HLM Architects has won the AJ100 Sustainability Initiative of the Year 2022 award for its work on the Circular Twin Research and Development Project, an industry-wide initiative that places whole life carbon at the heart of design development.
The judges recognised the project as a convincing and realistic way forward for the industry post-Grenfell – an approach that could ‘overhaul and democratise procurement’ – while praising the systems approach to change, noting that ‘the Circular Twin research is designed to be taken directly to decision-makers in the Department for Education’ and is an easily replicable initiative that demonstrated dramatic savings.
Collaborating with partners Morgan Sindall, SCAPE, Cundall and Lungfish Architects, HLM set out to redesign an existing school to find out what would happen if carbon was put before capex. Every design decision was made with the lowest possible carbon implications in mind, with staggering results that proved the potential of a new, collaborative approach to design in helping the UK meet its net zero ambitions.
Responding positively to the climate emergency, the Circular Twin project demonstrated that almost cost-neutral, low carbon construction was hidden in plain sight by the industry’s reliance on traditional design and procurement approaches.
Results from the initiative show that early engagement and planning can allow simple changes to be made to create long-term carbon savings, and it is anticipated that the outcomes of research will be far reaching, giving prospective school clients, LCAs, Government Frameworks and other sector-specific, private, or public sector clients the power to achieve their sustainability goals.
For the project, a digital twin of a 2017 school built by Morgan Sindall was used to create a low-carbon alternative. The research involved commissioners, procurers, consultants, tier one contractors and 250 supply chain members to rethink project delivery by putting carbon reduction ahead of capital expenditure.
Using Morgan Sindall’s in-house carbon calculation tool CarboniCa, the digital twin achieved a greater than 70 per cent reduction in up-front embodied carbon and a 50 per cent reduction in annual energy consumption. The school design that resulted from the exercise also met both LETI and RIBA 2030 targets.
The judges recognised the project as a convincing and realistic way forward for the industry post-Grenfell – an approach that could ‘overhaul and democratise procurement’ – while praising the systems approach to change, noting that ‘the Circular Twin research is designed to be taken directly to decision-makers in the Department for Education’ and is an easily replicable initiative that demonstrated dramatic savings.
Karl Brown, Head of Sustainability at HLM, said: “Many in our industry are united in their commitment to helping the UK achieve its net zero goals and are making important strides in the design and delivery of projects nationwide, but we know that we have much further to go.
“Our research clearly shows the potential of what can be done and challenges current misconceptions that achieving low carbon construction isn’t possible, or is too difficult or costly. While we know that not to be true, we are faced with the issue that traditional procurement limits low-carbon construction. What we need is a dramatic rethink of project delivery to leverage the skills, knowledge, and insight from the whole supply chain to inform decisions early on in the process.
“This really is a process that anyone can follow and, if we follow by example, could lead to some significant low-carbon outcomes. Collaboration really is one of the most important steps towards net zero and the success of this project proves that.”
The Circular Twin team has already been approached by public and private clients, including major universities, about trials on further projects.
