Case Study - Shed 25

Client - Chris van der Kuyl and Paddy Burns / 4J Studios
Architect - Nicholl Russell Studios
Area - 1,200 sq m
Completion - 2017

Just along the docks from the new V&A Dundee building site, Shed 25 marks the transformation of the last significant industrial buildings from Dundee’s dockside past, in line with the City Council’s £1bn waterfront regeneration plan. Bought by Dundee’s own leading tech design entrepreneurs Chris van der Kuyl and Paddy Burns, the two transit sheds are currently being transformed into a 2,100 sq m mixed-use space, providing a new base for the pair’s 4J Studios’ gaming and software development company (one of Scotland’s most successful), along with 10 other businesses and some 200 staff. The final planned flourish is a 200-seater restaurant and bar facing on to City Quay.

The architectural scheme, by Dundee-based Nicoll Russell Studios, will celebrate the qualities of the original building. Constructed between 1865 and 1890, the ‘B’ listed buildings are functional brick sheds, but with the added flourish of cast and wrought iron Polonceau trusses. Both brick and ironwork are retained as an atmospheric framework for a vibrant contemporary interior, bustling with a range of different sized workspaces clustered around a multilevel, daylit internal street. The Victorian buildings will have one significant exterior addition: an entrance that will house technical services and flag up its presence from afar