Product category:
Electrical Services
News Release from: Hills Electrical and Mechanical | Subject: Southport Eco-Centre
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 10 November 2004
Energy Saving Building Services For
Eco-Centre
The Liverpool Regional Centre of Hills Electrical and Mechanical plc has completed the installation of environmentally friendly building services for the Southport Eco-Centre.
Situated on the Esplanade one mile south west of Southport town centre, the new building doubles as a park-and-ride facility and an educational resource for visitors and local school children There is extensive car parking and regular bus services connect the town centre and other out of town park-and-rides
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 31 Oct 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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Built using blockwork clad in European redwood for the elegantly curved walls and aluminium sheeting for the roof, the single storey Eco-Centre uses a range of energy-saving building services, including a wind-powered electrical generator and borehole water heating.
Designed for Sefton Borough Council by leading low-energy architects Cass Associates, the 80m x 30m building houses a main concourse for passengers, reception, classroom, toilets, bus drivers' lounge, Shopmobility centre and plant room.
Hills, together with Environmental Design Consultants, was responsible for the complete building services installation, including lighting, fire alarms, heating and data communications.
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Business as usual for Royal Opera House in London's Covent Garden despite the presence of a giant mobile telescopic crane brought in by Hills Electrical and Mechanica to lift new standby generators.
Hills partnered with main contractor Kier Northwest to secure the project and value engineered the services - which had been partially designed by building services consultants Fulcrum Consulting - to meet the client's ?250,000 budget.
While the biggest visual clue to the building's environmental credentials is the wind turbine, this is just one of its energy efficient features.
The turbine generates a maximum of 20kVA, and when its output exceeds demand the excess is fed back to the National Grid through a special two-way panel.
A display in the main concourse shows the electricity generated by the wind turbine.
Electrical distribution is by a main 250A switchboard and three local 100A distribution boards.
Space heating everywhere other than the main concourse is by underfloor pipework fed with water warmed to 54 degrees F by subterranean rocks accessed via eight 20m deep boreholes sunk around the perimeter of the building.
The glass-fronted concourse is heated by three electric warm air blowers located at high level in the concourse and three door curtains.
Cooling in summer is by natural ventilation through high and low louvres, helped by the 250mm concrete floor slab which provides thermal mass to moderate internal temperatures.
Domestic hot water is heated by roof-mounted solar panels, supplemented by a 6kW electric calorifier.
Rainwater collected from the roof is used to flush the toilets and lighting uses energy efficient high frequency dimmable fluorescent light sources and PIR occupancy detectors.
The classroom has power and Internet access sockets for PCs around the perimeter in dado trunking, and all data cabling is connected via a hub in the office to a BT fibreoptic communications backbone.
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