LSO St Luke's
London, UK
historical significance
An 18th Century, former church with a rich cultural history
Built between 1727 and 1733 under the ‘Commission for Building Fifty New Churches Act’ of 1711, St Luke’s church in Islington, London, was provided to meet the religious needs of the area’s flourishing 18th-Century population.
Owing to subsidence problems, in 1959, the building was deemed unsafe, its roof completely removed, and its doors closed. The structure sat unattended and void of any maintenance work for almost 40 years, until 1997, when a Lottery grant enabled LSO St Luke’s to start work to convert the Grade I Listed building into an education centre and rehearsal hall.
The venue reopened in early 2003, following extensive work to restore the roof and structure of the building, the introduction of new sophisticated interiors and soundproofing and an extension. The former church is now home to LSO Discovery; a community and music education programme which reaches over 50,000 people through thousands of workshops each year.
project overview
Embracing the power of technology to support the historic building
To enable the client to gather vital information about the historic site, our geomatic consultancy team was appointed to carry out a range of services, including surveys such as topographical, CCTV, drone capture and Scan to BIM. In creating accurate elevation drawings, we also provided ‘rectified photographs’ which provide the client with flat, scaled images that can be used to assist future planning.
The detailed information gathered from the surveys also enabled us to create an immersive virtual tour of the historic building. The tour included all aspects of the former church including the crypt / basement, stairways, balcony, ground floor and catwalk.
The tour provides a number of benefits. Firstly, by way of creating accurate data, including the ability to obtain measurements, that is easily accessible from anywhere. This also has environmental advantages as it reduces the need for the team to travel to the site to obtain site information. Additionally, this provides the client with a tool for information sharing as the simulated tour can be viewed by multiple users at a time and notes can be updated for collaboration in real-time.
managing risk
Eliminating risk with cutting-edge laser scanning technology
The historic nature of the building meant that laser scanning provided the ideal solution; a non-contact survey that eliminates the risk of any damage to the structure. Enabling work to be undertaken quickly and less obtrusively from ground level, laser scanners also avoided the need for expensive, time-consuming scaffolding to be erected.
Using high-tech laser scanners also allowed us to capture accurate information from the trickier and ‘hard-to-reach’ areas of the 18th Century building. The tightly spiralled stone stairway which leads down to the basement and the high-reaching tower, which features a spire with an intricate weathervane, were no problem for our scanners. When combined with drone technology, the imagery provides the highest level of detail.
building maintenance
Supporting the client’s future plans
Contact
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