A Grade I listed hall of residence at Trinity College, Cambridge has undergone a highly sensitive upgrade that sets the standard for the green retrofitting of UK’s historic buildings. Andy Pearson reports
Category: Case Studies
Hoare Lea and Herzog & De Meuron’s Blavatnik School of Government
Herzog & De Meuron’s sleek, minimal design for University of Oxford’s school of government meant Hoare Lea’s mixed-mode ventilation system had to be discreet, as well as technically savvy. Executive mechanical engineer Richard Brimfield explains how the consultant worked within the architect’s design parameters to ensure the building performed well
Monumental feat: BIM Level 2 on The Monument Building
As the built industry moves towards digital delivery, Liza Young finds out how Skanska used BIM Level 2 in the design and construction of The Monument Building in London
The UK’s largest Passivhaus: University of Leicester’s Centre for Medicine
The University of Leicester’s Centre for Medicine is the largest project in the UK to gain Passivhaus certification. Andy Pearson looks at how outstanding teamwork between the contractor, engineer and architect ensured a winning scheme
Registered delivery: Nottingham Trent University retrofit
Nottingham Trent University has successfully integrated a biomass boiler and district heating system in a challenging retrofit project involving a neglected Victorian register office. This triumph scooped Commercial Project of the Year for the university engineering team at the 2016 CIBSE Awards. Andy Pearson reports
Fitness fanatics – Arboreal Architecture’s Clapham retrofit
Arboreal Architecture was awarded Residential Project of the Year at the CIBSE Awards for its forensic approach to a domestic retrofit in Clapham. Andy Pearson looks at how a deep understanding of building physics enabled the design team to maximise performance
Learning without limits – University of Cambridge Primary School
The UK’s first university training primary school – built for the University of Cambridge – incorporates a groundbreaking design that has created a space where learning has no limits. Liza Young talks to the design team
A lesson in Passivhaus – award-winning Wilkinson Primary School
Lessons learned from previous Passivhaus projects have earned Wilkinson Primary School energy reductions of around 90% compared with CIBSE benchmarks, plus a coveted CIBSE award. Andy Pearson reports
Horses for courses – services at the new Cheltenham Racecourse grandstand
M&E services in Cheltenham Racecourse’s new £45m grandstand had to be controlled zonally if parts of the building were to be hired out for weddings and other non-racing events. Luckily, the engineers didn’t fall at the first…
Max Fordham takes on Britain’s biggest Passivhaus
Camden’s Agar Grove estate is to become the UK’s biggest residential Passivhaus project. Max Fordham’s Bertie Dixon describes the challenges of building an 18-storey tower to the standard, and explains why the council is committed to the low energy code