Gilberts delivers natural ventilation to avoid need for mechanical cooling
The ability to engineer bespoke solutions enabled air-movement specialist Gilberts of Blackpool to help a leading healthcare IT provider avoid the need for mechanical cooling in its new headquarters building. The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) aims to increase staff levels from 200 up to 650 over the next few years and has outgrown its premises at Horsforth in Yorkshire. TPP is creating an 8000 m2 4-storey head office to achieve a ‘Very good’ BREEAM rating.
A specific element of the client brief was to use natural ventilation as far as possible, while delivering optimum flexibility for the office space. M&E consultant Silcock Leedham turned to Gilberts to help deliver the natural-ventilation element.
Steve Riley, senior mechanical engineer with Silcock Leedham, explains, ‘Gilberts was able to offer us the bespoke manufacturing required, cost effectively. The ventilators range in size up to 1.9 x 5 m, providing maximum airflow characteristics whilst meeting the stringent thermal, air tightness and weatherproofing performance for Buildings Regulations compliance.’
All 156 high-performance louvres are integrated into the facade to provide a minimum free ventilation area of 50%. U-value is 0.93 W/m2K, and air leakage is as low as 5 m3/h/m2.
This natural-ventilation solution ensures fresh air to almost all areas on the building perimeter. It interfaces with a mixed-mode mechanical system to provide fresh air for the deep-plan inner office areas.
