Fresh blood

The Indian Red Cross gets a wholesome new space for its blood bank in New Delhi. The architects tell Elizabeth Eapen how they revitalised the old building

You might miss the Indian Red Cross building if you are not actually looking for it. Just across the street from Parliament House, on Red Cross Road, the 50-year-old structure has undergone many alterations and additions to its interiors over the years. Today the ground floor houses the blood bank, which runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

A comprehensive refurbishment of the blood bank was recently completed by Vir Mueller Architects, a New Delhi-based firm. Pankaj Vir Gupta and Christine Mueller moved to India in 2006 after 18 years of studying and working in the US. They were commissioned by the German Red Cross, which funded this project, to redesign the 11,500 sq ft of the ground floor of the existing building.

The main challenge, says Vir Gupta, was that “We had to phase the construction process so as to allow the blood bank to continue its operations undisturbed, while we were completely reconstructing the interior!”

The architects’ challenge also lay in turning what was an unattractive, poorly lit space into one that would not just function effectively but also offer a pleasant visual and spatial experience to visitors as well as workers. They reconfigured the interior in accordance with the circulation pattern of the donors, and the more intricate operations of the doctors and laboratory technicians. This involved demolition and reconstruction, a total redesign of all HVAC systems (heating, ventilation and airconditioning) and electrical, plumbing and firefighting systems. They even added insulated glazing on the exterior.

Existing columns, beams and slabs were left untouched. All non-structural interior walls, however, were demolished. The revised layout focused on creating three distinct zones — one for blood donors and recipients, a second with discreet laboratories for IRCS researchers and doctors, and a third for administrative functions, including offices, staff rooms, rooms for social workers, and so on.

The old blood bank had needed a lot of artificial lighting, so “the thrust of our design strategy was to orient every room so that it received direct natural light. All donor rooms face the gardens and Parliament House across the street. The circulation galleries have indirect natural light filtering in from the interior courtyard,” says Vir Gupta. This reporter visited the blood bank on an overcast August day to find that the antiseptic yet pleasant space was indeed filled with natural light.

Key elements of the makeover include a reflective Kashmir white granite flooring for ease of maintenance and durability; insulated glazing in aluminium frames so windows and doors can open and close efficiently whatever the weather, and for acoustic and thermal advantages; exposed cable tray ceilings for access to enable routine maintenance and repairs to electrical, plumbing and airconditioning systems; and new fluorescent lights. All these modifications helped to maximise the volume of space in each room and invest it with a pleasing spatial quality.

Dr Vanshree, director of the blood bank, is visibly pleased at the transformation. And Dr Tim Bray of the German Red Cross Liaison Office is reassured. “From the donor’s perspective,” he says, “there is now a natural flow from the point of entry, through the different steps in the donation process. The laboratories are well lit with both natural and artificial light, and are spacious, allowing for future expansion. Perhaps most importantly, the blood bank now provides an enhanced working environment, and is the foundation for wider project activities.” All this, he adds in relief, within the available budget of Rs 3.75 crore.