Thomas Sinden were appointed under a JCT Design & Build contract to deliver the commercial office refurbishment and mixed full and part fitout of 3 story ‘Silbury House’ on behalf of RO Group. The project has targeted the high accolade of becoming the most sustainable building in Milton Keynes,and is aiming to be certified under BREEAM Outstanding; Fitwel 3 Stars (Now Successfully Achieved); RESET and NABERS (UK).
We worked closely with the client, design team consultants, and our own expert sustainability advisor to increase the project outcome from BREEAM Excellent to Outstanding and deliver an incredibly high performing building for operational energy efficiency, user comfort, and life cycle impacts.
In achieving it’s sustainability outcomes, the project is working in harmony with a Whole Life Carbon assessment and consultant team, with whom we meet with regularly and allocate a set agenda item to within all project updates. The project has retained the existing fabric and opted to replace the M&E systems with the highest efficiency HVAC products on the market. In addition, we are installing a significant area of rooftop PV and as a result expect to achieve EPC rating A (previously E).
As a project team, we have taken additional actions already to further lower the embodied carbon of our delivery by over 30 tonnes of CO2e. A major contributor to this has been the refurbishment and reuse of the previously existing RAF panels, and sourcing of a further set of the same RAF panels from another project. Other actions have focussed on our construction site impacts, where we have used an innovative reusable and modular hoarding system, HVO fuel in all site plant, and incentivised public and active transport of our workforce. Our input has been guided by our specialist in-house sustainability advisor, Owen Jackson, and has focussed on using industry recognised EPD’s to make low-carbon material selection.
Every aspect of the project has considered how best to decarbonise the building in operation and construction. This includes sourcing of only the most sustainable and refurbished office furniture, to reusing external bricks for internal riser adaptations. The project will provide an array of energy, emissions, and air quality monitoring for users through smart sensors, and the space has been made adaptable through partitioning and infill of an open atrium. The actions on the project are expected to save over 500 tonnes of CO2e from its lifecycle – including significant savings in operation – and will exceed the RIBA 2030 benchmark for carbon performance of 80.7kgCO2/m2 GIA.