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Innovative construction work by Swindon-based building contractors E W Beard has helped The Kindersley Centre at Sheepdrove Organic Farm, Berkshire,to win a special ‘Sustainability’ award from the Civic Trust.
The award – one of only 19 given by the Civic Trust this year – recognises the centre’s many eco-friendly features,which include a 450mm-thick rammed chalk wall insulating one side of the £3.6m building.
E W Beard and the structural engineering team maximised the wall’s thermal mass by developing a chalk mixture that recycled three tonnes of chalk excavated from the building’s foundations.The mixture,which had to be prepared manually because it clogged conventional cement or paddle mixers,was applied in 150mm layers.
The Kindersley Centre is a purpose-built conference environment.Its largest meeting space,the soaring ‘Oak Room’,features nine timber arches that echo the cruck frame of a medieval long barn.
The nine-metre high arches are made from Douglas fir,and were lifted into place by crane,then bolted together using innovative timber engineering that minimised the need for metal connections.The spruce ply for the ceiling comes from managed forests.Outside,the walls are clad with cedar boarding and the roof tiles are made from cedar shingles.
The ridge of the building incorporates a bespoke full length roof light,which also forms part of the centre’s natural ventilation system.
“This project needed specialist skills and a team approach to problem-solving,”said Allan Bland,E W Beard Construction Director.
“Our construction team had to be adaptable and able to step back and think laterally.We also had to work closely with many different trades and suppliers to ensure that each stage of the project kept to schedule.
The Kindersley Centre was commissioned by publishers and environmental campaigners Peter and Juliet Kindersley,who saw its creation as a way of promoting organic farming and sustainability. The building provides a variety of meeting and study spaces on two floors,and also accommodates an ecofriendly shop,organic kitchen and dining room,and farm offices.
The Kindersley Centre was one of 19 buildings to receive main awards in the Civic Trust’s 2005 environmental design awards,which attracted 364 entries.
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