Project case study
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre
Waterproofing design consultant to Southbank Centre, reviewing and developing the waterproofing design philosophy for the L02 podium at the Royal Festival Hall.
The Royal Festival Hall is one of the most recognisable post-war buildings in the country, and its L02 podium has to perform as both public realm and roof. CLW was commissioned by Southbank Centre as the waterproofing design consultant to review and develop a waterproofing design philosophy for the podium, working with Allies and Morrison as architect, Price & Myers as engineer and Avison Young as project manager.
The project involves replacement of the existing waterproofing system across the podium, addressing falls, drainage, movement joints and the heritage context. Podium replacement on a building of this significance is constrained at every turn, the falls and drainage have to be corrected within what the existing structure and the listed fabric will allow, and the movement joints have to be carried through the new system rather than designed around.
CLW worked closely with Allies and Morrison, Price & Myers and the wider design team to provide a comprehensive and durable waterproofing strategy, one written to outlast the next maintenance cycle rather than simply patch the current one.
Working on a comparable scheme?
Independent waterproofing design from RIBA Stage 2 through construction monitoring. Defensible, document-led, contractor-agnostic.