ECOSpace Training Workshop : Information

Education facility for sustainable construction wins award for most sustainable design 20 May 2008 Photography by Keith Hunter A college education facility designed for students studying construction subjects with environmental best practice has won the award for sustainable design at this year’s Scottish Design Awards held in Edinburgh last week (16 May 2008). ECOSpace, designed by architects RMJM, is a highly sustainable training workshop run by Carnegie College in Dunfermline, which has been open since September 2006. The £2.2 million centre aims to lead the way in training students in sustainable construction and encourages the integration of environmentally sustainable work practices such as waste reduction, re-use of materials, procurement of renewable resources and minimisation of energy consumption. Paul Rodgers, RMJM Director, said: “We’re delighted that ECOSpace has been recognised for its highly sustainable credentials by the Scottish Design Awards. ECOSpace is an exemplar project which reflects the nature of the facility in its design and winning the award for the most sustainable design is great for the college and everyone connected with the project.” The design of the centre reflects the ambition and purpose of the facility. It is the first of its kind in the UK and is built from renewable materials and incorporates renewable energy systems that reduce the energy consumption of the building and its impact on the environment. Alan Huey, Head of School of Built Environment, Carnegie College, commended the building for its ability to give students first hand experience of an environmentally sustainable workplace with green practices including waste reduction, reuse of materials, procurement of renewable resources and energy use minimisation. “The physical structure benefits from a state of the art building management system and monitoring devices which enable students and visitors to see the energy efficiency of the building compared to the other parts of our campus. Students now recognise the benefits of a sustainable building - something they will take with them to the workplace and benefit communities of the future.” The facility also features a suite of restoration workshops that train craftspeople from across Scotland, helping to boost the number of people practising traditional crafts in the construction industry. ECOSpace Dunfermline, Scotland - photos / information from RMJM 200508 Janet McCauslin, Assistant Principal, Carnegie College, said: “The ECOSpace project was so named to draw attention to the green features of this interesting new learning space. Upon completion it became part of Carnegie's expanding School of Built Environment and ASPIRE (Additional Support Programmes for Real Life/Work Environments) Centre. The project was part of our aim to reduce the ecological footprint of our campus and our negative impact upon the planet over future decades, taking our students, staff and customers with us to consequently change behaviours in their future work and home lives. ECOSpace was a large and complex project. We stretched ourselves, our main contractors and partners by imposing exacting standards in sustainable procurement by attempting to capture all the learning that has taken place and we are now working with the Scottish Funding Council on the next phase of the process, a full sustainability evaluation of the project.” ECOSpace architects : RMJM Lauder College ECOSpace : background to the project Scottish Design Awards Photographs © Keith Hunter