Building Briefs – September 25th

A project developed by McLaughlin & Harvey has achieved the highest available BREEAM rating.

The Ayrshire College Kilmarnock Campus has received a rating of ‘Outstanding’ for the design stage.

The low energy building was designed on the basis of a ‘Fabric First Approach’.

Renewable technologies within the development include a 600kW biomass boiler, 330sq m of photovoltaic panels and a high efficiency cooling system using heat pumps.

First sod cut for new Midlothian primary school

The first sod has been cut marking the start of work on the new primary school at Gorebridge North.

The Gorebridge school, designed by AHR Architects and being built by Morrison Construction, will cater for up to 558 pupils with two classes in each primary year.

The school will cost around £8.9 million, the majority of which will come from developer’s contributions.

Set on land east of Whitehouse Way, the school will have an outdoor multi-use games area, changing rooms and sports pitch. It will also have facilities for community use.

The school is set to be completed by autumn 2016.

Work underway on £1.4m Argyll and Bute art centre

Work is underway on a new centre for an arts organisation in Argyll and Bute.

The £1.4 million Artist Centre is being developed for Cove Park to replace the current facility on Peaton Hill.

The project is being funded by Creative Scotland along with a number of trusts and individuals, including major awards from the Robertson and the Monument Trusts.

The new centre has been designed by architects CameronWebster and is being built by Clark Contracts.

The build includes two accommodation units and two studios, increasing Cove Park’s capacity to 12 and allowing a greater diversity of residencies for individuals and groups.

Contractors sought for social housing framework

Social housing landlord Home Group has started the hunt for contractors to deliver its £1 billion new-build programme over the next four years.

The framework agreement will be split into seven regional lots, including Scotland, with around 250 homes being delivered in each lot worth up to £143 million.

It is thought that five firms will be appointed to each region.

The present line-up of contractors includes CCG (Scotland), City Building (Contracts), Cruden, ISG, Keepmoat, Kier Scotland, Lovell Partnerships and Wates Living Space.

Firms have until 21 October to complete questionnaires, which are available from the procurement portal.

Transport minister opens Hillington Footbridge

The new £2.5 million Hillington footbridge has been officially opened this morning by transport minister Derek Mackay.

Scotland TranServ, on behalf of Transport Scotland, has managed the project on the M8 to replace the existing pedestrian footbridge with a new sustainable structure following a bridge strike.

The 200ft structure was lifted into its final position last weekend and not only provides a strategic link between the local communities of Hillington and Renfrew but is also a striking feature on the M8 landscape.

The £2.5m investment from Transport Scotland marks further improvement to the M8, which is one of Scotland’s major arterial routes which is celebrating 50 years in operation.

The new, sustainable footbridge is not only accessible to pedestrians as two, 377ft ramps provide much needed access for cyclists and less-abled users too.

There are 16 LED lights spanning the bridge which are more environmentally friendly and are expected to last up to 20 years. The deck of the bridge has also been lined with an anti-slip, waterproof coating to ensure it remains safe during adverse weather.

Dundee Waterfront development maintains impressive recycling record

The equivalent of a massive aircraft carrier’s weight in soil, debris and other material has been recycled as part of the latest contract at Dundee Waterfront.

A total of 99 per cent or 88,000 tonnes of excavated materials have been reused as part of the waterfront development or elsewhere in the city.

Around 53,000 tonnes of material has been crushed and reused on the site or in other council projects since contractors Sir Robert McAlpine started work on this phase of works in February 2014 while the remaining amount diverted from landfill and recycled for reuse in other local projects.

The current contract, which is expected to be completed early next year has seem constructing and completion of the northern and southern boulevards, the interconnected grid pattern of streets and associated underground infrastructure. It also includes the creation of the public open space and construction of a sustainable urban drainage system (SUDS) pond.

Cunninghame Housing Association completes £33.3m Vineburgh regeneration

Cunninghame Housing Association, working in partnership with North Ayrshire Council and the Scottish Government, has completed the regeneration of Vineburgh in Irvine.

The £33.3 million new build development initiative, delivered over four phases, has provided a total of 287 new homes.

The four completed phases have been delivered in close collaboration with the local community through a number of open days, consultation events and steering groups, allowing the design proposals to reflect the views and aspirations of those living in and around the area.

Sustainable design has also been a key consideration with high levels of insulation and a high performance specification combining to deliver a quality final end product.

Completion of the final phase has ensured that the blue print set out within North Ayrshire Council’s original Masterplan for the area has been achieved through the provision of high quality homes within a significantly enhanced environment and a safer and more secure community.

BRE Scotland wins at Green Apple Awards

BRE’s Innovation Park in Ravenscraig scooped a top accolade at this week’s Green Apple Awards in Edinburgh which recognise, reward and promotes environmental best practice around the world.

BRE beat off stiff competition to win the Gold Award in Building and Construction for its work at the Innovation Park in Ravenscraig - a mini-demonstration community of homes and buildings tapping into world changing invention and innovation.

Within the BRE Innovation Park in Lanarkshire, there are currently a number of projects on site including Zero Waste Scotland’s Resource Efficient House and Scottish company AppleGreen’s design for an affordable, Energy Efficient home, both of which are attracting national and international attention.

The Park is also home to the Curriculum House which has been designed by the brightest and best architectural and construction students from New College Lanarkshire and is the first ‘live’ higher level educational project of its kind in the UK.

Also located at the Park is the Refurbished House, a recreation of the four in a block home, which demonstrates a range of innovative retrofit solutions for some of the most energy inefficient homes across Scotland and the UK.

Borders recycling centre to undergo £346,000 upgrade

A recycling centre in the Scottish Borders is to undergo a £346,000 improvement programme.

Upgrades to Hawick Community Recycling Centre will improve traffic management and increase the sites capacity.

Work is due to begin this autumn and run until the end of March 2016.

The project is being developed by the council’s architects team and SBc Contracts.