Newport Station by Grimshaw

Grimshaw has redesigned Newport Station in Newport, Wales, England. This project is a part of a citywide regeneration master plan by Newport Unlimited. This station is quite important for transportation between England and Cardiff due to Newport is the first city reached by passengers. This project aimed to provide striking civic building that would provide a gateway opportunity not only to Newport, but to Wales herself.


This new station split Newport with its the railway tracks. As a result, each half of the city has developed its own character. Grimshaw as the architects design embraces this divide, creating two major new concourses. The North Concourse will be on the civic side of the city and focus on the needs of commuters. The South Concourse, on the commercial side, will be for connecting travelers, day trippers and tourists. Each terminal’s function is reflected in the distribution of ancillary facilities around the station.

Ticket facilities and platform access are split equally between the two terminals. All the main facilities at both terminals are housed in continuous ETFE and aluminium clad spirals. The spiral form of the station mirrors the journey taken within and helps to ease traffic flow by guiding the passenger from ground level up to the connecting bridge and back down onto the platforms. The use of an ETFE wrap over a steel structure not only creates a very bright and airy space but also, due to the lightness of the material, means the building requires a minimal support structure. This brightness of space is compounded by the inclusion of an oculus at the peak of each building, which doubles as a compression ring to secure the structure.

Dojima River Forum Cafe by Terminal 01

Kei Haraguchi and Keigo Miki from Terminal 01 have designed Dojima River Forum Cafe. This cafe is located in Osaka, Japan and built on 244 sqm areas. The cafe is situated on the second floor of the recently opened Dojima River Forum and facing directly to the river. Osaka city used to be called a water-capital. Rivers and canals once crisscrossed the city.

There is a big solid wooden staircase as an element, which connects ground level and second level, the café. Façade of the building is glass curtain wall, so that we tried to design the staircase symbolic to emphasize as an entrance of the Café. Material of the ceiling is glossy vinyl sheet.

Because the cafe is located on the second floor of the building, people, walking on the ground level, can naturally catch the ceiling of the cafe. The glossy ceiling reflects the surroundings and scenes of the inside space. The reflection is as if the reflection of the river. The reflection of inside and outside makes people consider the continuity of the inside space and outside space.


Visit Terminal 01 Architects website - here or via