Output details

Sustainable Building Envelope Centre (SBEC)

Aims and objectives

Based on TATA Steel’s ambitions for a new range of products to contribute to what they have headlined ‘buildings and power stations’ SBEC is one of the first buildings to incorporate transpired solar collectors (TSC) for renewable heat in the UK and is the first building in the UK to use cassette panels for this technology. The cassette panels were developed specifically for the project in response to a need to demonstrate how the technology could be an integral part of the architectural response. The seamless integration into the building provides an exemplar for future designers wishing to incorporate this technology. A subsidiary aim was to demonstrate best practice in the sustainable retrofit of Industrial Buildings and landscapes.

Methodology

The research has been conducted through a design process involving integrated collaborative design and prototyping work with the supply chain on the architectural form and environmental performance of new cladding components particularly through passive measures and constructional techniques. This relies predominantly on physical modelling techniques.

Dissemination

This has taken place through architectural design awards and innovation awards, such as RIBA and National Eisteddfod awards; through demonstration - the physical presence of the building as a visitor facility and as a research project; and through publication and exhibition in the form of architectural journals and Best Practice Papers produced by national organisations.