Our aim is to make it effortless for our clients to achieve their targets by demystifying sustainability and delivering solutions that reduce carbon emissions over the lifecycle of a building. Together, we can all make a difference.
Through clever design and adopting sustainable practices, we can help tackle the climate crisis.
Committing to specific sustainability goals and values has helped us to track our progress and give focus to what is needed for us to advance further. Active changes we have made to contribute to our goals include currently having two architects who have become Certified Passivhaus Designers. This has helped to ensure that, wherever possible, our projects are designed to meet the requirements for the highest energy efficient accreditation. We will continue to invest in systems and education in low energy and low carbon design solutions, allowing us to progress and share knowledge both internally and externally.
Sustainability should be integrated from the start of the design process and, ultimately, enhance the final scheme.
To effectively communicate our sustainability policy, performance, and knowledge to the wider industry. Additionally, to maintain our role as ambassadors, we continue to increase the knowledge of staff through internal methods and professional qualifications.
Sustainability reviews take place throughout the design process, through these we are able to find appropriate solutions to lower embodied and operational carbon emissions. Undertaking project specific design reviews focussed on sustainability allows us to share the wealth of knowledge and experience within the studio and establish opportunities to improve designs through our holistic view of sustainability. Alongside this, we are upskilling ourselves with internally run CPDs, sustainability focussed design guides and setting our own Carbon Reduction Plan.
Our focus is on building efficiency, maximising the opportunities for passive design measures such as building orientation, effective massing, a fabric first approach to performance and detailing alongside developing an appropriate material palette integrated with the potential for modern methods of construction.
We are a committed carbon neutral business certified by ‘Carbon Neutral Britain’ and therefore understand our baseline carbon data and carbon footprint. Moving forward, we are seeking to continue to reduce and mitigate the carbon produced by our own energy use, travel, and business systems. Alongside this, we aim to reduce our footprint with opportunities for using clean energy, reducing the use and need for high emission daily commutes.
In order to reach our sustainability goals, we have made everyday changes that contribute overall. We limit our paper printing in the office, printing only when necessary and using electronic means of communication. When we do print, our printers are stocked with recycled paper. We 3D print our architectural models using recycled PLA, a sustainable and organic printing filament which minimises the use of new raw materials. In addition, we collect and recycle old pens, crisp packets, soft plastics and failed or discarded models alongside local recognised recycling schemes (plastics, carboard, paper and metals). It is important for us to recognise the waste that we produce within the office and take steps to reduce this, lowering our impact on the environment.
We have two certified Passivhaus Designers within the GNA studio; Simon Jesson and Aidan Astle, enabling us to work with clients and contractors to design and deliver certified low energy buildings.
Developing schemes using the Passivhaus approach, focuses the design on orientation and overall mass of a building as well as a fabric first approach to thermal performance, air tightness, glazing specification, and ventilation requirements. When considered with the energy losses, this approach provides the building with a balanced energy solution that uses far less energy than a standard building. We look forward to providing sustainable solutions and using this pivotal learning, we will continue to reduce our impact on the environment and reduce energy costs for our clients.
When sourcing materials responsibly and sustainably, we look to take account of the full life cycle assessment and embodied carbon involved in the production and transport of materials. We also look to minimise the quantities of materials used through careful specification and reuse of materials where appropriate.
Using BIM, One Click and other tools, we regularly undertake Whole Life Carbon (WLC) Assessment of our projects, this includes a review of both embodied carbon and the operational energy of the proposals. These tools allow us to accurately predict both the performance and carbon footprint of the proposed works and allow us to determine the best options for materials following interrogation of low embodied carbon solutions. We have recently used this technology on the National Centre for Decarbonisation of Heat and found it to be invaluable in achieving the Net Zero Carbon aspirations for the project.
We passionately believe in social value and the positive effects our business has on our staff, their families, our clients and the wider communities we work with. This culture is reflected in our ethos, our ethical credentials and our appointment of a Director of Social Value. The formation of a dedicated team within the studio drives value through our projects, direct analysis of our performance and commitment guides continual improvement of our social value plan.
We recognise the role our profession, studio, staff, suppliers and clients can play in achieving greater outcomes for little to no additional cost whilst maximising value. As architects, it is important to promote key social value principles and opportunities through our designs and projects, either independently or through collaboration with others.
We will continue to look beyond the financial cost of a contract and consider how the services that are delivered as part of a contract might improve social, economic, and environmental wellbeing. Ultimately, the benefits of Social Value can improve people’s lives, expand social identity, enable and foster community cohesion and security, and enhance ethical choices.
Health and wellbeing are intrinsic to our approach to design and how we operate as a studio. Incorporating direct or indirect elements of nature into the built environment have been proven to reduce stress, blood pressure levels and heart rates, whilst increasing productivity, creativity and self-reported rates of well-being. Our designs promote healthy and supportive environments through the appreciation and understanding of the surrounding context. The principles of Biophilic design are championed and can be seen in our approach, demonstrated through characteristics such as;
- Internal and external views of nature
- Improved air quality, toxins and ventilation
- Acoustic comfort
- Natural materials
- Patterns, colours and textures
- Aesthetic environment with brand recognition
- Psychological and physiological effects of the space
