Developing upfront guidelines — tackling barriers to zero carbon construction
DESIGNING FOR IMPACT

Why commission a playbook?

The advantages are not just limited to achieving lower embodied carbon figures for a project and/or avoiding procurement barriers. The wider community benefits too, as a playbook can identify opportunities for investment and employment in local businesses, and contribute directly to the upskilling of existing industries and service providers.

Hierarchy of sustainable materials

Playbooks

All too often, designers come up with innovative ways to lower the embodied carbon of construction only to hit barriers in supply, expertise, will, policy and/or regulation.

At Whitby Wood, we’ve been flipping the design process on its head, using the development of Playbooks to tackle barriers early on — for UK projects and internationally.

HOW IT WORKS

We consider key aspects, such as …

Site characteristics
— geology, existing infrastructure, microclimate and biodiversity

Local resources
— opportunities for frame or building reuse, existing local low-carbon materials, existing industries and agriculture, local expertise, historical knowledge and traditional skills, natural geology of the area

Resulting materials options
— including bio-based materials (such as timber), technofossils (discarded manmade objects) of all scales, and whether local low carbon production facilities are available

Options for design approach
— a construction kit of parts, automated component typology design, use of robotics, an integrated Smart building approach, use of 3D printing

Potential community benefits
— investment and employment opportunities, increased connectivity, healthier ways of living

Analysis of these considerations, and the client’s development brief results in a series of recommendations. The focus is on proposals that use passive technologies and low-carbon construction methods. A bespoke diet of materials is developed for the project.

Playbooks generic map

CONTACT : Kelly Harrison …

See also Plotting our route to zero >

Projects