Project description
The Enterprise Centre at The University of East Anglia, dubbed by the press as one of the UK’s greenest buildings, has been designed and delivered to achieve the Passivhaus standard and a BREEAM outstanding rating. The new university building aims to encourage new sustainable businesses from graduates who emerge from its academic research programme and those involved in activities within the wider Norwich Research Park. British Gypsum were eventually able to demonstrate that because it’s Gyproc SoundBloc boards contained 99.1% recycled gypsum, this meant that further BREEAM points could be realised thereby further helping the building hit a higher rating. British Gypsum Gyproc SoundBloc Activ’Air was fitted as standard throughout the building. It was chosen over its competitors’ products as maintenance could be carried out more cost effectively.
Contractor
Morgan Sindall
Morgan Sindall is a UK construction, infrastructure and design business with a network of local offices. The company works for private and public sector customers on projects and frameworks from £50,000 to over £1 billion. Activities range from small works and repair and maintenance, to the design and delivery of complex construction and engineering projects where it is able to provide specialist design, tunnelling, utilities, building, civil engineering and mechanical and electrical services. The company operates across the commercial, defence, education, energy, healthcare, industrial, leisure, retail, transport and water markets. Morgan Sindall is part of Morgan Sindall Group plc, a leading UK construction and regeneration group with revenue of over £2 billion and which operates through five divisions of construction and infrastructure, fit out, affordable housing, urban regeneration and investments.
Key Achievements
- Use of innovative solutions such as Gyproc SoundBloc ACTIVair, which decomposes up to 70% of formaldehyde emissions in the indoor air for a period of 50 years, were strongly aligned to the clients overall aims for the building (over its 100 year predicted lifespan).
- Lower ‘lifetime’ maintenance costs were achieved by specifying ACTIVair technology over VOC reducing paints. Taking VOC reducing paints out of the maintenance cycle will considerably aid the facilities management of the building over the first half century.
- Gyproc SoundBloc plasterboards are made up of 99.1% recycled Gypsum thereby further helping towards an improved BREEAM rating. The recycled content of the board was particularly enamoured by the client, as it was totally fitted in with the sustainability ethos of the project.
- The project is nearing completion of compiling the evidence for the post construction BREEAM assessment and has a current target of 89.87%. As a result the project has been shortlisted for the 2016 BREEAM awards under their health & education category.
Key Challenges
- Morgan Sindall were constantly looking to improve the BREEAM ratings within the construction phase even though they had achieved 92.83% at the design stage. Post construction the team had realised a score of in excess of 96%.
- British Gypsum were able to demonstrate that because its Gyproc SoundBloc boards contained 99.1% recycled gypsum, this meant that further BREEAM points could be realised thereby further helping the building hit a higher rating.
- Another reason that British Gypsum Gyproc SoundBloc ACTIVair was chosen was that maintenance could be carried out more cost effectively, without having to use expensive VOC reducing paints for touch ups and re-paints. British Gypsum ACTIVair technology decomposes up to 70% of formaldehyde emissions into non-harmful compounds within indoor settings and its last for up to 50 years.