We must make it clear that construction is an exciting, vital industry - one where these young people can put their existing skills to use in an enjoyable and rewarding way.
Design effort can be spent where it adds the most value – creating places where people want to live and work.. 105 Sumner Street consists of two new-build commercial office buildings, built around a publicly accessible internal courtyard, in total comprising c. 135,000 sq ft.It will be nine storeys high with reception and basement areas.
The development will be a high quality and sustainable building with a vastly improved streetscape and public realm, continuing the transformation of Southwark..It will use a hybrid steel and concrete structural platform that was developed as part of an Innovate UK First Phase Challenge Fund research project on Automated Construction.The structural platform developed as part of the R&D project will provide the chassis for the office floor space and the project will include the development of cladding and building services components to create a reusable kit-of-parts-based solution for offices..
The project will validate and showcase the benefits that can be delivered using P-DfMA techniques, Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) and digital technologies on a large-scale new build commercial office development.It is designed to a ‘zero carbon in use’ strategy, and is already achieving gains:.
efficiency: a predicted 9.5% reduction in capital cost, 13% reduction in programme, 40% reduction in steel used and 50% reduction in site operatives for superstructure and facade.
sustainability: a forecast 19.4% reduction in embodied carbon per square metre, a 36.4% carbon reduction in the substructure and 20.2% in the superstructure and façade..- Use engineered timber in lower buildings with a decreased risk of vertical propagation.. - Involve specialist contractors and fire specialists from early stages to ensure the material’s structural integrity in the event of fire and robust co-ordination between disciplines.. - Engage early with statutory bodies, supply chain, and timber contractors.. - Consider the use of sacrificial layers of timber to protect the rest of the structure and potentially result in self extinguishment.. - Use timber fire treatment such as intumescent paint to prevent the spread of fire and reduce the amount of smoke produced, taking account of the impact on recyclability.. - As a last resort, consider full fire bonding if there is a risk of debonding of layers.
This scenario is appropriate in multistorey residential buildings.. Other general concerns when using CLT include:.- Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s).
- Shortage of construction expertise.- MEP co-ordination.