Stephen Wall Design & Architecture

09/06/2025

Earthquake resistant expression.

The Kyoto International Conference Center (ICC Kyoto) features a visible seismic damper in its underground parking, engineered by Kajima Corporation, one of Japan’s leading construction firms. This red steel component is a hysteretic damper, designed to deform under seismic stress and convert kinetic energy into heat, reducing structural loads on the column.

The damper forms part of Kajima’s Seismic Isolation System (KSI) technologies, developed after the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, which exposed critical weaknesses in mid-century concrete structures. These systems have since been widely adopted in public infrastructure retrofits across Japan.

ICC Kyoto, designed by Sachio Otani and opened in 1966, is a key site for Japan’s architectural modernism. While the main brutalist structure remains intact, its annexes have undergone retrofitting to meet post-1995 seismic standards. Kajima’s decision to leave the device exposed supports inspection visibility and reflects Japan’s approach to seismic transparency in structural design.

21/12/2024

18/12/2024

As the scaffold comes down, a new project by SWDA reveals itself, crafted by the etxremely talented Blundell Build.

22/07/2024

Musee Saint Laurent, Marrakech

05/08/2023

Partial demolition and ground floor extension to 1950's semi-detached in Knutsford.

05/08/2023

Cheeky extension in the Conservation Area remodelling #

23/03/2023

New rear extension in Knutsford ... going in for planning imminently.

22/02/2023

House remodelling just completed in Knutsford.

22/02/2023

Nice little interior modelling just finished in Knutsford

17/03/2022

Beware those of you who have opted for Sedum roofs. There is a sedum species called Ellacombianum.
This species produces beautiful flowers and leaves in the summer but they drop their leaves in winter leaving the stringy type shoots which are quite unattractive. These plants are not dead, but they require some attention. When the green roof has had a period of very dry and / or very cold weather the other species can die back slightly when they go into the their suspended animation phase and the Ellacombianum takes over, dominating the whole area and squeezing out the other varieties.

There are a couple of things you can do: you can cut back the shoots (now is a good time, before the plants start their spring growth) and the new shoots will grow up to produce flowers.

Or you can reduce the amount of Ellacombianum and add new species, by creating some large gaps in the green roof you can offer some new cuttings of other species to sprinkle on and these should start to grow rapidly in the next 6-8 weeks to create a more diverse mix.

Plugs or semi mature plants could also be planted into the substrate to introduce new species at this point also.

Adding fertilizer across the whole roof at this point of the year is also recommended. The sedum will start to grow rapidly in the next few weeks so if you prepare the roof now the results will come very fast.

30/11/2021

have just completed this simple but charming website for us.

Stephen Wall Design & Architecture provides an accredited architectural service for discerning, quality-conscious clients that seek assistance in their design choices for their primary residences and businesses.