We’ve got to get under the skin of the client, or Government department, and understand what’s really valuable.
Engineered timber is a sustainable product due to its low carbon footprint.It’s also lightweight, strong, stable, easy to handle, suitable for prefabrication, has thermal properties, as well as great aesthetic appeal..
Extract of data published by Price and Myers for the embodied carbon of superstructures in projects with 2 to 10 storeys and excluding basements.. Today, engineered timber is a suitable solution to reduce embodied carbon in buildings but this may change in the future once the construction industry moves towards new materials as an alternative to standard concrete and steel.. Constructing with timber presents its own technical challenges, but using a science-based approach to find the best solution means we can deliver not just an honest building but a resilient, high-quality asset.. End of life global warming impact.Although timber captures carbon, if left to rot naturally in an open-air landfill, it releases the stored carbon as well as methane, which has a greater global warming impact than CO2.If incinerated, it generates energy and does not release methane but still releases the stored carbon along with other pollutants.
However, if reused or upcycled, carbon remains stored offering long-lasting environmental benefits..Some of these end-of-life difficulties with engineered timber relate to its size.
The use of screeds, which are bound to the surface of timber and structural fixings also make it difficult to dismantle and reuse.. Long span engineered timber elements also undergo non-reversible long-term deformations that can limit its feasibility to be reused as a structural element.
However, upcycling of these elements is still a viable solution.. Our response is to:.Bryden Wood designed Circle Reading Hospital and Circle Birmingham Hospital, and collaborates closely with NHS England.
Our primary focus in healthcare projects is to adopt the principles of healthy architecture in order to improve the quality of the user experience for patients and staff.Hospitals are places to heal and recover, and the design of the building is paramount in supporting this.. As part of our recent involvement in healthcare design, we analysed the performance of typical ward layouts in terms of daylight quality and opportunities for views out:.
• Inboard design: rooms facing the corridor with toilets in the facade.• Outboard design: rooms facing outdoors with toilets adjacent to the corridor.
(Editor: Powerful Lighting Kits)