Our Work

A Sustainable Future

FUTURE BUILT IS A CORE PRINCIPLE OF THE PRACTICE

Working with the project team, we review and challenge a scheme’s sustainability strategy to ensure the targeted credentials or outcomes are maximised and realistic. Our bespoke client briefing guidance document ensures all potential opportunities are considered at the earliest stages of design, whilst aligning with the RIBA Plan of Work and Sustainable Outcomes Guide.

We extend our core services provision to act as ambassadors and enablers. We push our design and project teams to exceed current and future legislation around achieving Net Zero Carbon. Our in-house Sustainability Group helps maintain our momentum, ensuring that designing for the future remains central in day-to-day practice culture. To continuously learn lessons from past projects, we undertake post-occupancy carbon reviews and revisit schemes in-use whenever possible.

DfE FRAMEWORK DELIVERY + S21 FOR SCHOOLS

As a trusted framework consultant, we work in partnership with the DfE and their contractors to deliver school developments that meet all targets. All new school buildings in England must be net carbon zero in operation.

In November 2021, the DfE released the Construction Framework 2021. This contains a Generic Design Brief detailing the technical requirements for the design and construction of all school schemes. The generic brief and its technical annexes, along with a school-specific brief, form the Output Specification. This is known familiarly as the SOS, FOS, or S21.

S21 explains the minimum technical performance standards for new and refurbished educational buildings, setting out stringent requirements for environmental performance parameters. Prioritising our fabric-first design approach is an effective way to meet S21 targets and create a comfortable building for the end users. We address:
operational energy performance
indoor air quality
daylight quality
resilience to overheating
efficient ventilation
robust detailing
eliminating thermal bridging
outdoor learning in the landscape
functional, flexible internal spaces
supporting biodiversity

LOGISTICS OF THE FUTURE

Designing for the Industrial and Distribution sector is one of our founding architectural specialisms, and we maintain a deep understanding of specific technical requirements and complex processes. Reflecting on this knowledge base, we are collaborating with our long-standing partners and project stakeholders to develop new ways of thinking.

The next generation of Logistics facilities are championing greater long-term flexibility, improving welfare through biophilic design, and increasing overall environmental performance. We are helping our clients reduce energy consumption by:

designing-in scope to extend or alter buildings in the future
maximising natural light
including healthy activity spaces
promoting biodiverse attenuation ponds within beneficial landscaping
designating storage spaces for photovoltaic batteries and recycling.

2030 CLIMATE CHALLENGE BENCHMARKING

Embedding sustainability targets early in the process establishes a strong base for the design team to shape a scheme in line with 2030 quantifiable targets. Project timelines can be long, so it is incredibly important to future-proof these targets and ensure the positive impacts are achieved in the final construction.

Our design approach follows a hierarchy of core principles:

LEAN – Fabric-first design solutions should strive to minimise primary energy demands

CLEAN – supply the reduced primary energy demand as efficiently and sustainably as possible

GREEN – use renewable technologies to supplement the primary energy supply

By exploring feasible options, we offer concept proposals that are benchmarked against relevant industry standards and guidance. We also consider the future potential to recycle building elements and materials across the whole life of a development, using the Life Cycle Assessment set out in BS EN 157978:2011 Sustainability of construction works.

PASSIVHAUS PRINCIPLES + FABRIC FIRST DESIGN

We design holistically to make positive impacts throughout a building’s entire lifecycle.

Our designs and specifications follow robust Fabric-First principles, with many aiming to meet Passivhaus thermal standards and the highest BREEAM ratings. We begin by optimising the performance of the building envelope itself, i.e., the walls, floors, and roof, before we start looking at ways to reduce energy consumption through efficient heating, cooling, or renewable technologies.

We focus on:

achieving excellent thermal performance (U-value) in floor, wall, and roof constructions and for windows and doors,
limiting heat losses via thermal bridging through use of tested/accredited details,
reaching a set level of air-leakage depending on whether the building is naturally or artificially ventilated,
optimising solar gains through careful glazing, and;
selecting materials and systems that consider embodied carbon in manufacturing and delivery.

As well as minimising embodied carbon and costs, adopting this energy-efficient approach has the added benefit of reducing ongoing maintenance and fuel demands in-use, helping our clients meet their own sustainability targets.

Completed schemes in different sectors have secured BREEAM Excellent and Outstanding, Passivhaus certification, and the AECB Silver Standard.

We are minimising our carbon footprint …