Why this issue? A little bit about my background and credentials

A little bit about my background will help to explain why I am passionate about this issue.

My training is as a Chartered Building Services engineer where I spent my formative training during the first decade of my career at a well-know building services environmental design consultancy called Max Fordham and Partners.

Max Fordham - partnership information

Their activities and my formation span the whole range of energy conservation and built-form development:

• Low-Energy design - including shaping the built form
• M&E services
• Sustainability consultancy
• Environmental auditing
• Efficient lighting design and acoustics
• Enhancing operational asset performance

On my first project, I was a technical designer at RMC Headquarters; at that time the largest roof garden in Europe. We used thermal mass and shading to control the internal environment so as to minimise energy use and maximise occupancy comfort. Edward Cullinan was the architect for this scheme and I had the good fortune to learn his environmental sustainable philosphy first-hand. Their website summarises the project :

Edward Cullinan Architects - RMC Headquarters 

PROJECT: RMC International Headquarters

LOCATION: Egham, Surrey

DATE: 1990

 

"RMC wanted to move their head quarters from a tower block in West London to a mature Surrey garden with three fine existing houses, two listed walls and many established trees.

We obtained planning permission for their Green Belt site by setting the main house and the stables at the head of new courtyards formed by single storey offices, camouflaged with roof gardens.

The social and environmental design of the building contributed to a greatly improved business performance. The building was an early indictor of the future of low energy, ecological building design."

Part of my role was to develop the energy data logging capture system against which the future building performance was measured after completion.

My development led to a range of further ground breaking schemes. Notably,

PROJECT: The Queens Building, De Montfort University

LOCATION: Leicester

DATE: 1993

Described by the University in their words below as  :  

Leicester - The Queens Building - Description

"The Queens Building at De Montfort University combines the best of old and new - using traditional building techniques and the latest environmental features.

The university began its ambitious plan to create Europe's largest naturally ventilated building in 1989. This was no mean feat as the new 10,000 M2 building, on the City Campus, was designed to house the School of Engineering and Manufacture. The premises would need to deal with the heat produced by nearly 1,000 people and a considerable amount of electrical equipment.

Professor Kevin Lomas, Director of the Institute of Energy and Sustainable Development, said: "The university was keen to have a flagship building which would create a positive impression for potential students and draw international recognition. We deliberatley chose a firm of young architects, Short Ford & Associates, which had already designed a passive, low-energy building in Malta."

Short Ford & Associates came up with a striking design using tall ventilation stacks to make cool air circulate throughout the building. Glazed ventilators also help to provide as much natural lighting as possible. The Queens Building cost £12 million to construct, but it only uses half of the electricity used by similar premises due to its energy-efficient features.

The university wanted a traditional brick building so the construction would generate job opportunities in an area of high unemployment. The structure has wide insulation-filled cavity walls and concrete slabs in the ceilings so it can also retain heat, when required.

The Queens Building was opened in 1993. As well as receiving international acclaim for its innovative design, the premises has also proved to be an attractive, comfortable workplace for staff and students.

Professor Lomas added: "The Queens Building is a very pleasant place to work because it's so bright and airy, and it has undoubtedly served a great demonstration value for environmental design. We still get contacted by people around the world wanting to know more about its green features."

My progress continued up until 1995, culminating in my role as the Project Engineer at the Judge Institute of Management, Cambridge University

This building combines a lot of the esthetic with the practical. However it was also an opportunity for me to put in to practice several environmental elements developed to this point.  One user described it as 'a considerate building that was pleasant to use as well as being striking visually'.

PROJECT: The Judge Institute of Management, Cambridge University

LOCATION: Cambridge

DATE: 1995

Source: Wikipedia

The Judge Institute - John Outram Architects - a general description

A series of photographs

As project engineer, I led our design team, working with the full design team and contractor. I managed both the design stages and the construction of this complex scheme. It was highlighted in the Times shortly after completion and it was exciting to see my design ideas prominently visible within a national newspaper.

Whilst post this date I have moved my career forward in other areas, I have retained contact and interest in these issues and now return to develop this thinking in a new and exciting direction.