Case study: Mackellar Architecture

[Tristan_Parker]

Mackellar Architecture is a Tyneside-based medium-sized chartered practice, with a multi-faceted approach, having taken a policy decision to broaden the base of its activity more than ten years ago.

Primarily, the firm focuses on urban design and large-scale masterplanning (as well as transport architecture accessibility, health and community care buildings, and conservation projects), and aims to constantly build upon the ever-increasing knowledge base surrounding sustainability, refurbishment and low/zero carbon housing.

Over the last decade, the practice has advanced from early implementations of sustainability measures (such as solar thermal and rainwater harvesting) to an approach which sees these concerns more fully integrated into construction techniques and product development, whereby factors such as sourcing local materials and waste reduction are included alongside more ‘traditional’ energy efficiency measures, such as insulation and renewable energy technologies. The company has also worked with BRE (the Building and Research Establishment), adopting its ‘fabric first, renewables second’ approach in its quest for carbon reduction.

John Burns is Mackellar’s Director, and he explains that many of the firm’s early sustainability projects involved using energy efficient technologies for a variety social housing clients, including programmes for Durham County Council and Hanover Housing.

More recently, Mackellar has undertaken significant consultancy work, and has been addressing sustainable development and low energy buildings through this channel, where they have been involved in zero-carbon homes training and seminar events on sustainable refurbishment; a factor which John sees as crucial to achieving a low carbon economy, though he warns that this opportunity must be fully exploited and supported by additional financial backing: “At first we seem to be only taking the lowest-hanging fruit of cavity wall and loft insulation measures. I see the wasted opportunities of improving ventilation and air-tightness in the Decent Homes Programme as regrettable. The practice strongly advocates the adoption of low interest bank loans for energy efficiency improvements to the fabric and for renewables on the German model, which is for low interest loans often repayable from the energy saving achieved.”

Like many others, John is a stern advocate of reducing carbon within the built environment, but is sceptical about the government’s goal of an 80% cut in emissions by 2050. Though measures are being taken, he says, more needs to be done and at an accelerated rate:

“The easiest and most cost effective steps have begun to be taken but at a pace behind many European and Asian countries, squandering the opportunity identified by the Stern Review for the UK to seize an international lead. There would be advantages in a more rapid movement to adopt higher building regulation standards in the forthcoming review, and also to accelerate the Code for existing buildings now in development, but major change may only occur with the introduction of carbon taxation, which seems to be a distant prospect – but with increasing levels of taxation now forecast, this may gain impetus.”

John explains that a widespread adjustment in lifestyle and behaviour is necessary in order for low carbon issues to be properly tackled, and although architectural practices may be at the forefront of the knowledge base, this recognition is not always shared by the clients with which these firms work. This in itself, says John, represents a need for understanding on a large scale: “It would be heartening to believe that younger generations understand this better, but we have found acceptance of climate change itself to be less widespread than envisaged, highlighting a need for greater emphasis in education of built environment professionals and the public in general.”

When asked about Mackellar’s attitude to sustainable design and advice for fellow architects and designers wishing to adopt such measures, John offers insightful suggestions which will surely become ingrained into the standard model of building practices in the near future. He explains that Mackellar see low carbon/sustainable building as an ethos which should be automatically adopted out of good practice when designing any environment, rather than a specialist way of thinking. If the government’s targets are to be achieved, then it seems inevitable for sustainable design to become a base factor of all and any building projects, not just a selection of token efforts to show what, in theory, can be achieved.

John elaborates on what he sees as important details of this approach: “This would include a close attention to the existing characteristics of the site slope, orientation, natural environment and context, so that buildings become a response to this context as well as performing their functional, constructional and aesthetic parameters. Undoubtedly, function aspects must now take cognises of daylighting and ventilation needs to reduce reliance on supplementary systems, and increasingly we may need to understand more closely the physics of earlier building types in other climates to create some closer harmonies.”