SUSTAINABLE REFURBISHMENT NT – STEP BY STEP
organisation, centred on Higginshaw Amateur Rugby League Football Club (ARLFC). The challenge was to refurbish the crumbling church hall, which had remained unused for 10 years, and bring it back into use to provide much-needed community facilities to one of the most deprived areas of the country.
The scope of the work was to refurbish the central main hall and the toilet facilities so the building could be used for a range of different activities that would fund further refurbishment of the hall. Expected high usage of the centre meant that it had to be robustly finished, with low-maintenance materials and systems, making it as easy as possible for the volunteer team to run and maintain. This applies to the energy and water efficiency of the completed building, minimising the overhead costs of each and assisting the long-term economic sustainability of the centre.
The works were carried out to comply with current Building Regulations standards, including Part L2B (2006).
PRICE VERSUS SUSTAINABILITY There’s a common misconception that environmentally sustainable design and construction are synonymous with high capital costs. This can often be the case, however it doesn’t have to be, as this project shows. It makes a strong case for an alternative approach and one that has a relevance right across the industry. In terms of environmental
sustainability, this building needed to be cost effective to run, with operating costs kept to a minimum. This means the building had to be refurbished to incorporate low energy costs, low water costs and hard-wearing material finishes, such as Altro Whiterock panels. These panels were added to the perimeter of the hall as it absorbs impact and is easy to clean. It was also used to insulate the walls; to help suspend the timber floor and on the underside of the roof. When the rule of thumb is that the capital expenditure of a building is 20 per cent of its whole life costs, reducing the operating costs, which is 80 per cent of the whole life costs of a building, makes good financial sense for the ongoing economic sustainability of the hall. The key targets for sustainable construction and the built environment are to minimise energy use, water use and waste production. The Big Challenge’s
refurbishment of the Higginshaw Community Centre was undertaken to meet these strict criteria, which was not an easy feat and the team faced many obstacles along the way.
ENERGY USE OF THE BUILDING By restoring the existing building – as opposed to knocking it down and starting again – time, energy and resources have been saved and put to better use. The decision was undoubtedly made for financial reasons and some compromises had to be made that took into account the operational use of the building. One of the first and most important jobs was to insulate the walls, floor and roof of the hall to minimise heat loss. A new, Geotek under-floor heating system, with 22mm Kingspan TF70 insulation between suspended floor joints, was installed and linked to a high-efficiency gas boiler to minimise fuel costs and ensure the space would be welcoming and warm for its future users. The remaining areas served by the LPHW heating system had all the radiators and pipe work replaced where the existing products were no longer serviceable.
The walls were insulated using British Gypsum Thermaline 42.5mm composite board, which is HCFC and CFC free, so it has zero ozone depletion potential and is therefore perfect to meet the sustainability needs of this project.
The upper walls and underside of the roof were painted white to maximise the amount of natural light being reflected into the hall from the clerestory windows above. This was done to reduce the number of hours when artificial lighting was required. High efficiency downlighters have been installed to ensure that when additional light is needed, it is cost- effective.
Rehau upvc double glazed windows, with 34mm cavity, were fitted throughout the hall to ensure maximum energy efficiency of the building.
WATER USE
The existing sanitary ware was stripped out and new IPS cubicles and WCs were installed with all services hidden. It was crucial that they were designed in this way as a damage limitation measure, due to the open and varied use of the building.
The Armitage Shanks 4-2 litre dual flush WCs and cisterns have also been
SUSTAINABLE FM | MARCH 2011 |27
fitted with cistermiser controls, which should allow for a 25 per cent reduction in water use.
WASTE
The supply chain partners who volunteered on this project, were briefed to use and recycle surplus materials from previous projects. This is one of the strategies suggested within WRAP’s guidance in its “Good Practice in Waste Minimisation & Management” and “Designing out Waste”. S&W signed up to Wrap in 2009, with the aim of helping support the campaign to halve waste in landfill by 2012. S&W has increased its recycling rates from 88 per cent in 2009 to 92 per cent in 2010 across all projects delivered, and so it was important that this regeneration work maintained those values. The site-works for the project created 120 to 130 tons of waste, which was removed from site and processed for free by Holroyd Waste Disposal.
THE FUTURE
The refurbishment of the community centre was completed in January 2011 and it has already become a valuable facility for the local community. With its main uses focussed around sport, social, health and educational needs, it has been transformed into a facility that will be put to endless use over the years to come. The centre has been brought back to life and will be used as the new home of the local youth rugby league football teams. Its low-energy, low-water use and low- maintenance design will enable the charity to fund the building sustainably. However, the true value of this project comes via the opportunities that it has now created for the local community – many of which would not had been conceived of until the project was made a reality.
www.stylesandwood.co.uk
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