Refurbishment of Tinsley Building, Oxford University
The aim of this project was to refurbish a ground floor empty area of the building, creating new office space. The Company had to strip out some parts of the existing electrical installations on the ground floor and install a new incoming supply. The objectives were to design and install lighting, power, mechanical supplies and controls, fire alarms, emergency lighting, door access/disabled facilities and structured data cabling throughout.
This was to create new office areas and meeting rooms for the administration and departmental staff with better facilities and to create a much warmer and modern building for all staff and visitors. The end product being an office area that will last for many years with all the benefits of cost-efficient heating, cooling and lighting.
Advance(s) Sought:
Use of LED lighting system design to reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. Incorporation of innovative designs, including automatic dimming, zoning of light switches and daylight control, to improve the working environment in the offices and meeting rooms.
Development of Dali (absence/presence detection) lighting systems control in office areas which reduces the light depending on how much daylight is coming in, this is also combined with absence detection where it turns the lights off when not needed, thus reducing energy use. Supplies and control wiring for air intake and extraction and heat recovery with a climate control system reduces the cost of running and carbon emissions as well.
The Company used passive infrared sensors on the ventilation system which meant the system was only in use when needed and therefore reduced running costs.
The overall advance lay in designing a complex mix of systems that could be retrofitted into an existing building, whilst making it affordable. Such systems are generally prohibitively expensive, so finding cost effective solutions is key to advancing technology in this area.
Technical Challenges:
The major challenge of this project was to control the cost while creating an area capable of sustaining the number of staff that had to move from an existing building that had been closed. This had to be done within a very short period of time yet providing a space which is sustainable, energy efficient, flexible, modern and have the correct finish for the end client.
Another challenge was that the building had delicate research being carried out with highly expensive anti vibration tables on the floor directly above the area to be refurbished. This meant the Company were unable to drill into the concrete ceilings or use any loud machinery/equipment to complete the work.
Budget constraints also meant that the designs had to be modified on several occasions before the project could progress. A lot of research into alternative products and accessories had to be carried out to find suitable materials to fit within the budget but maintain the overall look and efficiency of the building.
Resolution of Challenges, Project Outcomes and Future:
The Company created a floating Unistrut system fixed from existing threaded rod and Unistrut which had been left in place from the strip out. They were able to hang all of the containment from this including the light fittings and fixing plates for emergency lighting, sensors, fire alarm accessories and more. This helped to keep within budget and also meant no drilling was required.
Meetings were held with the main contractor, architect, client and electrical engineers to identify the best solutions from an energy consumption, practical and financial point of view. The LED manufacturer were also consulted to establish what alterations could be made to the lights without losing the warranty.
Effective and adaptable designs were utilised to ensure this project was a success, with the result that the Contractor and Client are using our company again.
