
Case Study / Waterproofing
Damien Hirsts Studio, London
Waterproofing Pitched Roof

Damien Hirst’s gallery on Newport Street, London was once a terrace of industrial buildings. The footprint comprises the whole length of the street, with three existing listed buildings flanked by new builds at either end.
The redevelopment of the site repurposed the existing buildings into a new and exciting public space, featuring six large galleries across two floors, a restaurant and offices.
MacLennan were contacted by Main Contractor Walter Lilly & Co Ltd to work with the Architect Caruso St John and to provide a robust, seamless waterproofing pitched roof system that could be applied over convoluted shapes on timber.
All stake holders required that the system was tested before application as the contents of the gallery are very valuable. It was highly important that the waterproofing would not fail, so a complete mock-up of the studio roof was built at the VINCI Technology Centre.
The centre combines world leading laboratory testing with expertise in sustainability and a complete understanding of structures.
MacLennan technicians were tasked to spray apply Polyprufe to the mock-up roof and thoroughly tested with water, loads and movement. The system was proven and accredited by Vinci as suitable.



Method
The surface of the roof was thoroughly and expertly prepared by our qualified technicians, joints were taped with a heat tolerant de-bonding tape and the surface of the plywood was sealed with our Polyprufe Primer.
The roof was going to have reflective rain screens fitted on hundreds of brackets which had to be incorporated within the waterproofing.
After preparing the surface the Maclennan technicians were able to spray the roof with Maclennan Polyprufe Waterproofing Pitched Roof system. The Polyprufe coating was seamless, fully bonded and impact and abrasion resistant but best of all, it is dry in seconds.
Result
By using MacLennan as the waterproofing specialist for the project, the client ensured a watertight roof.
We also provide insurance backed guarantees for our work, which gave the client long term peace of mind.
The work was very time sensitive and MacLennan agreed to a very tight programme, and delivered the project on time.
History
Damien Hirst opened his Newport Street Studio in Lambeth in London in 2015. It was developed over a period of three years and it was Damien Hirst’s long term ambition to build a museum to share his collection with the public. His love of curating, which dates back to the beginning of his artistic career and the organisation of group shows such as ‘Freeze’ (1988) and ‘Modern Medicine’ (1990).
The exhibitions presented at Newport Street vary between single artist and group shows, Free entry for all exhibitions: Tuesday – Sunday 10am – 6pm.
visit http://www.newportstreetgallery.com/ for more information.
