Re-Imagining Design and Embedding Sustainability

Sustainable design is something that all architects do now; right?  It’s on every practices website, included in all their presentations and has been totally integrated into the way all buildings are designed.  Even the RIBA is now belatedly “on message”, promoting the idea that buildings should be designed to be sustainable.

 

Mies van der Rohe glass skyscraper
 concept designed in 1919

 So, how come the buildings that we are constructing now have not changed significantly since the birth of modernism almost one hundred years ago?  Mies van der Rohe published his revolutionary concept for a glass clad skyscraper back in 1921 and you could argue that we have been repeating this typology, with only minor amendments, ever since.  Is the Shard not just a less efficient more compromised variant of this underlying philosophical position?

What has changed is the rhetoric that accompanies each of these increasingly contorted iconic projects; all of which claim to be exemplars of sustainable development.  Clearly, it is not only architects who are guilty of not walking the talk when it comes to sustainability; developers, funding institutions, governments and local authorities are all rebranding their particular form of “business as usual” in a new recycled paper wrapper!

Renzo Piano all glass

 Shard nearing completion 2013

 It is my strongly held belief that this incremental improvement approach is no longer sufficient and what is required is a fundamental reappraisal of why, what and how we build.  In short, I believe that we are about to enter a period of rapid and revolutionary change that will result in re-imagining design and the development of an entirely new Sustainable Architecture, shaped by an understanding of the challenges that we face and therefore directly relevant to the concerns of our age.

To achieve the necessary paradigm shift we must challenge some deeply ingrained behaviours and beliefs and fundamentally re-evaluate the reasons why we build at all. This process must start by placing social sustainability and needs of building users at the heart of the design process.  It is no surprise that the best examples of sustainable design are conceived when the building’s users are known before design commences.  Also the greatest value that a building design can create is not in energy savings but in helping to improve the productivity of the people who work in them.  To achieve this added value it is essential that buildings are designed from the inside and the needs of the user out.  This philosophical approach creates massive opportunities for creativity and innovation, once the dead hand of style is rejected, in favour of a new sustainable building aesthetic where each design decision is directly informed by its social, economic and environmental issues.

Our CAFOD project, that I will be presenting at the UKGBC’s Re-Imagining Design course on the 27^th February, is a good example of this approach.  The key aspect of the project’s evolution was that we did not win the commission with an image of a completed building, but instead explained how we would assist them, as a non-expert client, to develop a bespoke; user centred sustainable solution, shaped to fit their immediate needs and facilitate organisational change.

Black Bio Climatic office

 tower concept 2005

This approach is in stark contrast to the vast majority of speculative commercial buildings, which are conceived primarily as investment assets and whose appearance and architectural style are determined at inception.  This procurement process, I would argue, results in the current fashion for more and more contorted building forms, as design teams strive to make the most remarkable, arresting images, rather than the most sustainable designs, to secure commissions.

If we are to make the UK’s building stock more sustainable I believe it is essential that funding institutions only agree to invest our pension contributions into demonstrably sustainable buildings.  This will change overnight what gets commissioned, since developers want to be able to sell their completed developments so that they can reinvest profits into the next development opportunity.  It will also result in less risk and more predictable returns for the funds, since sustainable buildings will either command a “green premium” because they are more desirable or at worst will not experience a “brown discount” due to their increased occupation costs.

In re-imagining design I believe that we need to place social sustainability at the heart of the design process, with the explicit intention of delivering buildings that create value by demonstrably improving the performance of the people who occupy them. This philosophical shift will finally close the cost benefit gap that makes investing in higher performance difficult to justify.  Over time the quality and value of the UK’s building stock will increase, creating value and safe guarding the investments that ultimately fund our retirement.  A paradigm shift of this magnitude will create a New Sustainable Architecture that is relevant and valuable.  As Mies van der Rohe put so succinctly;

“Architecture is the will of an epoch translated into space”

Surely the will of our epoch calls for urgent, radical change; re-imagining design to deliver buildings that create enduring value for the people who use them, the organisations that own them and the society that they are part of.

Don’t delay, the future starts today!

Phoenix HQ Update No. 3

There have been significant advances on site since the last blog on the 30th of November last year. At that point Phase I (the first half of the main building) of the frame and SIPs were on the brink of completion and we were expecting Phase II of the frame and the interior blockwork to commence imminently.

Site on the 12.12.2012

 

As of the 12th December Phase II of the composite timber frame and steel deck had been completed and for the first time it was possible to see the overall scale of the building. Since then a number of different trades have been able to operate concurrently on site, which has seen the speed of the construction process gain momentum. Over the last month work has been progressing on:

1. The frame - The weather (bar the cold) has been kind to us and Phase II of the frame has continued on schedule and is now almost complete. All the wall and roof panels are in place and only the framing of the feature window is outstanding.

Installation of the roof SIPs

 

2. Internal Blockwork - The blockwork has been moving ahead in the interior of the completed sections of the frame. As the blockwork will remain exposed with only a painted finish in all the public areas, a lot of attention has gone into its detailing.

Blockwork under construction

 

3. Zinc Cladding - The exterior of the first floor on Phase I of the frame has been sheathed in plywood. In the last week and a half the installation of the zinc, which will eventually clad the entirety of the first floor has commenced. This is very exciting as it is the first of the final finishes that we have been able to see on site.

Zinc being installed

 

As the current trades progress on site the current goal is to complete the installation of the zinc and get the building watertight so that the next major milestone can be reached when the ground floor screed is poured.

Site on the 16.01.2013

Phoenix HQ November Update

This is the second of an on-going series of blogs that aim to create a photographic log of the construction process at the Phoenix HQ.

At the end of October (click here to view previous blog) a couple of bays had been erected and we could look forward to the completion of the first half of the frame by the end of the month.

Site visit 01.11.2012

When we next returned to site at the beginning of the month the first half of the composite frame had been erected and the construction team were starting preparation for the first floor’s metal deck to be laid.

 

Site visit 08.11.2012

One week later the metal deck was down, and for the first time we were able to gain access to the first floor. At this point the scale of the spaces had started to become more apparent and we were able to envisage how it will feel when the building is in use.

 

 

Site visit 20.11.2012

 

After a two week absence from site the concrete for first floor slab had been laid and work is currently progressing with attaching the SIPs to the composite frame, although there have been some delays due to high winds.

 

Site visit 22.11.2012

 

Phase II of the frame started on the 26^th of November and will be complete within the next 3 weeks, when the overall mass of the building should become clearly visible. Concurrent with this, the blockwork is due to commence on the ground floor any day now and the layout of the public spaces and lift shafts will start to take shape. This should all be complete by the 6^th of January when first fix is due to commence. 

BRE Select Black for Innovative 1960’s Office Refurb Study

Black Architecture has been selected to partner with the Building Research Establishment (BRE) on their innovative refurbishment of a 1960’s office building project.  This project is intended to research strategies for the comprehensive refurbishment of buildings of this type.



BRE Building 14



The post war economic boom of the 1960’s and 70’s led to a considerable increase in the number of non-domestic buildings across the UK, including public sector, commercial, health and educational facilities.  Buildings constructed during this period make up around 15% of London’s current offices and over 40% of the UK’s higher education building stock.

They are typically poorly-insulated, using external cladding systems featuring large areas of single glazing, asbestos-containing insulation and other elements, are difficult to heat in winter and prone to summertime overheating, use inefficient air conditioning systems, have high energy costs and large carbon footprints. Users and occupiers experience stress caused by thermal discomfort, patients in healthcare buildings of

that era recover more slowly, and students find it harder to learn. Fifty years on, these challenges translate into complex and costly refurbishment projects, including the challenge of extra costs incurred in relocating tenants, and the disruption to the operations of the building.  Replacement of external cladding systems is considered difficult and expensive, offering no gain in internal

space so no increase in value, despite being the most important intervention from the energy efficiency point of view.

However, retrofitting and refurbishing commercial properties can offer significant advantages compared to building new: building programme benefits (with up to 70% time saving), with improved rental and yield values at a lower cost capital investment and retention of tenants.

Aim of the project

We want to demonstrate through this project that if refurbishments of 1960s and 70s non-domestic buildings are approached strategically and the whole supply chain is involved from inception, risks can be minimised, energy saved and profitability enhanced, with minimal disruptions to the operations in the building and without extra capital costs compared to standard comprehensive refurbishments.

What we plan to do

Built in 1964 with a host of problems typical of the buildings from this era , Building 14 at BRE overheats, uses an exorbitant amount of energy, emits 42 tonnes CO2/year , has a crumbling façade and as such it is an ideal candidate for a strategic sustainable makeover.

It will be used as the physical demonstrator for a research and testing programme allowing refurbishment options to be valuated in a controlled environment. The key output from the project will be a performance specification / ‘balanced scorecard’ (strategic planning and management system), with the potential to be rolled out large scale to similar buildings.

This will deliver:

1.   Exceptional sustainability and energy efficiency improvements (including 80% reductions in energy use, compliance with BREEAM Refurbishment and other recognised standards) with no increase in capital cost investments compared to standard comprehensive refurbishments;

2.   Drastic reductions in operational and embodied carbon;

3.   Improved indoor environment, including better air quality and thermal comfort;

4.   Exemplar project, construction and procurement efficiency with minimal disruption to the day-to-day activities in the building.

BRE Building 14 has been chosen because its design and

construction are typical of many other buildings from the period.  It is prominent within the BRE campus, close to main reception and the Innovation Park, giving good visitor access and making it ideal for demonstration.  It is currently an extremely inefficient building, with an EPC rating of E, therefore offering much scope for improvement.

The building will be a live demonstrator of innovative technologies for the commercial refurbishment sector, which will be updated as new products become available on the market (parallel to the BRE Victorian Terrace domestic refurbishment project). The building will provide new accommodation that will be used as exhibition space open to Innovation Park visitors, business incubator space for start-up companies, office, meeting and seminar areas. A programme of dissemination and promotion will follow completion.  This project will lead the way and influence the thinking of private and public bodies to change and embrace best practice, while happening right at the heart of the Government’s Green Deal implementation programme, and as such will receive extensive media coverage and public interest.

BRE Building 14 refurbishement study

Paul Hinkin managing Director of Black Architecture believes that the project is of strategic significance:

“it is essential that the UK’s aged building stock is retained and made fit for purpose and this project will help to define best practice standards to achieve the highest levels of performance at the best value.  What is most exciting about this project is that it is intended not to be just a demonstration project but to provide a repeatable model that can be rolled out.  We are delighted to be working with the BRE on this pioneering project.”

Phoenix Community Housing HQ Underway

From this month forward we will be posting monthly updates on the progression of Phoenix HQ as it is constructed. Since the last blog the project has been through planning and Osborne has been appointed as the contractor. The updates will aim give a visual log of the projects construction process.



Ground floor slab cast

Site being prepared for
foundations

By the beginning of the month the Greenman Pub had been demolished and the site cleared. During the first and second weeks the foundations and slab were laid out and completed.



Glulam frame manufactured
in Austria

Hockey stick beams
ready for delivery

Whilst this process was occurring on site in the UK, B&K Structures had the timber frame manufactured by Kaufman in Austria.



Frame erection
commenced on site

First structural bay
nearing completion














The frame arrived on site on the 22^nd of the month and the team on site immediately started erection.

The view of the site from the Bromley Road

The completion of Phase 1 of the composite timber frame will be Monday 5^th of November and Osbourne will start laying the concrete deck immediately. The SIPS panels are due to arrive on site by the 12^th of November.  The installation of the SIPs is due to take 2 weeks so that by the time of the next update, Phase 2 of the structure will have commenced.

BOB 3: Ethical + Fiscal = Inevitable

A group of carefully selected building industry leaders recently gathered for the latest Breakfast on Black held at The Fire Station in Waterloo.  After a hearty breakfast guests were treated to an informative and challenging presentation from Richard Francis, Director of Sustainability at Gardiner and Theobald. 



Richard Francis
Director of Sustainability
Gardiner and Theobald



Richard’s presentation “Ethical + Fiscal = Inevitable” was delivered with his trademark combination of transatlantic easy style and powerful analysis of the challenges facing the construction industry.  His presentation was split into four sections coving both the immediate drivers for change along with those that he has identified as looming just beyond the horizon.  He neatly summarises the journey ahead as the progression from beauty pageant to talent show, illustrating the need for evidence based decision making along with more intelligent procurement.

Drivers

Richard started by identifying the proliferation in regulations that are being developed to try to achieve more sustainable outcomes.  He made the point that when looked at as a whole there are some key facts that can be identified; that the direction of regulation is to encourage disclosure which leads to transparency and that transparency is essential to allow a market to be created.

The market that is emerging is characterised by wider choice, with smarter occupiers demanding shorter leases and more flexibility.  He posed the question as to why the property industry insists on using outdated names like “landlord” and “tenant” rather than “supplier” and “customer”; questioning if changing names would help to encourage improved quality and higher standards of aftercare.

He reviewed the current state of the market and identified that there has been a dramatic growth in the amount of available second hand property on the market which has increased from about 3 million square feet in 2000 to over 13 million square feet by 2011.

When investors, developers and occupiers are asked to identify the drivers that they believe will lead to property becoming obsolete in the next 5 years, they all identify energy efficiency as either the first or second most likely cause.

Change

Richard characterised the market as in a state of rapid and multifaceted change, with buildings increasingly being judged on how they perform, with savvy occupiers scrutinising certifications like BREEAM and LEED assessments and demanding evidence that actual performance in use is as predicted before they are willing to sign-up.  He sees a growing trend that is moving away from simply quantifying cost to growing importance placed on assessing value.

He illustrated this trend with the fact that 10 years ago it was hard to define, measure or value green buildings, but that over this period specialist knowledge relating to sustainability has become more generally accepted and that this has lead to a transformation of the market as a whole.  He illustrated this point with a quote from Jones Lang Lasalle 2011 Perspectives on Sustainability report:

“Five years ago, a corporate real estate executive might have thought sustainability was a costly way to make the company look good to employees. Two years ago, that same executive probably focused on energy management as a way to save money in the short run. Today, he or she may be pursuing green strategies that enhance employee productivity”.

For most companies, property costs are normally amoungst their top three highest costs, along with those associated with employing their personnel.  In striving for value it is essential that the effect that building design has on occupant behaviour is more deeply understood.  Richard made the powerful point that people are the crucial, but until now overlooked, economic component of sustainability.

He reinforced this with the 90% rule; namely that 90% of most organisations environmental impacts come from property occupation, that 90% of most individuals working life is spent indoors and that 90% of whole life costs can be directly attributed to their personnel.

When senior executives are asked about the relationship between productivity and sustainability over ²/₃ of respondents expect more sustainable buildings to facilitate their people being more productive, and that these productivity gains represent the largest potential economic benefit that sustainable buildings can deliver.

Economics

While Richard acknowledged that the notion of sustainable buildings commanding a premium is difficult to prove, there is he contends a growing body of evidence that this may be the case.  He presented data drawn for the UK, Europe and the US which quantified this “green premium” at somewhere between 3 and 8%.  He also explored the notion of a “brown discount” where poorly performing stock is financially penalised by the market; demonstrating that increased energy costs could account for as much as £3.00 per square foot.

He posed the question if this approach were applied to occupant productivity what would that do to the value of the best and worst performing examples?  As CBRE identified in their 2011 publication "Sustainability the Great Differentiator", a 10% increase in performance could easily equate to added values equilivalant in many cases to an organisations total rent.  Richard went on to highlight that total staffing costs equate to 10 times total property costs (design, build, operate and maintain) for a building with a typical 30 year lifecycle.

Next Steps

Richard concluded his presentation with his take on what the future may look like. He challenged the way buildings are valued, based on historic performance and taking little or no account of performance in use or wider sustainability issues.  He expressed his opinion that due diligence processes are being adopted by many larger occupiers to properly assess buildings and that this approach provide a good indication of the likely direction of travel of the industry as a whole.

He explored the subliminal messages that property performance conveys about brands and how this association is likely to drive increasing demands for higher performing buildings that reflect wider brand values.  He asked why should customers trust companies who cannot manage their assets and people well and by implication why should they be trusted with our resources?

In thinking about what a brands building says about the way they value their people Richard made the connection between a commitment to sustainability and the ability to build loyalty, engagement, efficiency and pride among its workforce.  As Richard put it:

“if you think it is just about the building, you are missing a giant opportunity”

He finished off his inspirational presentation with a checklist of key actions that should be adopted to ensure more sustainable outcomes:

•         Recognise the importance of performance

•         Understand the limitations of existing standards

•         Think beyond compliance

•         Understand how buildings enhance mission

•         Realise that items with the greatest benefits often have the least costs

•         Anticipate change by reverting to principles

I am left thinking that there is a serious disconnect in the property industry that is directly created in the way that buildings are viewed primarily as investment vehicles and not great place for people to inhabit.

You would have thought that risk averse property investment funds would attach enhanced value to lower risk, more sustainable buildings, however to date this has not been the case.  Similarly, occupiers must demand buildings that can demonstrate that they have been conceived specifically to enhance occupant performance.  Finally, developers must select design teams who can demonstrate that they approach their work from a “user centred” philosophical perspective. 

Sustainable Retail; The Customer is King!

Sanisburys Greenwich the first  
BREEAM Excellent Supermarket

It has been over twelve years since the first sustainable retail building was opened by Sainsbury's on the Greenwich Peninsula.  So you would imagine that the knowledge base has developed significantly over this period and that we are now producing much better more holistic solutions right?  Well, unfortunately I am not sure that this is the case!  You  see, the problem I would argue, is that we have fairly spectacularly missed the point when it come to designing sustainable buildings for the retail sector.  Rather than starting with the needs, wants and desires of the customer almost all of the developments have focused on energy efficiency to the virtual exclusion of anything else.



Borough covered market
is flooded with natural light



So why, if the retailers mantra is "the customer is king" has this not been the starting point for redesigning the buildings that we would like them to use, enjoy and want to come back to?  I believe that this is caused by a fundamental disconnect between the shop keepers and the teams that deliver their buildings.  Rather than understanding what the client really needs to drive sales, the process has been dumbed down to a repeater process that reduces risk but ultimately delivers an end result that is far from the optimum.

Natural lighting at
the Burlington Arcade

A good illustration of this point is the reintroduction of daylight into the sales floor.  At Greenwich we used a north light roof that not only provides light but also reconnected the interior of the store with the wider environment; creating a more comfortable, less claustrophobic environment, conceived to encourage customers to dwell longer and spend more.  Subsequent buildings have used light pipes to deliver the daylight, but with none of the other customer benefits.



Customer Centered Design



Customer centered retail design should offer the most comfort benefits to the customer using the least energy and materials necessary to satisfy their needs.  This would mean that all stores would be heated and if really necessary, cooled using underfloor systems, rather than blowing warm and cool air down into the occupied zone, because humans experience discomfort when heated from above.  This arrangement has the associated benefit that only the volume of the store nearest the floor that customers inhabit is conditioned.  Temperatures above the first two metres can be allowed to fluctuate more widely since nobody experiences them.



B&Q New Malden
 North light roof



Providing appropriate fresh air is also an important factor in creating a well tempered customer environment.  It is important that fresh air is delivered directly to the place where customers are, near the floor, rather than blowing it down onto them from above.  The reason for this is simple, all of the warm, moist, stale air that we exhale floats up and settles in a soggy, smelly layer against the ceiling.  When fresh air is blown down from above it has to pass through this layer where it enevitably mixes, resulting in a mixture of fresh and stale air being delivered!  Many high quality office environments use displacement ventilation delivered through grills in the floor and similar systems have been trialled in retail environments but have not yet been widely adopted.



Customers visiting
IKEA Southampton



Customers love natually lit retail environments; think of covered markets and arcades and you conjure up a picture of fresh abundant produce and upmarket boutique shops with beautifully lit produce.  So why is it that black box stores with little or no natural light has become the norm?  The argument made is that natural light is hard to control and can wash out display lighting.  Amazingly, galleries manage to light priceless works of art this way, we just need to try a little harder.  One of the other challenges that natural lighting poses is that the windows in the roof need to face north if overheating is to be avoided.  Sites do not always make it easy to orientate the roof in the correct direction and this has led to the increasing use of lightpipes as they do not require specific orientation.  This is in my opinion an over reaction and we need to develop innovative solutions to overcome what are realitively easy problems to solve.

Once we have created the optimum internal environment for our customers it is important that energy losses through the envelope are kept to an absolute minimum.  It really suprises me that buildings are still being built to Building Regulations minimum standards.  Insulation is relatively cheap and is much easier to install during construction than at some point during the life of the building.  I can see no reason why you would not install the maximum amount of insulation to futureproof the finished building, aiming to achieve a u value of between 0.1 to 0.15 W/m²K and carefully detail the junctions to ensure infiltration rates are less than 0.15 m³/( m².hr) @50Pa.

Simple lightweight timber frame

Operation V Embodied Energy

As buildings are designed to be more energy efficient the balance between operational energy and embodied energy shifts, placing more emphasis on the energy that is embodied in the materials used to construct the buildings.  This has led to a move away from steel and concrete to wood alternatives.  While this is to be encouraged, because timber locks in carbon, we do not currently grow enough of the stuff to satisfy demand.  A number of projects are making big sustainability claims based on the fact that they use a lot of wood and therefore sequester large amounts of carbon.  If you are building in Scandinavia where wood is plentiful this is not such an issue, however in Britian we do not produce much and it will be difficult to significantly increase production.  I believe that we should be designing hi tech timber structures that use our precious locally grown timber as efficiently as possible.  Through careful design and specification this approach will encourage investment in UK forestery and help to develop the UK timber industry.

Made in Britian

I believe that the continuing concern regarding the state of the UK economy, coupled with growing emphasis on the carbon footprint of the materials, will see a drive towards the use of more locally produced building materials.  This is likely to result in buildings specifically designed to be “Made in Britian” using local materials and components to reduce their total embodied carbon, create jobs and help to grow the UK’s building products industries.

Neptune Point Harrow
retail led mixed use development

Retail led Mixed Use Development

To support our ailing High Streets it is essential that new development is sensitively located to provide retail anchors that will attract customers to these under pressure locations and encourage linked shopping trips.  I believe that all new retail development should be designed to make the most of valuable urban land and to do this, high density mixed use schemes will become the norm.  This will not only ensure economic sustainability by incorporating residential uses above retail, it will help to increase the number of residents in the area who will patronise not only the stores that they live above, but also their adjoining local High Street.



Waitrose cookery school may
evolve into an in store concept



Experiential Retailing

The trend for creating more experiential retail environments has been developing for over a decade now, but has yet to really influence the design of most stores.  But, with the rapid growth in online retail and the inevitable impact that it is having on physical store takings there is a growing need for stores to offer more than simply selling products if they are to arrest the growth in virtual shopping.  I believe that we will see more retail stores incorporating environments where customers can actually try out products and learn new skills.  Imagine the Jamie Oliver healthy eating academy, attached to your local store, teaching customers how to cook and eat more healthy food.  At your local B&Q store you will be able to try new tools before you buy, learn skills from local tradesmen and even take a taster course run by the local further eduction college before signing up for full time study.  Incorporating educational facilities within retail environment will provide tangible benefits to the local communities that they serve and for early adoptors will dramatically change customer perception of their brands.



A New Sustainable Retail Architecture

It is now over a decade since Sainsbury’s at Greenwich, the worlds first sustainable retail building opened and it is, in my biased opinion, still yet to be supassed.  In these recessionary times it is essential that the sustainable stores of the future must utilise customer focused design to deliver enduring value by making customers feel comfortable, relaxed and more likely to stay and spend.  Every material and component must be selected to provide optimum performance with the minimum carbon footprint and material miles.  Social sustainability will I believe be of increasing importance and will result in new and innovative uses being incorporated into stores, providing customers and their families with education and training opportunities.  All of the social and economic benefits must be achieved with either neutral or ideally beneficial impacts upon the environment.  I am firmly of the opinion that holistic sustainability will be the key driver that will drive innovation and this will revolutionise store architecture.