The design of a proposed new Training Facility, aimed at Underground and Open Cast Miners was a project that grew in leaps and bounds as each Section Head added to the project’s requirements. The idea was to establish a centralized training facility for hazard identification, rock mechanics demonstrations, VOHE demonstrations, and Open Cast training. The facility would also simulate a roof fall and a life-like rescue drill complete with smoke simulation. The client aimed to include real machinery from existing mines, which would allow proximity detection training.
The design approach was to create a ‘section’ of an underground mine, based on the bord and pillar mining methodology. This created pillars (which became rooms housing different functions) and roads between the pillars, which allowed for a multitude of opportunities with the hazard identification training. The walls, floors and roof will represent actual coal faces, including the circular and scooped patterns created by the continuous miner.
The exterior of the building lent itself to many opportunities. As it was a flat, roughly square building, the idea was to create a roof top garden space which could be used for corporate events and staff rejuvenation. Environmentally, this would be the ideal solution as the green space would replace the buildings footprint on the ground, and would create habitats for organisms whilst cleaning the air and assisting with rainwater management.
The entrance of the building was treated with gabion baskets that will be filled with large pieces of slate (representing coal). The gravel pathway gives one the same feeling as when one walks underground. The gabion frames will have steel letters echoing the clients core values. The staircase will be housed in a steel framed ‘cage-like’ structure which represents the lift shaft on a mine.
With a simple design and attention to detail, this building has the potential to provide an intensive training environment that will give the trainees a very real understanding of the environment that they will one day experience.
