Sustainable design

To assess the sustainability of a development design, we evaluate its environmental, social and economic effects. Our aims are:

• Environmental: to preserve and use the earth’s resources sustainably, across construction, operation and end-of-life stages.
• Social: to consider stakeholder impacts, such as accessibility and inclusion, and consult users, occupiers, local communities and neighbours.
• Economic: to provide facilities that are viable in terms of initial investment and operating costs and to consider the development’s impact on the local economy.

Sustainable design involves careful planning at every stage: location, orientation, structure, systems, construction, use and eventual demolition. For example, we endeavour to:

• measure the carbon footprint of our designs and identify the most energy-efficient options
• incorporate low and zero carbon energy sources following a thorough feasibility study
• source sustainable materials wherever possible
• include design features that support biodiversity
• incorporate water conservation measures and reduce flood risk
• incorporate health and safety considerations at every stage
• design out waste
• consider decommissioning issues from the outset.

Typical examples of steps taken by our designers include reducing carbon emission levels to 60% lower than standard buildings; incorporating bicycle storage areas or similar to encourage greener travel; and, in the case of schools, consulting with police and security advisors to ensure safety is prioritised.

Schal, part of our professional consultancy business TPS, has a team of in-house qualified assessors who develop our approach to sustainable design, construction and operational performance, and audit projects under assessment.

We also use recognised industry standards to assess design, construction or refurbishment against environmental criteria. These standards include the BRE Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), Civil Engineering Environmental Quality Assessment and Award Scheme (CEEQUAL) and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

In 2010, 51 UK projects were working towards the BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating. Carillion in Scotland has achieved four BREEAM ‘Excellent’ ratings at Low Moss Prison: two house blocks and two other buildings gained the highest possible rating. This is particularly difficult to achieve for prison buildings as many security constraints dictate construction standards.

Innovation for excellence

The Nottingham Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme is delivering a series of Excellent BREEAM rated projects. We have incorporated innovative low-carbon technologies, including in the development of a biofuel Combined Heat and Power system with carbon emissions 60% lower than the notional rate.

As there are environmental problems associated with biofuels, we researched the source of our fuel. It is grown on farms around Nottingham on a crop rotation basis, avoiding the need to divert land from food production, minimising transport impacts and delivering an ultra-low carbon footprint.

Two schools (Big Wood and Oak Field) in this programme have become landmark institutions as they deliver the highest level of carbon reduction seen in UK BSF schools to date.

The LEED assessment tool is used by Carillion Canada. We are redeveloping Canada’s largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. The aim is to create a mixed-use urban village where state-of-the-art treatment and research facilities will be interspersed with shops, housing, businesses and parks. This project is being built to LEED Gold certification, which will make it the first healthcare facility in Ontario to achieve this level.

LEED Gold for Canada

Carillion has built Honda’s new offices in Canada to LEED Gold standard. The campus includes a central utilities plant, and the heating and cooling is distributed using an underfloor system providing a higher quality of control and atmosphere. The buildings have features to maximise natural light and the exterior includes over 1,000 parking spaces. We also designed in significant outdoor space for Honda to provide soccer fields, a fitness track and baseball pitch for public use.

Championing sustainability

In recognition of his dedication to sustainability, Richard Johnson, Sustainability Manager at Schal, won the regional Constructing Excellence Generation for Change (G4C) London and South East Award in June 2010 and went on to win the National Constructing Excellence ‘G4C Champion Award’ in November 2010.

The G4C Award is open to anyone with less than five years’ industry experience and is presented to the individual recognised as making the most significant contribution to the construction industry. This is a fantastic achievement for both Richard and TPS, an emerging leader in sustainability.

“Such recognition by our industry is a wonderful achievement and acknowledgement of Richard’s competence and ability. This is exactly the type of approach we wish to promote both within TPS and in the wider marketplace.”

Frank Huidobro,
Managing Director, TPS