thinking green
Stripping back a 1960s building to be more eco-friendly
A £20m retrofit of the 15,000 sqm Cockcroft Building is underway at the University of Brighton.
T
HE PLAN is to transform the quality of the interior space of the ten-storey, 1960s academic building, to provide a modern learning environment whilst improving energy efficiency and reducing maintenance costs. Each floor of Cockcroft will be completely refurbished while the building remains operational throughout the project. This includes replacing all windows to provide better insulation and energy performance, together with a timber decking system to create new terraces that look out across Brighton. The project was procured using the
ISIE Framework and the pre-construction tender was won by Willmot Dixon Interiors with whom Fraser Brown MacKenna (FBM) is working to develop the Stage E proposals. The first phase covers the eight upper
floors of the building. Four floors will provide specialist teaching space for 1,124 staff and students. The other floors will provide office and meeting space for 561 academics and researchers – one
floor dedicated to each of the schools which occupy the building.
The new teaching accommodation will
provide a suite of ‘learning labs’ which, unlike traditional lecture theatres, will allow both didactic and collaborative learning. Each lab has been designed as a ‘destination’ forming part of the student experience, says FBM. Working closely with AV and IT specialists, the architect has proposed individual tablet devices rather than desktop or built-in technology, with power provided within the worktops, supplemented by AV, project-on and write-on-walls. Offices will be set around the
perimeter each floor, maximising natural ventilation and daylight, with ancilliary accommodation such as meeting rooms and photocopying booths, social learning zones and informal meeting spaces co- located centrally. This ‘hub’ concept provides a social heart to each office floor and school, encouraging interaction between staff and students.
Solar corridor Reducing carbon emissions and energy costs has been a key priority for the design team. A ‘solar corridor’ provides a buffer between the southern elevation and the teaching spaces, reducing overheating and equalising internal temperatures. The thermal properties of the building envelope are being improved with new, double glazed windows. Internally, the building is being stripped back to expose the concrete structure, allowing it to be used as a heat store, radiating cooler night time air in the summer and warmer temperatures in the winter. Heating and cooling will be via a new Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage system – and boreholes have already been drilled. The roof has been reinsulated, with 132 photovoltaic panels installed , which generate up to 45kWh of electricity on a summer day. Modelling suggests a saving of £47,000 per annum in energy bills, with CO2 emissions reduced to just 1,335kg/CO2/per person per year.
www.fbmarchitects.com www.willmottdixon.co.uk
Four design
targets • Rationalise circulation • Improve spatial quality • Improve customer journey • Reduce energy demand
educationdab.co.uk 39
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84