SUSTAINABILITY

We designed our major projects for Battersea to meet BREEAM ‘Excellent’ status which was also a planning requirement due to their relative floor areas. We note that the project brief outlines a requirement for BREEAM Excellent and Net Zero Carbon, both of which we welcome and would be pleased to implement.

Obviously an efficient and well insulated building has lower running costs in use.

All aspects of the building, from the floor, walls, roof, windows and doors, to the heating, ventilation and lighting are taken into account in the energy efficiency calculations for Part L and BREEAM and the energy efficiency principles of any proposal start with the very basic shape and form of the buildings:

• Compact shape to minimise area of the walls and roof;

• Good insulation and ‘thermal elements’ (ie doors and windows) throughout;

• Orientation of the kennels / runs towards the east takes advantage of low winter sun whilst providing shade from high summer sun;

• Solar shading such as overhanging canopies to prevent summertime overheating;

• High thermal mass to even out day and night temperatures, and maximise the benefit of solar gain in winter and night time cooling in summer;

• Simple natural ventilation systems that work with the thermal mass principles.

Secondary measures include:

• Photovoltaic panels on the roofs of the existing south facing buildings;

• Primary heat source from on-site renewables such as a ground source heat

pump or air source heat pumps.

Natural Ventilation:

The images below show the Intake Kennels at Battersea’s Old Windsor site,

where natural ventilation louvres from Monodraught have been integrated

discreetly into the wall and windows, similar to how this could be done for

RSPCA Millbrook.

The louvres are linked to temperature and CO2 sensors, providing both the

required air changes and helping with temperature control.

This system is especially useful in providing night time cooling in

summertime, where the louvres open to let in cooler night air and close

when the desired temperature is met. The high ‘thermal mass’ of the block

walls and concrete flor stay cooler throughout the heat of the following day,

keeping the kennel temperature well below the high external temperatures.