Concrete Sector Welcomes Proposals for Sustainability Centres of Excellence

Calls by the Royal Academy of Engineering for the establishment of a network of sustainable building 'Centres of Excellence' have been welcomed by the concrete sector which believes that the proposals echo its own centre of excellence, MPA The Concrete Centre, with a common emphasis on multidisciplinary integrated design.

The Academy's report "The Case of Centres of Excellence in Sustainable Buildings Design", calculates that by helping the construction industry meet UK climate change policy targets, the Centres could create over £1 billion of savings by 2030 and cut carbon emissions by 3.5 million tonnes a year. It explains that the Centres would act as hubs to educate future sustainable construction experts and share knowledge between the construction industry, academia and policy makers. This would address the issues of low carbon buildings often being more expensive than anticipated and failing to deliver the expected carbon abatement. Above all, the Centres would aim to equip the construction industry with the knowledge and skills necessary to achieve dramatic carbon emissions through energy conservation without relying on expensive technological 'EcoBling'. The report’s findings and proposals have been warmly welcomed by MPA The Concrete Centre.

Rather than ‘EcoBling’ the report focuses on the pivotal role that a building’s fabric can play in reducing energy demands and CO₂ emissions. In particular, the report states: “The proper application of insulation, shading and thermal mass in buildings can, in some cases eliminate demands for heating and cooling completely, but in all cases will deliver substantial deductions.” “The use of the building's fabric as part of passive sustainability design and construction has long been advocated by MPA The Concrete Centre," explained Andrew Minson, Executive Director of MPA The Concrete Centre.

In many ways the emphasis of the Royal Academy of Engineering on education and knowledge sharing echoes the objectives of MPA The Concrete Centre, which was established to help realise the full potential of concrete design and construction by educating design and construction professionals together with their clients of the material’s range of inherent design and performance benefits. 

"The focus of the Academy on integrated design thinking is what MPA The Concrete Centre is all about," said Minson. "We have a team of specialists in structural engineering, architecture, building physics, housing, construction and manufacture working together to provide knowledge and information to project teams to enable best practice."

He continued: "We would welcome the opportunity to work with the proposed Centres of Excellence to help enable the construction industry deliver cost effective low carbon solutions."