Fundamental to good design is that buildings should be safe and sustainable. But as Steve Thompson, Managing Director for specialist steel framing manufacturer EOS, explains, longevity is also an essential environmental requirement.
Buildings should not only be intrinsically safe but should also be constructed to last a long time and therefore be inherently sustainable. Buildings are responsible for almost half of the UK's carbon emissions and around a third of its landfill waste. This means that the UK's sustainable development targets cannot be met without a major change to the way in which buildings are designed, constructed and operated.
Manufactured from the most abundant component on earth, steel can be recycled or reused endlessly without detriment to its properties. This unique characteristic gives steel a high value at all stages of its lifecycle.
The recovery infrastructure for steel recycling is highly developed and extremely efficient and has been in place for decades. Current recovery rates from demolition sites in the UK are 99% for structural steelwork and 96% for all steel construction products – figures that far exceed those for any other construction material.
Offering the best strength-to-weight ratio improves efficiencies – you get a lot of structure for relatively little weight which reduces embodied carbon. This is where steel cannot be beaten. Lighter structures not only reduce material consumption but also concrete in the ground. This means that foundation loads and sizes are reduced by over 70% relative to concrete and block-work construction. Low and zero carbon buildings as well as commercial developments with high BREEAM ratings are readily achievable using steel construction.
An excellent example of this is a project EOS were involved in to create a prestigious £25million flagship Travelodge hotel in London that was developed as a declaration of renewed confidence in the brand following substantial investment. The aim was to deliver a fully clad offsite manufactured panelised steel frame system, complete with the sub frame of SFS infill panels, pre-fixed to a lightweight innovative stone cladding solution which not only looks outstanding but also achieves a highly energy efficient, non-combustible building envelope. Once delivered, the fully formed panels were craned in and fixed back to the substrate.
The impressive eight storey, 395- room property is built to BREEAM Excellent standards and delivered through innovative engineering combined with technically advanced offsite manufacturing. The greater efficiency and quality associated with sustainability is also helping to make this Travelodge more commercially successful. There is growing evidence that BREEAM Excellent buildings provide increased rates of return for hotel operators. BIM Level 2 technology combined with Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) protocols reduced errors onsite and snagging – as well as enhancing the energy performance throughout the lifecycle of the building.
When the cost of operating a building for 30-years can be four times greater than that of designing and building it, it is no surprise that those who own and maintain buildings are keen to find in-use savings. Now we have more sophisticated research available, the equation of 'build them high build them cheap' – simply does not stack up from an owner operator's perspective – this is why steel framing systems are favoured by the residential, build-torent, education, healthcare and other public sector buildings.
The UK leads the world in steel construction both commercially, technically, and in terms of quality. The industry has made dramatic improvements in technology, productivity and efficiency. According to research carried out by independent consultants Construction Markets – steel continues to be overwhelmingly the structural framing material of choice with their survey showing that steel now has a 72.5% share of the multi-storey office market and a 60.9% share in the 'other multi-storey buildings' which includes retail, education, leisure and healthcare sectors.
Quality, safety and sustainability are at the very core of our organisation. Reducing carbon emissions and increasing energy efficiency in both our own operations and the built environment is vital to helping tackle the impact of global climate change. This involves promoting and developing design solutions that minimise energy use in operation and are climate change resilient. By controlling and influencing our direct and indirect impact through ongoing strategies, measures and changes across all of our own activities, we aim to be Carbon Neutral by 2025.
For more information visit: www.eosframing.co.uk
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