New build residential development for Westminster City Council to provide 60 new housing units, 19 of which being for affordable tenure and 41 intended for private sale. The proposed building stands four storey tall, with a basement car park and resident communal garden landscape amenities.
CBG’s involvement in the scheme started at pre-planning stage. A Stage 3 package of works was required to aid the client’s submission for planning approval. Working as an integral part of the wider design team, CBG were responsible for producing a full M&E design package, including investigating the optimum car park ventilation, energy centre design, services distribution and metering strategies. Additional services included production of an overheating analysis and energy strategy statement to submit as part of the London Plan report, working closely with the project architect, structural engineer, landscaping architect and other members of the design team.
Following approval from the local planning authority, CBG aided the client with the tendering process by reviewing tender submissions and offering technical advisory role services to the client.
Upon appointment of the successful contractor, CBG were successfully appointed, along with the rest of the client’s team of design consultants, to further develop the detailed design of the scheme through RIBA Stages 4 – 7. Works involved with the development of the previous Stage 3 package included façade assessment to carry out SAP and EPC calculations to validate planning discharge conditions, integration of cooling and sprinkler systems into the scheme, standardised residential utility cupboard design and high level co-ordination of the services with developing structural and architectural details.
This project utilised BIM and CBG produced the M&E design package using Revit in line with the BIM Execution Plan.
Winner – Westminster Business Council Awards 2023 (Category: Built Environment Excellence)
Photographer – Tim Crocker
Paradise Depot New Build Scheme, Dacorum Borough Council
The scheme looks to redevelop the Paradise Depot site to provide affordable housing which will consist of a new apartment block of 56 one and two-bedroom homes and the site will include cycle and scooter storage and a residents’ garden. The Paradise Depot scheme is part of the council’s target to build 350 homes by 2026.
The homeless charity DENS currently resides at the Paradise Depot site and plans are also to include rehousing the charity into a brand new two story building. The charity supports individuals who are facing homelessness, poverty, and social exclusion to help rebuild their lives.
CBG Consultants were appointed to provide performance design and mechanical, electrical, public health, and sustainability consultancy services. Potential sustainability options proposed on the development include the use of air source heat pumps to provide renewable energy.
Images: rg+p architects
Marden Court, Calne
The project involves the conversion of 25 bedsits including ancillary communal facilities into 16 one bed self-contained flats. The client recognised the need to increase housing for residents over the age of 50 with the additional benefit of improving the local area. The former sheltered housing building itself had been left unoccupied and derelict over many years and a complete refurbishment was required to bring it back into use.
The proposed strategy was to provide new mechanical and electrical services to suit the new internal layouts. The M&E scheme has allowed for each flat to be completely standalone, resulting in separate domestic small power, domestic lighting, electric radiators, hot water cylinders and metering for each flat.
Images – Oxford Architects
River House, Oxfordshire
River House is a new build private house situated on the banks of the Thames in South Oxfordshire.
Replacing the existing 1970s bungalow with a three-storey building that included five bedrooms, an open-plan living area and a swimming pool. The client’s brief was to have a modern dwelling with a strong environmental focus of which it had to meet the Code of Sustainable Homes Level 4 standard.
CBG Consultants were appointed to undertake the mechanical and electrical design works and modelling of the building to optimise orientation, glazing, energy strategy and energy predictions.
Several elements that were incorporated in the very low energy strategy design of the house included:
Bullmarsh Close is a development of three new build residential 2-bedroom bungalows set in the pleasant grounds of Middleton Stoney Village. The development was commissioned by Cherwell District Council to provide high quality affordable housing.
The development is built to a very high standard with Passivhaus principles. The initial design phase and Energy Statement highlighted the opportunities afforded by a low energy philosophy and the team identified the advantages of the Passivhaus Low Energy Building Standard. This standard aims to achieve much of the full Passivhaus accreditation standards, without significant concerns over the additional expertise needed for construction professionals that are very important for a full certification.
The lessons learnt from the scheme are that Passivhaus is a very strict methodology, and many professionals are still learning the software and system which highlights our level of proficiency within the industry in comparison to some other (perhaps smaller) consultancies and architects. Similarly, the level of M&E design detail and information is much more involved and precise.
The Passivhaus solution has provided a highly insulated and airtight building allowing the use of electric radiators and MVHR ventilation to achieve a very simple and low energy use building. The hot water is provided by air source heat pump renewable energy to provide a low carbon domestic hot water source.
The overall scheme and resulting project are great to see and the quality is evident from visiting site.
For the past 15 years, Network Homes have undertaken the refurbishment and regeneration of the Stockwell Park Estate as part of their commitment following the successful transfer from Lambeth Council.
Located near the recently completed Civic Trust award-winning Stockwell Hall of Fame scheme, Tyler House is one of the last buildings to undergo improvement work. The project comprised of the refurbishment and vertical extension of an existing 1950’s built, 48 dwelling development.
CBG were involved in the M&E design of the refurbishment works for the existing 3 floors and designing the M&E requirements for the 2 new floors.
The project commenced with intrusive surveys of the existing infrastructure and distribution of services, specifically gas water and electricity, and re-designing a more efficient and compliant strategy to allow individual metering with minimal impact on the occupation as some of the flats were occupied during the works. CBG designed enough capacity for the extra 2 floors that were being built above the current 3 storey building, providing a design that safely maintained the provision of power, water and gas to the occupied premises whilst serving the new build upper floors was a priority.
Significant challenges were successfully overcome at an early stage in relation to the safe relocation of some leaseholders and residents, who were engaged by the design team as stakeholders through a series of tenant consultation meetings. Re-design of the internal areas meant the management of mobilisation and transitional arrangements for some occupants whilst others were able to remain in their flats.
Following appointment of the successful tenderer, CBG were retained by them to carry out the developed design in BIM Level 2 (to RIBA Stage 4C) and the construction stage services for the project, working closely with the contractor and rest of the design team.
Working with TateHindle and East Suffolk Council, our brief was to develop options for a highly sustainable development designed to Zero Carbon and Passivhaus standards to provide much needed affordable housing.
The proposed scope of work is to demolish the existing school and provide 61 new build dwellings. These dwellings will be a mixture of apartments and houses spread across a number of blocks, the homes would be eco-friendly, energy efficient with reduced running costs to address the issue of fuel poverty and help towards climate change targets. The school’s existing hall will be retained as an amenity space.
Principles of energy conservation were considered right from the start of the design process. This meant that the massing of the dwellings could be influenced to minimise the exposed surface area of external walls and roofs.
The dwellings will be fully electric, with no gas connection meaning they can operate without the use of fossil fuel. Heating to the larger homes will be delivered using air source heat pumps, for smaller dwellings the heat loss will be reduced to the point where direct electric heating can be operated with suitably low running costs.
To minimise the winter heat losses, the dwellings have been designed to be extremely airtight with continuous insulation. A potential drawback of this is the increased risk of summertime overheating. To address this risk, extensive dynamic modelling was completed which resulted in windows being provided with carefully sized shading devices designed to welcome useful winter sun and exclude excessive solar gains in heat waves.
As per the Passivhaus methodology, the intention is to use mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, so the air leaving the dwellings gives up its heat to the incoming fresh air.
Collaborating with potential service users – including those experiencing homelessness – the building had been designed as a calm and functional environment, with a provision for dogs and a mix of different spaces including private space.
Floyds Row will provide assessment services and shelter for up to 60 people experiencing homelessness or at risk of rough sleeping. 20 spaces will be temporary shelter of up to a week for people whose needs are being assessed, with another 20 beds reserved for people who have been assessed and are engaging with services to find suitable move on accommodation. The remaining beds will be winterlong emergency accommodation available to anyone experiencing homelessness.
In addition to the range of accommodation, the building offers washing facilities, kitchens, treatment rooms, and intensive support to help people move on from a life on the streets.
CBG designed all mechanical and electrical services for the new facility, ranging from boiler replacement, hot and cold water, power, lighting, fire alarm, security, and brand new purpose-built ventilation system.
The project was completed and opened just two months before the pandemic struck, and had to be temporarily re-purposed as a triage centre because residents could not isolate safely in the building.
His Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex visited the completed project in May 2021 and heard how the council had forged new partnerships to provide COVID-safe accommodation in hotels and student rooms, and how Floyds Row was and continues to be an integral part of the recovery from the pandemic.
Images supplied by Jessop and Cook & Cyrus Mower Photography
Castlemaine House, St James’s Place, London
CBG Consultants provided consultancy services for several projects at Castlemaine House, a boutique 1950s apartment block overlooking Green Park.
The initial project was the refurbishment of the duplex penthouse apartment. This included renewal of mechanical and electrical installations, and installation of new air conditioning. The apartment is rented out to international tenants, so the M&E services were carefully designed with future flexibility in mind.
Our involvement in the building led to several follow-on projects, both within some of the apartments, and upgrades to the landlord infrastructure. These included renewal of the central water distribution system with provision of a new boosted main, replacement of the original electrical rising busbar system, and upgrades to main plant.
The landlord upgrade works included consultations with the leaseholders, requiring sensitive presentation of our technical proposals to gain the trust and cooperation of them.
CBG were engaged early in the project’s inception for a new high specification residential dwelling with a keen architectural focus and excellent energy performance.
CBG attended design team meetings with the architect and client to obtain a clear brief with desires and aspirations from the client regarding their new home. It provided an excellent opportunity to engage with the client and set clear goals. It also paved the way for more accurate preliminary design options and proposals that could be discussed with the client and the team.
The project involved challenges due to the remote location of the site and analyses were completed comparing the advantages and disadvantages for remote gas and water supplies versus mains network suppliers. The design focused on high thermal insulation performance to reduce loads and allowed for a very small gas boiler plant requirement. Thermal performance is further bolstered by adoption of underfloor heating for low flow and return temperatures and improved boiler efficiencies. Underfloor heating also contributes to excellent thermal comfort and suits the thermal mass of the building. Ventilation is provided via 2 MVHR systems for optimal efficiency and thermal modelling was carried out to influence and guide all design decisions and clarify future performance metrics. Low-e glazing was specified to mitigate solar gains and opening windows allow for summertime natural ventilation.
Low energy LED lighting rounds out the simple and efficient M&E design philosophy. The avoidance of high cost complex systems makes for an easy to use, low maintenance and very economical solution. M&E space requirements are minimised increasing usable space. A focus on good daylighting and excellent performance minimises loads reducing running costs.
The result is a modern high quality, highly efficient, low maintenance, low running cost, high end residential property.