Case Record – GCHQ Sustainability Initiatives

Details:

Date: Location: Business Group: Contract:

2003 Cheltenham, UK Carillion Building The New Accommodation Project, completed by Carillion in July 2003, is a £350M PFI design and build project providing accommodation for 4000 GCHQ staff.

Issue:

This long running project would have a diverse range of sustainability impacts. They needed to motivate staff and re-assure the local community that the project could have a positive impact on society.

Solution:

A Sustainability Action Plan was developed and with the full commitment of those involved in the project a number of initiatives, for example:

Sustainability by Design Carillion integrated sustainable thinking into the design by incorporating lots of natural light, a high quality air supply, free of pollutants and dust, insulation for winter and shading for summer. Local materials such as Cotswold stone were chosen and prefabrication used to integrate a variety of components such as services, glazing and concrete elements. An energy efficient method of keeping the building cool using chilled beams was installed.
Pollution Control Balancing lagoons were constructed to ensure surface water runoff did not contaminate the nearby watercourse.
Waste management Waste produced from the site was segregated and reused wherever possible – a reuse rate of around 48% was achieved. Selected waste streams, such as plasterboard and paper, were separately segregated and returned for recycling. A crusher was used on site to break down demolition waste, which was then reused in the construction of the new facility.
Noise Monitoring Noise monitoring was undertaken 24 hours per day, 7 days per week to ensure that unnecessary noise was not created causing disturbance to local residents.
Working with the Community Volunteers from the site staff worked on a variety of projects to support local schools and community groups. Gifts of cash and materials provided a welcome boost and projects such as paired reading with local school children proved to be particularly successful.

Business Benefits:

• Improved community relations
• Less pollution
• Improved Motivation
• Less waste going to landfill