New research complex
officially handed over
01 February 2010
Nightingale Associates’ new building known as the ‘Research Complex at Harwell’ at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire has been officially handed over.
The project was born out of the UK Government’s commitment to making the UK an especially attractive location in the world for research. Maintaining access to cutting-edge, large-scale facilities is a key element in ensuring that UK scientists remain at the forefront of research.
The £26m new-build project provides laboratory facilities for life, physical and laser scientists using the UK’s new synchrotron, Diamond Light Source, the ISIS neutron source and the Central Laser Facility (CLF). All major research facilities on the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory site are owned by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
Diamond uses light (x-rays) and ISIS uses neutron beams to tell where atoms are and what they do at the microscopic level; the CLF’s interlocking laser systems act as molecular tweezers to grab hold of and manipulate molecular fragments.
Laboratory space
The Research Complex at Harwell (RCaH) aims to provide a space where scientists from different disciplines, such as chemistry, biology and physics, can work together to make new discoveries, which frequently happens at the boundaries between the traditional scientific subjects.
The Medical Research Council, who will manage the RCaH, led the project on behalf of Research Councils UK, in partnership with the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), STFC and Diamond.
“Our project is situated immediately adjacent to the Diamond Light Source on the area of the campus known as Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL). This is one of the most prestigious research campuses in the country and research here is constantly making national news. Throughout our commission we have been aware of the significance of this building, with its prime location, as a symbol of scientific innovation, which we have endeavoured to express in the architectural design. “Laboratory buildings in general use large amounts of energy since none of the conditioned and tempered air can be re-used. We and Hoare Lea were keen to demonstrate that significant energy reductions could be achieved in this type of building and STFC, being a huge energy consumer, has taken the opportunity to demonstrate that it is playing its part in the international effort to cut carbon emissions. STFC actually provided additional funds to pay for the Earth Tube and the monitoring equipment.“
John Bleach, Architect and Team Leader, Nightingale Associates
The Research Complex, like other Nightingale Associates and Hoare Lea projects, follows a philosophy of continuing innovation and sustainable building design. Among other energy-saving initiatives, some of the more notable features include a mechanical ventilation system which incorporates an underground ‘earth tube’ through which air is drawn to feed the air handling units. Thermal interaction with the ground, at the walls of the earth tube, reduces the air temperature in the summer and increases it during the winter, reducing the net energy load required by the air handling units. Measuring equipment has been installed to enable the client to monitor the effectiveness of the system. This particular installation is thought to be one of the largest of its kind to have been installed with a lab building.
The Earth Tubes
Other energy-saving features include heat recovery at all fume extracts, face velocity reductions at fume hoods, natural ventilation of the offices incorporating night-time cooling, solar control glazing and shading, an automatic lighting system incorporating passive infra-red detectors (PIR), PIRs to control local extract ventilation and water consumption in wcs, solar hot water heating, reduced U-values and increased air-tightness in the building envelope. A rainwater harvesting system has also been installed and Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS) was used as cement replacement in the concrete frame, thus reducing the embodied energy content of the concrete. Furthermore the temperature in most of the labs is allowed to increase from 21oC to 24oC during summer resulting in a significant reduction in energy consumption in summer months without loss of amenity.
Landscape design also makes use of recycled materials and plants have been selected to encourage biodiversity.
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