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by Sean Hill on Nov 1, 2024
Most developers and project managers are comfortable reading a set of drawings. You know what you're looking at. But sustainability has added a new layer to plan-reading that isn't always obvious, and it's worth slowing down on some details that are easy to overlook.
Here's what we look for at RISE, and what we'd encourage anyone reviewing a set of plans to pay attention to.
Materials Specification
The materials schedule is where a lot of sustainability decisions either get made or get missed. It's worth going beyond cost and finish to ask: what's the embodied carbon of these materials? Are any of them recycled or reclaimed? How far have they travelled to get to site?
On the Lexi Cinema extension, a relatively small adjustment to the materials specification had a measurable impact on the building's overall carbon footprint. These decisions rarely feel dramatic in the moment, but they compound across a project.
Fabric Performance
Insulation values, airtightness targets, and thermal bridging details are not the most visually engaging parts of a drawing package. They're also among the most consequential.
A building with a well-performing fabric is inherently cheaper to run. It maintains a more stable internal temperature without mechanical assistance, which means less demand on heating and cooling systems throughout the building's life. Look for U-values on the key building elements, an airtightness target expressed in air changes per hour, and details showing how thermal bridges at junctions have been addressed. If those aren't in the package, ask for them.
Natural Light and Ventilation
Good sustainable design works with the building's environment rather than compensating for it. Are windows positioned to allow cross-ventilation? Is there provision for daylight penetration into deeper parts of the plan through rooflights or light wells? Does the section show how air can move through the building naturally?
On the Elmwood Lawn Tennis Club project we maximised natural light within a tight footprint. The result was a space that needed less artificial lighting and felt considerably more generous than its square footage suggested. These aren't separate concerns from design quality. They are design quality.
Orientation and Passive Solar
Building orientation is one of the most impactful sustainable decisions on any project, and one of the cheapest to get right at the outset. A well-oriented building captures low winter sun through south-facing glazing and uses shading devices, overhangs, or setbacks to control summer overheating.
On one project a 15-degree rotation of the building form reduced annual energy consumption by around 20%. That's not a technology solution. It's a design decision made early, at no additional cost.
Renewable Energy Provisions
Even where renewable energy systems aren't being installed immediately, the plans should show that they've been considered. Is the roof pitch and orientation suitable for solar panels? Is there space for an air source heat pump? Has the electrical infrastructure been sized to accommodate future additions?
Retrofitting these systems into a building that wasn't designed with them in mind is always more expensive and often compromised. Designing for future installation costs very little extra at drawing stage.
Water Management
This tends to be the last thing anyone looks at and the first thing that creates problems in operation. Check for rainwater harvesting provision, greywater recycling where the brief supports it, and water-efficient fixtures throughout. In larger residential and commercial projects in particular, these add up to significant savings over time.
Flexibility and Adaptability
A sustainable building isn't just one that performs well on day one. It's one that can adapt. Can spaces be reconfigured without major structural intervention? Are floor-to-ceiling heights generous enough to accommodate future changes in use? Has the structure been designed with future extension in mind?
Buildings that are easy to adapt have longer useful lives. A longer useful life is one of the most effective sustainability outcomes you can design for.
Waste Strategy
Construction waste is substantial and often poorly managed. Look for a waste management strategy within the specification, covering both site waste during construction and long-term provision for recycling and waste separation by occupants. Designated bin and recycling stores might seem like a minor detail. Planning for them properly from the outset saves a lot of awkward retrofitting later.
Biophilic Design
Finally, and perhaps less obviously: look for evidence that the design connects people to the natural environment. This doesn't require a living wall or a rooftop garden, though both have their place. It might be the use of natural materials with visible grain and texture, views out to planted areas, or the incorporation of daylight and natural ventilation in a way that makes you aware of the weather and the time of day.
There's a growing body of evidence that spaces with strong biophilic qualities improve occupant wellbeing and productivity. It's also, more simply, that these spaces tend to feel better to be in.
Reading Plans Differently
Reviewing a set of drawings with sustainability in mind isn't about applying a checklist on top of the usual process. It's a different kind of attention: slower, more interested in performance over time, more alert to the decisions that will be hard to unpick once the building is built.
At RISE, these are the questions we're asking from the first sketch. If you're working on a project and want a second opinion on how the plans stack up from a sustainability perspective, we're happy to take a look.
→ Email us at architects@risedesignstudio.co.uk
→ Or call the studio on 020 3947 5886
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