Commercial Buildings at IQL awarded BREEAM Certification

IQL’s first two commercial buildings have just been awarded the BREEAM certification of Excellent, recognising the high sustainability levels that are integral to the project.

5 Endeavour Square and 12 Endeavour Square, both designed by architects and workplace design experts Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, have been designed and built to high sustainability levels. This allows their occupants to make strong statements to employees about their commitment to sustainability.

IQL benefits from its proximity to the Olympic Park and its ability to source heating and cooling supplies locally from the Stratford District Heating and Cooling Network, which was installed in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as part of the infrastructure for London 2012. This includes biomass boilers and two energy centres, the largest decentralised energy scheme to be built in the UK.

To maximise natural light, full-height, triple-glazed, closed cavity façades (CCF) were designed with floor to ceiling windows. The CCF includes active technology that maximises outside views whilst limiting solar gains to the building, therefore lowering energy usage required for cooling the building.

During construction only FSC certified wood was used, meaning all timber was sourced from sustainable forestry that guarantees environmental protection and labour standards. 100% of electricity used during construction was from renewable sources and a 25% reduction in water use was achieved compared to industry standards.

At 12 Endeavour Square there was close collaboration between Lendlease & LCR, ARUP and tenants the FCA, particularly surrounding the use of concrete in the build programme. Initially the tenant team requested a 3.5 plus 1 live load for increased flexibility. The S5 structural team then presented what the additional 1kn/m2 would mean in terms of embodied carbon for the sub and superstructure. Based on that discussion the FCA agreed to have a lower live load on all floors except ground and first. In addition, the concrete mix used has a low carbon PT, which saves 30% of CO2 compared to a typical PT concrete mix. This served a dual purpose of being a more sustainable option, as well as being financially beneficial.

Finally, 99% of all waste generated during construction was diverted from landfill to reuse and recycling.