David Narro Associates Ltd

Practice Statement

david narro associates was established with the aim of providing a high quality service from a committed and experienced staff. Motivation and a desire to extend the experience of the practice has led to expertise in such varied fields as conservation of ancient monuments, commercial and industrial projects, housing, hotels and leisure and the public sector. It is a policy of the practice to employ only highly qualified personnel, which ensures that senior members of staff serve clients with a wealth of experience. Commissions to date have ranged from structural surveys of domestic and commercial properties to multi million pound commercial and housing developments, art centres and healthcare facilities. Clients cover an equally broad spectrum, from personal clients to government agencies including commercial and industrial companies.The skills of the individual engineers are shown to their best advantage when designing innovative solutions to engineering problems. The challenges posed by old buildings requiring sensitive non-invasive strengthening or alteration and by modern buildings requiring architectural engineering are met with a flexible and inventive attitude to solutions.Positive relationships with both clients and fellow professionals are vital to the successful outcome of any project and it is the policy of the practice to concentrate on maintaining these at the highest level. The initial discussions with the project design team can be the most fruitful for all parties concerned and it is essential that experienced senior personnel acting with the authority of the practice are available at that time. Ownership of a project by an individual engineer is a key policy of the practice. This encourages involvement and commitment leading to greater satisfaction and a better outcome for the Client.All Directors and Associate of the Company are very interested in modern design and sustainability issues.We are striving to gain further experience of sustainable materials and construction techniques. As a company it is our intention to consider the specification of all materials and where possible to ensure that they comply with current thinking on embodied energy and sustainability.Cement production, for example, has high embodied energy and is a major producer of CO2. The choice of timber, insulation and non-fired bricks all allow a low embodied energy content in a building.Where appropriate specifications would include detailed examples of previous schemes where techniques, materials and 'educated' builders have been adopted and perhaps nominate specialist suppliers or builders. These may include Errol Brick Co. for non-fired bricks, Erisco Bauder for green roof systems, Excel Industries for cellulose fibre insulation, Cetco Europe for clay tanking and lime mortars.'David Narro Associates provides a professional and friendly service supported by experience, expertise and the latest technology. The staff are highly qualified, motivated and look on each new project with enthusiasm.

Recent Projects

We were pleased to see the official opening of one of our larger projects - 'The Bridge' in Easterhouse, with Gareth Hoskins Architects - and to have it short-listed for the Best Building in Scotland Awards. This project combined with the refurbishment of the adjacent swimming pool had many challenges but the finished product is proof that effort pays off. We also saw the opening of one of our smallest but nonetheless interesting projects - 'The Sea Beams'- part of Dysart Artworks by Donald Urquhart.

Our largest project in the office - the alterations and refurbishment of the Royal Museum Edinburgh, construction value £27.5m, with Gareth Hoskins Architects - has really taken off this year and is keeping a small but dedicated team busy. There is also an associated building in Granton, which is a reasonably sized project in its own right.

Another of the projects we are doing with Gareth's team is the Culloden Battlefield Memorial Project (£5.5m). The site works for this visitor centre have now commenced just in time for the best of Scottish weather.

Awards

In this year's MRUK survey on construction professionals, published in the January 2008 edition of Prospect Magazine, David Narro Associates were Runners Up in the Best Structural Engineers category. The article says:

'Coming hot on the heels of Arup was David Narro, who has always been respected by architects in Scotland. There was a time when talented young architects would complain that Richard Murphy was hogging Narro, denying others the chance to work with a talented engineer. Things have moved on and Narro has been focusing his attention on extending his client base. His practice was 20 this year, it has 18 staff and has recently extended its office. The practice has been doing a lot of work with Gareth Hoskins, on the Royal Museum in Edinburgh, on the Culloden project and on the bridge at Easterhouse. It is also involved in a few projects with Sutherland Hussey and Simpson and Brown. Narro is also working with artists such as Jeremy Cunningham and Donald Urquart on public art works. Narro himself has joined A+DS as an enabler. He enjoys working closely with architects and really appreciates the strong design intentions of those his practice works with'.

David Narro Associates are delighted with this result, which reflects how well the company is thought of by Architects throughout Scotland. For the full article on MRUK results, visit www.architecturescotland.co.uk.

Scotland's New Buildings

Culloden Battlefield Memorial Centre

Dysart Artworks

Garden Room Extension

Gordon Veterinary Clinic

Music Department, Belhaven Hill School

STEWART’S MELVILLE COLLEGE PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE

The Bridge Arts Centre

The Coal Bunker

Tigh na Dobhran

Two new houses on Spylaw Bank Road and Spylaw Avenue