Turning a leaky old office building into an exemplar net-zero headquarters for a high-profile organisation is always challenging – but even more so when that organisation is ASHRAE. Andy Pearson explains the approach Integral took to deliver for its knowledgeable client
Author: Alex Smith
Welcome to the team: helping workers feel less remote
The Covid-19 pandemic has meant graduates and new starters no longer have the opportunity to learn from colleagues and mentors in the real world. Firms have adapted by instigating remote online sessions, but what is the best way to replicate real-life learning? Phil Lattimore reports
Refrigerant rethink: measuring the environmental impact of HVAC
Specifiers need to start assessing a refrigerant’s embodied carbon as well as its global warming potential, says Klima-Therm’s Tim Mitchell, who is working with bodies such as LETI and CIBSE to calculate the full carbon impact of HVAC systems
Anything but play
After the government announced measures to improve collaboration with industry, minimise greenhouse gas emissions and support the UK recovery from Covid-19, Hywel Davies considers the likely impact
LETI’s plan for retrofit energy targets
The energy demand of our homes must be reduced significantly to make a net-zero future viable, but for a high proportion of existing buildings this will be challenging. Passivhaus Trust’s John Palmer says upcoming LETI guidance will show professionals what is possible
Tom Hopton interview: the new norm must be smarter
CIBSE Engineer of the Year Tom Hopton spent 2020 looking at how data could help building owners respond to the upheaval caused by Covid-19. He tells Alex Smith how analytics is boosting the performance of buildings while responding to the needs of occupants
From BBC to BIO: turning offices into laboratories
The growing life sciences sector is leading to more office space being repurposed as research laboratories for cutting-edge firms, including a former BBC building in West London. Andy Pearson reports
Heart of the matter: calculating embodied carbon using TM65
Embodied carbon in MEP equipment makes up a large proportion of building emissions, but is hard to measure. Elementa Consulting’s Louise Hamot and Clara Bagenal George explain how CIBSE’s TM65 methodology estimates components’ environmental impact
Highlights from Build2Perform 2020
Achieving net-zero carbon was one of the key themes at the CIBSE Build2Perform online conference, alongside building safety, Brexit and minimising the risk of Covid-19. Alex Smith, Liza Young and Phil Lattimore hear how engineers are responding to a changing landscape
Thriving in the fourth industrial revolution
Automation of simple M&E tasks will free up engineers to develop innovative zero carbon designs, argue CIBSE’s Carl Collins and Jagannatha Reddy