Cenedd (the Welsh name for this legislature) is one of the cleanest and most economical to operate facilities in all of Europe. Despite the fact that this is a public building of considerable size, such an achievement seems to be especially important.
Its second quality, which especially attracts both the deputies and the public, is the emphasized openness of the building. Fully glass walls, a minimum of internal partitions, the widespread use of light woods - all this should attract the eyes and create the impression of lightness and freedom. This is the place where Welsh people can meet their MPs and witness their work: all the law-making rooms and even the press conference room are open to the interested public. Thus, Rogers succeeded in improving the image of the actively criticized legislative body in Wales with his project.
The architect himself defined the main idea of his work as follows: "… so that a child entering the building would be inspired by what he saw and would decide to become a deputy."
At £ 67m and a construction time of 8 years, the new Cenedd is not cheap. But compared to the Scottish Parliament, there were practically no difficulties in its implementation. Another important difference is the general acceptance of the building, both by architectural critics and among the wider public.
The building was erected next to the old parliamentary complex, on the Cardiff waterfront.
The transparent rectangular volume with overlapping curvilinear outlines, sheathed with wood on the underside, uses a minimum of energy, which allows you to reduce the operating costs in half. The circular meeting room is partially illuminated by sunlight shining into the room on the lower level of the building, reflecting off a huge mirror. It is also part of a natural ventilation system that looks from the outside like a huge cone on the roof. All technical water needs are met by rainwater, which flows from the roof into huge reservoirs in the basements through channels in the building's steel pillars.
The heat exchange system pumps water 100 meters underground, where the temperature is always kept at 16 °, and then lifts it up to warm the Assembly in winter or cool it in summer. The "life" of the building must last at least a hundred years.
