What is Sustainable Construction?

People often ask what is sustainability? What is sustainable construction? And why do we need this?

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Why the need for change and sustainability?

The built environment shapes how we live our lives and is at the heart of our economy. The way we use natural resources, the effect that pollution from making these materials has on our environment and in the use of buildings once they are occupied is unsustainable. All of these influence our environment as well as traditional buildings that consume vast amounts of energy, thus burning more fossil fuels with inevitable damage to our climate.
However, the knowledge exists to create buildings that minimise these environmental effects and provide more healthy spaces for their occupants with lesser cost.

What is Sustainable Construction?

There is no strict definition of sustainable construction but the over view of this can be taken to mean “construction which has minimal impact on the environment”
Sustainable construction can include the following:

A building that is energy and carbon efficient, minimising energy consumption
A building that leaves the smallest environmental footprint as possible
A building constructed to use minimal waste in its construction or re-use of existing on-site materials
A building designed to use less water consumption through, for example, more efficient appliances
A building constructed with good access to public transport in mind
A building that harnesses the use of recycling and composting for ease of occupants
Sustainable Development

Why Use LiteBox Architecture?

We are an experienced Chartered CIAT Architectural Practice that has carried out many kitchen extensions in all types of different homes for the last 27 years
We have Professional Indemnity Insurance and Public Liability Insurance (we are fully insured for all our work)
We have a portfolio of previous kitchen extensions
We have good reliable contact for local builders who can carry out your building work
Here at LiteBox we provide a fast friendly service for your kitchen extensions

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So How Can We Achieve Sustainable Construction?

There are some simple rules that we can follow to achieve sustainable construction within most projects:

Make the building as efficient as possible
Use local labour and suppliers
Re-use existing buildings as much as possible
Use local natural non-toxic materials or products
Prioritise on quality both inside and out

What are the Benefits of Sustainable construction?

There are many potential benefits to gain from implementing sustainable construction:

Financial injection into local communities’ economy
Local involvement
Potential to design for low future maintenance
Aesthetics – creating a building visually attractive
Innovation and interest from local people
Healthy living in your work and home environments
Financial injection into local communities’ economy

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So, if you have a sustainable construction project in mind get in touch today to book your FREE consultation on 0121 387 5900 or 0247 662 9192

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Implementing Green Energy

Green energy now plays a part in our energy consumption – so what is it? Green energy is energy that comes from renewable resources. Combined with energy efficiency improvements and sustainable construction this can help reduce our overall energy usage and aid climate change. These sources of energy can meet our future needs in a more sustainable manner.

Design Considerations for New or Refurbished Buildings

So how can we break these down in to smaller elements that we can implement in the construction or refurbishment of our buildings? These are some key sustainable and energy efficient design considerations to consider when designing your new or refurbished building:

Orientation – Taking advantage of the sun solar gains and ease of shading
Daylighting – Maximise the use of daylight
Insulation – Insulating above building regulations specification
Glazing – High performance glazing with higher U-values
Lighting – Dedicated energy efficient light fittings throughout the building
Heating Systems – Using highly efficient heating systems and heat recovery systems
Cooling – Adequate external shading or mixed mode air conditioning systems
Ventilation – Can the building be naturally ventilated partially or fully to reduce the need of cooling systems
Thermal Mass – Increased thermal mass to reduce the need for heating in a building
Energy Harvesting and Efficiency – Minimise total energy demand by using efficient devices
Water Harvesting and Efficiency – Re-using grey water and harvesting rainwater for other uses
Green Electricity – The use of green energy technology roof mounted solar panels (PV), wind turbines or consumers investing in renewable energy by purchasing “green electricity”
Solar Panels – Capture the suns energy by using photovoltaic cells solar panel electricity systems to run household appliances and lighting
Ground and Air Source Heat Pumps – Extract heat from either the ground or the air using electrically driven pumping systems to pass heat to radiators or underfloor pipes
Materials – Choosing sustainable, natural and locally sourced materials for your project
Acoustics – Improve the acoustic properties of the building
Health and Wellbeing – Provision of natural daylight and planting of native species to attract wildlife

These are the types of design consideration we try to incorporate here at LiteBox Architecture within our design stages to help create more sustainable building and help protect our environments future and reduce climate effects.

To discuss your project get in touch today on 0121 387 5900.

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What is Sustainable Construction? (c)Litebox Architecture

Updated: 13/10/2022

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