PUBLIC SECTOR SUSTAINABILITY
LANCASTER INSTITUTE FOR T CONTEMPORARY ARTS (LICA) LANCASTER UNIVERSITY
A
n exciting purpose built facility, the Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA) building at Lancaster University combines teaching
and research activities in Art, Design, Film Studies, Music and Theatre Studies across a range of interactive and flexible spaces, including performance and workshop areas.
It provides a permanent base for 160 people but many more use the building on a day-to-day basis including undergraduate and postgraduate students, academics, visitors, school groups and conference attendees.
LICA hosts conferences and arts events through LIVE@LICA the combined organisation of the Peter Scott Gallery, Nuffield Theatre and Lancaster International Concert Series. This brings a wealth of high calibre artists to Lancaster in public programmes of professional theatre, dance, exhibitions and concerts. The building also houses ImaginationLancaster, a creative design studio for product development, and the cross-disciplinary HighWire Doctoral Programme which brings together world-class expertise in computing, design and management.
THE BRIEF Lancaster University wanted to create ‘a flexible shed, strong enough to house radical design without competing for attention’ with LICA’s creative programme. The building also had to meet the functional requirements of the academic, commercial and public spaces, encourage
cross-disciplinary interaction and complement its woodland setting. Central to the brief was the
University’s objective to commission a highly sustainable building which would achieve BREEAM Excellent as a minimum, aspiring to Outstanding. LICA fully met this brief.
BREEAM AWARD WINNING The LICA project won the Higher Education award at the BREEAM Awards 2012. These awards honour the most successful sustainable buildings in the industry and are made annually to the projects that achieve the highest scores under BREEAM – the world’s foremost environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings. As Mark Swindlehurst, Lancaster
University’s Director of Facilities comments “We are delighted that Lancaster has been recognised as a pioneer of sustainable building in the higher education sector. We see BREEAM as the yardstick for the environmental performance of our buildings and the effect they have on the wider environment.”
The £10m LICA building had already achieved the distinction of being the UK’s first higher education project to be rated ‘Outstanding’ for both design stage and post construction review.
“Central to the success of the LICA project was the collaborative approach embraced by the project team – this enabled the delivery of a truly ‘Outstanding’ building that fully meets our commitment to sustainability,” explains Swindlehurst.
SUSTAINABILITY In designing LICA as a highly
sustainable building within cost constraints the team first concentrated on passive design in order to reduce energy demand. The final choice of an innovative pre- fabricated and cross-laminated larch timber structure provides high levels of air tightness and contributes to low U-values, two factors which were central to achieving the Energy Performance Asset Rating of 21, Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) Band A. It also enabled a quick and safe construction programme of
12 PUBLIC SECTOR SUSTAINABILITY • VOLUME 2 ISSUE 4
only 14 weeks. Careful attention to the building’s form, orientation and selection of materials has ensured that it complements its natural setting. The design also includes roof- mounted solar photovoltaics and rainwater harvesting, both providing operational feedback via prominent live digital displays in reception so that occupants and visitors can see the benefits for themselves. Good daylighting combined with lighting controls such as daylight linking and presence detection further encourage effective energy management, whilst displacement ventilation in the double height spaces designs out the need for cooling. The building features low water-use sanitary fittings and benefits from 75% efficient thermal wheel heat recovery and a link to the campus district heating to maximise energy efficiency. Energy-metering with all meters linked to the University's site wide system enables central monitoring, comparison and review. Suzanne Parkinson, Head of Project
Delivery at Lancaster University comments: “Lancaster University is committed to reducing the impact of its estate and operations on the environment and reducing its carbon footprint. We are delighted that LICA so successfully embodies design quality and creativity whilst delivering this ethos. The design successfully combines user requirements with sustainability and energy conservation measures to provide an efficient, attractive environment.”
The design was developed from an exploration of the interplay between nature and the manmade, inspired by the building’s woodland setting. Daylight floods the teaching and research areas and light timber finishes lend both brightness and texture to the interiors. With these aspirations and vision in mind, mechanical and electrical engineers, Hoare Lea, developed a servicing strategy which best supported the variety of spaces whilst achieving a clean and uncluttered look. Working in collaboration with architects Sheppard Robson, challenges such as the servicing of a significant area of double height spaces, for example the event space, and
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