Lecture Hall Complex - IIT Hyderabad | CCBA Designs | Master Architect Prof. Christopher Benninger

IIT Hyderabad - The Lecture Hall Complex by Master Architect Christopher Charles Benninger, CCBA Designs
15 auditoriums with an occupational capacity of 60-800 students.
The Highlight:
Curved walls emerge from the ground bending over the halls, creating a seamless integration of various volumes leading to an environment that fosters a sense of curiosity and excellence, reflected through the Architecture itself.
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CCBA was among the top three architectural firms selected from an international competition to design various components for the Indian Institute of Technology at Hyderabad. CCBA Designs is engaged in the design of the faculty housing, staff housing, a lecture hall complex, the student commons, various laboratories and departments for electrical engineering, physics, liberal arts, mathematics and computer sciences at various stages of design and construction.
The Lecture Hall Complex is composed of fifteen auditoria accommodating 70 to 800 students each, holding over 3200 students when fully occupied. The Lecture Hall Complex sits at the junction of two primary pedestrian movement paths on the campus. This iconic structure has a wide pedestrian street projecting through the built fabric at two levels, with halls arranged on either side. A network of ramps and staircases moves within the structure a kinetic experience of people interacting, light and space. Curved shell walls emerge from the ground enclosing the halls, integrating various volumes into a holistic structure.
Spatial experiences must be orchestrated in a manner to create vibrant, energetic and vigorous learning places. A modern-day institute of technology will be a more multi-faceted and complex community of scholars than ever before. The potential for the exchange and creation of knowledge will be practically endless. The architecture must catalyze and enhance such an academic community. It must bring people together and facilitate communication and interaction. The campus is physically and by design a kind of “learning exchange” facilitating a multitude of learning possibilities in many kinds of social groups. The institute’s designs are conceived to encourage creative interaction and knowledge exchange in a hierarchy from very large lecture hall meeting places to classrooms, laboratories, on one-on-one discussion areas.
CCBA has also worked on the Faculty and Staff Housing, Academic Blocks AD2 & AD3, Campus Commons and guided the development of the Master Plan with ARCOP.
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Professor Christopher Benninger is the founder, mentor & principal architect of CCBA Designs.
With a post graduation in urban planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology & post graduation in architecture from Harvard University, Prof. Benninger emigrated to India in 1971 where he co-founded Faculty of Planning CEPT University as a Ford Foundation advisor. He later shifted to Pune in 1976, where he founded the Center for Development Studies and Activities (CDSA). In 1995, Christopher along with Mr. Ramprasad Akkisetti started his architectural practice ‘Christopher Charles Benninger Architects’. This was renamed to CCBA Designs Pvt. Ltd. in 2005 a name under which it continues to flourish till today.
Winning the Indian Institute of Architects Annual Awards for excellence six times, a feat unmatched by any other architect, Prof. Benninger is one of India’s great modernists. His undeniable talent and dedication to planning, urban design and architecture has created an array of renowned and award-winning projects both in India and abroad.
His portfolio includes creating urban development plans for prominent places like Goa, Thane, six cities in Sri Lanka, and five cities in Bhutan, along with numerous masterplans, award-winning institutional buildings, and benchmark housing developments. Under Prof. Benninger, CCBA Designs has the ability to produce outstanding work across all scales and typologies, irrespective of location.