0161 799 2200
0161 799 2200
APMG has designed, manufactured, and installed tough, beautiful lab furniture for nine new science laboratories and three prep rooms in the new Athena Centre for Science, Music, Drama and Debating at Putney High School.
Because each science subject has specific needs, the APMG design team have used their experience to produce a suite of high-quality furniture solutions individualised to the requirements of each lab. The furniture for each room is ideally matched to the space and the science topic.
Putney High School’s latest cohort of aspiring scientists, researchers and medical professionals now have truly inspiring environments in which to nurture their talents.
The development saw the former 1970s science block replaced with an airy new building designed to bring maximum daylight into the teaching spaces. The classrooms are all about focusing on learning, and APMG’s furniture reflects this and enhances the bright surroundings.
The design team came up with attractive, adaptive labs, maximising the amount of teaching space and offering flexible learning environments for the students. The materials for each lab vary dependent on its needs.
APMG delivered on time and to budget:
The project spans three floors. Each lab has perimeter benching and tall cabinets for all-important storage and extra worktop space. At the teachers’ request, the Chemistry and Biology labs also had wall-mounted cabinets, with Physics opting for shelving.
In a school science laboratory, the service pedestals must be firmly fixed for safety. CLEAPSS recommends these pedestals are regularly checked for movement. APMG’s robust service pedestals have a steel plinth which is securely anchored to the floor, ensuring that even a battering from the tables around them will not shift them.
Because this new build facility has the services running below the floors, the standard service pedestal design was adapted to allow access beneath the floor for maintenance.
APMG’s tough, strong lab tables can be moved around the service pedestals.
In Putney High School’s Sixth Form labs, the layout encourages a focus towards the teacher while still offering plenty of access to services.
The remaining labs have a different arrangement which suits collaborative working.
However, the option to rearrange these sturdy lab tables means they can be reconfigured to suit different tasks, learning needs and teaching styles.
The worktops chosen for each school science lab were carefully matched to suit the subjects being taught:
The APMG designers selected Trespa® TopLab® BASE for the Physics labs because durability and impact resistance are of greater importance here than chemical resistance. TopLab® BASE also has scratch and wear resistance and high dimensional stability.
Trespa® TopLab®PLUS is found in a wide range of industrial laboratories and was used for the Biology and Chemistry labs. Durable and scratch-resistant, its smooth, closed surface structure provides excellent resistance to most aggressive chemicals and cleaning agents.
Prep Rooms are the unsung heroes of the Science Department. Designed well, they allow the Science Technician to support teachers with all the required materials and equipment for each day’s planned exercises.
Putney High School’s three Prep Rooms have a feeling of spaciousness and offer significant storage and plenty of lab benching space for preparation.
Both the Chemistry and Biology Prep Rooms have a fixed ducted fume cupboard for the safe preparation of chemicals.
APMG supplied and fitted 16 fume cupboards to keep staff and students safe and protected when undertaking experiments.
All the units are ducted for fast, effective fume removal, with a combination of both fixed ducted fume cupboards and semi-mobile fume cupboards.
The semi-mobile units have toughened glass to all four sides and can be moved away from the wall for demonstration purposes, while still benefiting from ducted fume removal.
“At Putney High School GDST we’re passionate about how the built environment can improve productivity and creativity. These bright new labs offer a superb teaching and learning environment.
“The rooms are designed to be light, which has a beneficial impact on the experience and well-being of both students and teachers. The APMG lab furniture enhances the spaces and accommodates the different needs of the science disciplines.
“We have achieved a surprising amount of storage with the new lab furniture design, which means we can keep the classrooms clear of clutter and distractions. As a result, our students have an environment which helps them to focus. Their positive feedback has already proved how much of an impact this facility is having. The staff too are delighted with their new labs.
“The prep room furniture has maximised the available space and again squeezed plenty of storage in. Our Science Technicians have a well-designed dedicated area for their important preparation work.
“The lab furniture has obviously been built to perform. We’re very pleased with the professional finish and attention to detail, and the service we have received from APMG.”
Will Dixon, Head of Science, Putney High School GDST