Exeter College - Laurence Building
The future Chefs for Exeter and The South West now have the finest of facilities in which to learn their craft in the new Laurence Building at Exeter College Hele Road site. A 260 sq m of catering department has been equipped with three separate training island suites, each with its own mix of equipment to suit the students needs.
Suite one consists of eight ranges, four with open burners and the balance with solid tops under their own integrated extraction/intake canopy that adjoins an open teaching room. The star turn however is a mobile Theatre Cookery Libero Point. This unit has chrome griddle and induction hobs, which thanks to integral ventilation system with carbon and baffle filters allows fast cookery in any part of the training facility with just an electrical supply required.
Suite two benefits from eight boiling tops with their own storage cupboards and integrated worktops again under a dedicated ventilation system. This time though the extra interest takes the form of two 10 grid Combination Ovens and a combined heated and ambient pass to allow a large group of students access to enough equipment to produce function catering with ease.
Suite three is equipped to create fantastic dishes for serving into the Training Restaurant. Open Burners, Solid Tops, Ovens, Griddles, Fryers, Salamanders and a bespoke Pan Rack sit under a third canopy. To complement the restaurant service the kitchen has a dishwasher, glasswasher, ice machine and beverage preparation area plus pass through storage cupboards for the crockery.
Food storage is catered for in a fully equipped dry store plus walk in coldroom and freezer room. The atmosphere for the whole of the kitchen is managed through the three canopies with extraction and tempered intake air incorporated into each insulated and illuminated design.
Allsop and Pitts won this contract late in 2007, and have since worked with Nisbett Construction Consultants and Exeter College to refine the specification for both ventilation and equipment through to the completion of installation at the end of March 2008.