Suscon Academy

Dartford

Rodgers Leask was employed from concept to completion of the project, with works including site investigation, civil and structural design works.

The project value was £3.9million and was built as an exemplar of sustainable construction. The structure comprised a mixture of steel, concrete and glulam timber frames. Various structural elements and construction details were exposed in order to provide examples of construction methods to students.

Significant emphasis was placed by the client upon sustainability, with a BREEAM target of outstanding being achieved, a first in the UK for an education building. The structure had an integrated cast insitu RC spine wall running through the centre, which was curved on plan and 9 metres high requiring careful design and detailing.

The project also included a number of sustainable technologies including cement replacements and recycled aggregates within the concrete, materials were locally sourced to reduce transport costs and impact, ground source heat pumps using air ducts buried within the ground, underfloor heating to utilize the thermal mass of the concrete, sheep wool insulation within the cavity walls and rainwater harvesting as part of a comprehensive Sustainable Urban Drainage Strategy.

Rodgers Leask was employed from concept to completion of the project, with works including site investigation, civil and structural design works.