Connell Mott MacDonald along with architects, Foster and Partners and Gateshead Council were recognised for their role in the design of the Sage Gateshead when representatives collected the Best Local Authority Building award at the British Construction Industry Awards in London, UK. Since its official opening in December 2004, the Sage Gateshead has become a landmark on Tyneside and an inspirational home for music. As principal engineering consultant, Connell Mott MacDonald was responsible for civil, structural and building services design of the GBP 70 million iconic brown-field development project. Connell Mott MacDonald worked closely with architects Foster and Partners to create this building, which features a scheme of three halls with excellent sound reinforcement and recording systems, as well as performance lighting, and a 25-room music education centre running beneath, all enclosed in a single space by a stainless steel shell. Extensive use was made of a highly sculptured reinforced concrete frame in the construction, providing sound insulation and attenuation. Hidden underneath the architectural roof shell is a complex interface between the concrete shells of the three halls and roof steelwork.
