The ‘Ark’ is one of the first purpose built collection stores in the world to be designed to stringent environmental specifications using passive design techniques.  The innovative low environmental impact two storey building is super-insulated, air tight, with high levels of thermal mass internally which enables the building to retain an inter-seasonal balanced environment without the need for air-conditioning.

The design has saved Exeter City Council £350,000 of capital funding for this project by eliminating the need for air-conditioning equipment as well as the estimated saving in the region of £30,000 per annum in running costs when compared to a standard new-build collection store.

The ‘Ark’ demonstrates that designing environmentally responsibly can be less expensive than traditional methods and that innovative design pays.

The ARK Collection store was ready for the decanting of the collections from the museum to enable the refurbishment of the museum.  It has attracted a lot of attention throughout the world, with world specialists having visited the site and the designers.  Experts have hailed the design for the ‘Ark’ as being ‘the best in the world’.

The way has been pioneered, by Exeter City Council, to show other museums the way forward for a low carbon solution to museum collection store design. 

Client:            Exeter City Council

Value:            £2m

Completed:    November 2007

Gale & Snowden Architects provide an international design Consultancy service for museum collection stores, advising museums and archive facilities on low environmental impact and cost effective design solutions for both new build and refurbishment projects.