The hidden benefits to recycled modular buildings

Mike Williams examines case studies where such solutions are used to provide high quality education facilities.

The use of recycled modular buildings continues to increase as more schools and local authorities recognise the cost, sustainability and quality benefits of this highly innovative solution to providing new teaching accommodation – particularly in these challenging economic times.

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      string(5795) "18 Learning Spaces  Volume 1:3Modular buildingswww.teachingtimes.comMike Williams looks at how recycledand refurbished modular buildings areincreasingly being used to providequality education facilities. He alsooffers some practical advice forprocuring a pre-owned modularbuildingMeeting the demand fornew school places –recycledmodularbuildings 19 Volume 1:3  Learning SpacesModular buildingswww.teachingtimes.comThe use of recycled modular buildings continuesto increase as more schools and local authoritiesrecognise the cost, sustainability and qualitybenefits of this highly innovative solution toproviding new teaching accommodation – particularlyin these challenging economic times.Over the past five years, there has been a significantincrease in the demand for recycled modular buildingsin the education sector, and the approach is now beingwidely used to provide teaching facilities of the higheststandards for both primary and secondary schools,academies and further education.So why would schools consider a pre-owned modularbuilding?The Advantages of Recycled ModularBuildingsThis more innovative approach to construction offers arange of practical benefits:Programme times can be reduced by up to 70per cent – It is faster than new manufacture andconsiderably faster than site-based constructionmethods, allowing education providers to meet placeplanning issues more quickly.Safety is improved and disruption to teaching duringconstruction is much less because the buildingsare reconfigured and fully refurbished off site.  Themodule cranage can also be easily timed to coincidewith school holidays.Because buildings are constructed from modulesthat are pre-owned, this is a highly cost-effectivesolution, which enables schools to benefit fromlarger buildings or a higher specification for the samebudget as new build.As with other off-site building methods, large openplan areas can be created for lecture theatres, diningrooms, laboratories and classroom blocks up to threestories high, configured as stand-alone buildings orextensions to existing facilities.Architectural features can be incorporated into thedesign with the use of a wide range of cladding,glazing, roofing and other options.  Schemes can bedesigned to complement existing facilities or to makea visual statement.Because work off site is maximised, the approachis ideal for constrained school sites, which may nothave the access or storage space for the heavy plant,equipment and materials needed for traditional site-based construction.A Highly Sustainable Approach toConstructionPre-owned modular buildings are one of the mostenvironmentally sound methods of construction, anda highly sustainable alternative to new build, with nocompromise on quality.■■■■■■The approach generates less than 10 per cent of thecarbon emissions compared to a newly manufacturedbuilding of equivalent size (source: Modular and PortableBuilding Association).  This is also a sustainable alternativeto the demolition and disposal of buildings in landfill sites,which has significant environmental implications.As much of the refurbishment work takes place off-site,the approach generates fewer vehicle movements to sitethan traditional new build – reducing noise, congestionand carbon emissions. The approach is also very thermallyefficient.  In England, tests for air permeability on recycledmodular buildings are not compulsory.  However, inindependent tests, Foremans recycled modular buildingshave performed up to 80 per cent better than BuildingRegulations requirements.  This means reduced energyconsumption and lower running costs and carbonemissions.How the Approach WorksIt is important to note that only the steel buildingstructure is recycled.  All fitting out is as new. Therecycled modular buildings are fully refurbished withnew windows, wall linings, partitions, mechanical andelectrical services, doors, flooring and cladding, tocreate high quality accommodation for a wide varietyof education applications.Once a modular building has been identified for useby a school or local authority, it is reconfigured andrefurbished to individual project requirements. It isthen delivered to site where it is craned into positionin just a few days, ready for final fitting out, testing andcommissioning. Recycled and refurbished modularbuildings can be hired or purchased for flexibility infinancing – and a buy-back option can be agreed, givingschools and local authorities a convenient disposalmechanism should capacity requirements change andthe building become surplus to requirements.  Thisfurther extends the life cycle of modular and portablebuildings.Case Study – Wymondham AcademyA dedicated sixth form centre is now in use atWymondham High – a new academy in Norfolk. Thescheme has been constructed using a sustainablerecycled modular building.  It was completed ahead ofschedule, reducing the programme from receipt of orderto less than three months.Designed by architects NPS South East, the projectmarks the start of a significant new phase in the historyof the school.  In line with Government policy to increasethe number of academies across the UK, WymondhamHigh now has Academy status.The additional teaching accommodation was neededas the school caters for over 1,600 pupils, with 400 inthe sixth form from the start of the 2011/12 academicyear and plans are in place to increase pupil numbersto 2,000.20 Learning Spaces  Volume 1:3Modular buildingswww.teachingtimes.comA Collaborative Approach to DesignA collaborative approach was taken to the design ofthe new building.  The most"
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Learning Spaces

LS1.3_p18-23_Meeting the demands for new school places

26 Sep 2012

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      string(5846) "82Vol 4.4School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comSchool BusinessSchoolBuildingsRefurbishedmodular buildings:Your flexiblefriendA sudden increase in the intake of pupils can oftenleave your school stretched for facilities and strain yourteaching standards. What you want is cheap, flexible andsustainable. What you get is costly, disruptive and timeconsuming. Mike Williams has another way.The use of recycled modular buildings continues to increase as moreschools and local authorities recognise the cost, sustainability andquality benefits of this highly innovative solution to providingnew teaching accommodation – particularly in these challengingeconomic times.Over the past five years, there has been a significant increase in thedemand for recycled modular buildings in the education sector, and theapproach is now being widely used to provide teaching facilities of the higheststandards for both primary and secondary schools, academies and furthereducation.So why would schools consider a pre-owned modular building?83Vol 4.4School Leadership Todaywww.teachingtimes.comSchool BusinessSchoolBuildingsThe Advantages of Recycled Modular BuildingsThis more innovative approach to construction offers a range of practical benefits:Programme times can be reduced by up to 70 per cent – It is faster than newmanufacture and considerably faster than site-based construction methods,allowing education providers to meet place planning issues more quickly.Safety is improved and disruption to teaching during construction is much lessbecause the buildings are reconfigured and fully refurbished off site. The modulecranage can also be easily timed to coincide with school holidays.Because buildings are constructed from modules that are pre-owned, this isa highly cost-effective solution, which enables schools to benefit from largerbuildings or a higher specification for the same budget as new build.As with other off-site building methods, large open plan areas can be createdfor lecture theatres, dining rooms, laboratories and classroom blocks up to threestories high, configured as stand-alone buildings or extensions to existing facilities.Architectural features can be incorporated into the design with the use of a widerange of cladding, glazing, roofing and other options. 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This is alsoa sustainable alternativeto the demolition anddisposal of buildingsin landfill sites,which has significantenvironmentalimplications.As much of therefurbishment worktakes place off-site, the approachgenerates fewervehicle movementsto site than traditionalnew build – reducingnoise, congestion and carbon emissions. Theapproach is also very thermally efficient. InEngland, tests for air permeability on recycledmodular buildings are not compulsory.However, in independent tests, Foremansrecycled modular buildings have performedup to 80 per cent better than BuildingRegulations requirements. This meansreduced energy consumption and lowerrunning costs and carbon emissions.How the Approach WorksIt is important to note that only the steel building structure is recycled. All fitting out isas new. The recycled modular buildings are fully refurbished with new windows, walllinings, partitions, mechanical and electrical services, doors, flooring and cladding, tocreate high quality accommodation for a wide variety of education applications.Once a modular building has been identified for use by a school or local authority,it is reconfigured and refurbished to individual project requirements. It is thendelivered to site where it is craned into position in just a few days, ready for final fittingout, testing and commissioning. Recycled and refurbished modular buildings can behired or purchased for flexibility in financing – and a buy-back option can be agreed,giving schools and local authorities a convenient disposal mechanism should capacityrequirements change and the building become surplus to requirements. This furtherextends the life cycle of modular and portable buildings.Case Study – Wymondham AcademyA dedicated sixth form centre is now in use at Wymondham High – anew academy in Norfolk. The scheme has been constructed using asustainable recycled modular building. It was completed ahead ofschedule, reducing the programme from receipt of order to less thanthree months.Designed by architects NPS South East, the project marks the startof a significant new phase in the history of the school. In line withGovernment policy to increase the number of academies across theUK, Wymondham High now has Academy status.The additional teaching accommodation was needed as theschool caters for over 1,600 pupils, with 400 in the sixth form fromthe start of the 2011/12 academic year and plans are in place toincrease pupil numbers to 2,000.A Collaborative Approach to"
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Leadership

Refurbished modular buildings: Your flexible friend

26 Nov 2012

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      string(5640) "have the maximum impactin the short term. Of eight key issues which theschool faced in curriculum delivery and pastoralorganisation, the provision of modern sportingfacilities was identified as providing greatestimmediate value. On a restricted secondary schoolsite participation in sport, with all its health benefits,is of great importance and the school lacked thequality sports spaces – both internal and external– to promote and inspire this. Provision of a newsports hall would also allow future demolition ofan existing undersized gym building which wasestimated to be the most expensive element inthe school to refurbish and therefore the school’sleast valuable building. Location of the new facilityat the front of the school would provide a buildingthat could later form the centrepiece of a SportsVillage, in combination with external courts createdon available open space to the rear. Using thebudget to create a significant single facility wouldprovide greater impact than piecemeal smallerinterventions, which might easily be lost in latermajor alterations. The location would also have ahigh public profile to promote and invite extra-curricular use by the community.Only limited funding was available however;the combined capital budget included smallsums contributed by the council, the school andSport England. The most basic brick box sportshall containing the same facilities would normallycost one and a half times this amount. Various lesssatisfactory options were considered to address theshortfall, including reducing the facilities providedand locating the changing rooms elsewhere onthe school premises. At the same time the schoolwere increasingly concerned about the disturbancethat would be created by a large building beingconstructed in close proximity to their operatingeducational facilities. During conversation betweenSCABAL and a specialist contractor, Urban SpaceManagement (USM), a solution became evidentwhich would dramatically cut both costs andbuilding time and at the same time addresssustainability and architectural quality through the use of recycledshipping containers in a modular form of construction. In proposing thisdesign solution they proposed an innovative method through whichto procure the building – an early and close collaboration through anegotiated Design and Build contract with USM, a contractor who hadprevious experience of construction using shipping containers and aworkshop where they could be modified. Through this method theconstruction of the building was also moved primarily off-site.There is a clear rationale for using sea containers. A surplus of goodsimported into the UK over those exported results in more containersarriving than leaving the country. Because it is not consideredeconomically viable to return empty containers many stand obsoleteand there is a surplus of them cheaply available.Innovative MethodFrom the outset the commitment and close partnering-stylecollaboration established between SCABAL, the design team and USMbenefitted the whole project and led to continual design improvementswithout impacting on the programme. Significant creative developmentsincluded the introduction of the upper level viewing galleries and thedecision to install a lift – making these accessible to all. A change to thefoundation design from concrete planks to a slab, made necessary by thesupplier going into liquidation, was able to be dealt with quickly withoutaffecting the programme. One concession to budget constraints was thedecision to fit out only the viewing galleries at the first floor level at thisstage. However, construction of the lift and staircase which access thetop layer of containers would allow more gallery space to be fitted outor other spaces to be added for use on the second floor at a later date.Construction of the whole 1,200 m2 project involved only four monthsof work on the school site. The containers were modified, the cut-out Learning Spaces  Volume 1:1  Volume 1:1  Learning SpacesCase studywww.teachingtimes.comCase studywww.teachingtimes.comProject DUNRAVEN SPORTS HALLDunraven Secondary School, Upper School Site,94-98 Leigham Court Road, Streatham,London SW16 22BArchitect / Employer’s Agent  SCABALTEAMDunraven SchoolDavid Boyle, Principal; Micon Metcalfe, Finance DirectorProgramme ManagerSylvester Eyong, London Borough of LambethMain contractorUrban Space ManagementStructural EngineerThe Furness PartnershipQuantity SurveyorKeegansMechanical EngineerCBG ConsultantsElectrical EngineerCBG ConsultantsCDM co-ordinatorBaily Garner H&SProcurement Design and Build Contract (JCT DB05)ProgrammeOff site prefabrication: July – October 2008Groundworks on site: July – August 2008Delivery and erection on site: November 2008 – three daysFit out on site: November 2008 – March 2009Accommodation Three-storey sports hall building: 1200 m2Full-height 4 court (18m x 33m) hall: 600 m2Ground floor girls and boys hanging rooms: 150 m2First floor gym and viewing gallery: 230 m2Second floor viewing gallery without fit-out: 220 m2openings formed, the exterior decorated and theinterior partially fitted out off site at USM’s workshopin London’s docklands. Following a month of initialgroundworks, all thirty of the adapted shippingcontainers were delivered to site and craned intoplace straight from the lorry in less than three days.Installation of the lift and stairs and the final fit outand finishing was then the only work to be completedon site. The good communications and a flexibleapproach by the whole team enabled the"
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Learning Spaces

Case Study: Re-cycled architecture

22 Feb 2011

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      string(5647) "The demand for off-site construction continues to increase in every sector. There are more specialist contractors in the UK than ever before. It is therefore essential when you select an off-site partner to evaluate the most appropriate and effective solution for each project. School managers should consider the contractor’s experience in the schools sector, how to achieve high standards of architecture, the contractor’s commitment to customer service, their consistency of delivery on programme and to the agreed cost – and how the impact of construction on the environment can be minimised.10 Tips for Selecting an Off-site Specialist1. Assessing an off-site partnerIf a project is a major scheme, does the contractor have the capacity required, when you need it?Look at their financial stability, R&D resources, health and safety record, technical back-up and project management expertise. Does the contractor have a zero tolerance policy in place for defects?2. Look at the contractor’s track recordThe off-site contractor should have relevant experience in your sector, and be familiar with all the operational and technical issues and your specialist requirements. Talk to other local authorities and schools that have used the system and visit completed buildings. Always take up references.3. How much of the contractor’s business is from repeat customers?This is a key indicator of a company’s track record for delivery on time, its commitment to quality and customer service. It should be in excess of 50 per cent – and ideally around 70 per cent. 4. What percentage of projects have been delivered on time and on budget?Time and cost overruns are still a major concern for school building projects. Off-site construction should significantly improve time and cost predictability -and reduce your risk. Ask for statistics that show what percentage of building projects have been delivered on time and on budget, ideally over the past five years. This will be a good indicator of a contractor’s performance, and allow you to make a comparison between off-site specialists – helping you to further reduce risk. As a benchmark, my firm Yorkon increased the number of its projects delivered on time and on budget from 94 per cent to 99 per cent in 2008.5. Independent approvalsLook for independent endorsements and approvals, and ask to see the certificates for verification. Some examples to consider are:Quality – ISO 9001 certification should be in place for the whole process, not just selected elementsFire – LPCB certification for fire resistanceAcousticsInsuranceBBA (British Board of Agrément) accreditationLABC approval6. Assess the contractor’s approach and commitment to sustainabilityThe use of off-site construction can help you achieve your school’s sustainability objectives. Some areas to consider in your choice of contractor are:Evidence of year-on-year improvements in waste and carbon emission reductions in the manufacturing process    Does the contractor have further energy saving targets in place?  Does the off-site specialist hold ISO 14001 accreditation? This is the internationally-recognised standard for reducing impact on the environmentIs the off-site contractor’s environmental policy in accordance with the Sustainability Charter issued by the Major Contractors Group?Does the off-site specialist encourage the use of renewable energy and low carbon technologies? Design options should include passive ventilation, rainwater harvesting, ground and air source heat pumps, and biomass heatingDoes the contractor have the resources and expertise to value engineer the design of your building to maximise energy efficiency over its life cycle?Request and compare test results achieved for completed buildings to assess the air permeability and ventilation performance for each building system. Do the results meet or exceed Building Regulations Part L and Part F?  Is the building system future proof? The teaching spaces should be easy to reconfigure and any internal walls should not be load-bearing, in order to meet the school’s changing needs over time.7. What, if any, warranties apply to the modular system?A comprehensive five-year product warranty to cover the external fabric of the building and a 20-year structural warranty for the load-bearing elements should come as standard for all modular buildings.  All warranties should be in addition to independent certification from the BBA.8. Look for best valueEnsure you are comparing cost estimates that are like for like – and that you are looking for best value for your organisation. Look for reduced risk, faster completion, lower running costs, lower maintenance and longevity.9. How will the project be managed?Does the contractor have adequate site supervision in place? How flexible is the off-site specialist? Can work on site be timed to coincide with school holidays? Is the manufacturer willing to work with your team or project architect on design detailing to achieve your aesthetic and practical requirements?  10. Monitor and evaluateFollowing completion, was the project delivered on time and to budget? If not, why not? Use this information and the lessons learned for setting the specifications for your next project.The use of modern methods of construction, such as off-site building systems, can help schools achieve their sustainability objectives with all the other speed, quality, architectural design and efficiency benefits associated with off-site construction – and can add considerable"
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Learning Spaces

10 things to bear in mind when seeking an offsite contractor

8 Aug 2016

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