Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
We provided wide-ranging structural engineering advice to the Imperial War Museum for over a decade as it worked to rationalise its building, improve visitor facilities and enable the display of more items from the collections.
The museum occupies a Grade II listed building constructed in 1815 as the Bethlem (‘Beldam’) lunatic asylum. Extensively damaged by bombing during WWII, it was substantially altered during the twentieth century to create a permanent home for the IWM.
We first provided structural advice on a wide range of projects within the main building and also the adjacent All Saints Annexe building. Work included advice on the support of heavy exhibits such as the Iraqi Supergun and parts of the Berlin Wall, as well as floor loading capacities of the existing buildings for storage. We also carried out appraisals for structural repairs to parts of the building and advised on the impact of supporting temporary works off the existing structure, whilst in the southeast extension we provided structural advice on the refurbishment of the third floor Archive Offices.
More recently, we are proud to have been part of the Museum’s masterplan, preparing and revising a comprehensive Conservation Management Plan, providing extensive design and project advice, supporting Lottery applications, and contributing to multiple pre-application negotiations and listed building consent and planning applications - to support the ambitious masterplan to rationalise its Southwark home, creating improved visitor facilities and enabling it display more items from the collections.
In the latest phase of this transformative masterplan, the Imperial War Museum has opened new Second World War and The Holocaust Galleries. The displays cover 3000m2 across two floors, making powerful use of sound and video to tell personal stories from over 80 countries.
Client: Imperial War Museum