productions tailored specifically to inform visitors about the centre. It also provides a platform for advertising revenue.
Vicarage Field shopping centre in Barking, Essex, has installed eight screens from Bell and has located them in various areas, including the lifts. Marketing manager Natalie Bignall says: "With the sound in the lift everyone looks up and they're completely focused on that. These digital screens work best where there's dwell time. Even if you're on an escalator you're still looking around, so these are dwell times shopping centres can use to their advantage."
Vicarage Field centre manager Simon Green confirms sound is key: "This is the nearest thing we have to our own television station, without the prohibitive costs. It has quickly become 'the face' of the centre and has certainly improved the overall ambience.
"We wanted to improve the visitor experience within the centre and these screens have made a huge difference. The icing on the cake has been the opportunity to allow the suppliers, Bell Systems, to sell external advertising on the screens to help me to cover costs."
