Morgan Lovell's 1960s Office Building Named One of the Greenest in the UK
Added: (Fri Feb 29 2008)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
A refurbished ‘green’ office interior – in a typical 1960s designed office block. Office transformation specialists, Morgan Lovell have reached the finals of a leading industry award to find the most sustainable building in the UK.
Carried out by London office designers Morgan Lovell, the renovation to their headquarters in Soho has been recognised in the City of London Corporation’s Sustainable City Awards - dubbed “The Green Oscars”.
The refurbished ‘green’ interior includes kitchen surfaces made from recycled plastic bottles, entrance mats from recycled car tyres and reflective paint to cut lighting bills.
Despite achieving such high-profile success, the interior itself looks remarkably normal – and that’s what designers Morgan Lovell set out to do.
Morgan Lovell managing director David Henderson said: “What is significant about this project is the successful ‘green’ refurbishment of a typical 1960’s designed building - the type which, up until now would have been considered an environmental write-off.”
“It demonstrates that older buildings can be made green, without costing the earth.”
Carpeting, ceiling, paints, fabrics and furniture have been sourced with a high recycled content and the ability to be recycled in the future. All wood used in the refurbishment has been certified under the Forest Stewardship Council scheme.
The office also uses infrared movement sensors to deploy lighting in zones only where people are working - spelling an end to fully illuminated buildings housing just a few workers - while dimming units automatically adjust to the natural lighting conditions outside, so less energy is used on sunny days.
It also includes one of the latest, most efficient heating and cooling solutions on the market, zoned across the office floors, using a heat-recovery system to reduce energy consumption.
This allows different areas of the office to be accurately controlled, eradicating the wasteful practice of heating and cooling a whole office to the same temperature.
Car parking spaces have also been given up in place of bike racks and green energy, from wind, wave and solar sources, is purchased to power the office.
David Henderson added: “The cost of the refurbishment was not much more than if we had undertaken a more conventional route. In addition, we expect to reduce our energy bills by a third as a result, so there will be a quick return on investment.
“Most companies in the UK are housed in older buildings. This project proves that you don’t have to build a new structure to go green.
“This refurbishment is a big step in reducing the massive carbon footprint currently pounding the UK from office buildings.”
Find out more about sustainable offices at www.morganlovell.co.uk/sustainability
ENDS
Notes to Editors
The project reached the finals in the City of London Corporation, Sustainable City Awards, in the Sustainable Building category.
The category is run in association with the Building Research Establishment and The Worshipful Company of Chartered Surveyors - and open to all organisations based in the UK. The RSA-accredited award recognises and rewards excellence in sustainable design for new build and refurbishment.
The awards took place at 13th February 2008 at a ceremony in London’s Guildhall. Full details at www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/sca.
Morgan Lovell was one of five shortlisted organisations in the Sustainable Building category.
Located in London, Birmingham and the Thames Valley, Morgan Lovell is the UK’s leading office interior design, fit out and refurbishment specialist. With its own teams of designers, surveyors and project managers, the company can design and deliver entire projects, with the benefit of just one point of contact. www.morganlovell.com
It is part of top five UK construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall plc which operates through five specialist divisions of affordable housing, construction, development, fit out and infrastructure services.