CW and Grand Designs


Grand Designs Live – Kevin’s Green Heroes


different ways to deliver a cost effective and suitable project. Christina has a background in ground sensing technologies and argued that


although it has been around for several years it is still looked upon as so new as to not merit using for investigating ground conditions before building. She thinks we have lacked imagination to rethink old ways of doing things and broadening our views to include asset management in the technology. Richard Ogden came straight to the point starting by saying that the digital


revolution was so far advanced that there is simply no reason not to use all of its advantages to move quickly to use digital means to plan, investigate and manufacture offsite components for builds. There is no need for a “clean sheet of paper” approach as it takes too much time – we should simply adopt what we know and then adapt it as we develop and change – the Nike “Just Do It” argument. Relying on government and big organisations with vested interests is simply too slow. Riccardo, as a practising architect pointed out that clients can be cost and risk


averse so tend to prefer the known and the cost effective – as it appears conventionally, and this tends to strangle innovation. It is often only committed and innovative builders with a vision and deep pockets that can embrace innovation. Peter’s reply acknowledged that clients can be difficult to influence, but cited


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…the digital revolution was so far advanced that there is simply no reason not to use all of its advantages…


the example of the Energy House in Wales that produces more electricity than it uses – with enough of these houses there might not need to be a new nuclear power station built. And it might be cheaper to build the houses than the nuclear power station – in the end it may be up to politicians to explore all the possibilities, however unlikely looking, to make future proof decisions. On the issues of cost Richard interjected that the Second Forth Road Bridge in


Scotland had found that Chinese steel used had cost 50% less than the equivalent British product. The lesson we take from this is that the UK shouldn’t simply be a haven for designers, we should be able to build as cost effectively as any other country. The panellists each had some ideas for getting us building innovatively and cost


effectively. Peter championed BIM as a collaborative method of designing and improving buildings leading to better design, while Christina pointed out that cross fertilisation of ideas is needed to help break out of silo thinking – she mentioned the government’s CATAPULT program. Richard also pointed out that using digital methods to design and make is vital, as the old methods and materials are holding us back. Materials mentioned were the PV roof tiles that are not only more attractive than PV panels, but also more efficient and we are nearly at the point where fridge sized salt-water batteries are capable of storing much more of the energy sourced from wind and solar. With time run out the panellists had to stop, but clearly had much more to add.


The debate was just one single example of how the flood of ideas we face could help us live more sustainably and manage the housing and energy crises that are bound to emerge in the short term future. Add the above hour of debate to another 165 hours of discussions and you can


see that UKCW has made a significant contribution to the national debate. Something that we all, as individuals involved in tools and construction, – and also needing housing and energy – should be involved in.


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Kevin McCloud is well known for championing green initiatives and a display at Grand Designs Live devoted some space to a display highlighting some of his favourites. These included a bicycle made from bamboo, a lighting collection made from mushrooms, a solid chair made using bio-resin reinforced with sheep wool, lighting enclosed in natural unstripped wood, and bamboo used as a sound enhancing stand for mobile devices. One that


caught our eye was the wood made from newspaper, reversing the process of deforestation by making timber out of paper.


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