BCIA Releases New Technical Guides
The Building Controls Industry Association has published two new technical guides that cover building assessment schemes and regulations for commercial buildings. The...
Read Full ArticleThe British Council for Offices has released an early update to the “Guide to Specification”, its flagship publication.
The update responds to challenges emerging from the pandemic and the accelerating need for the built environment to respond to climate change, advising designers on how to create healthier offices that support changing working patterns, while reducing carbon emissions.
New recommendations include:
"This new guidance for the highest-quality offices introduces more generous space standards and greater design flexibility to support wellbeing and sustainability as the office sector adapts to the world of hybrid work.”
–Richard Kauntze
Chief Executive, BCO
The BCO has updated its guidance on space allowed for each employee when designing a speculative office building. 10m2 per person is recommended as the occupancy density design standard for general workspace. The former high occupancy density allowance of 8m2 per person has been redefined as a special use case for exceptional cases.
Designing for the 10 m2 per person occupancy density provides greater scope for the variety of workplace settings needed to support hybrid working. It also avoids overdesign of core services, improves floorplate efficiencies, and minimises carbon emissions.
The greater use of low-powered tablets, laptops, and smartphones, plus growth of cloud computing has allowed a reduction in small power load allowances 100 W to 60 W per person. This reduces the heat generated in the office space, which in turn reduces the cooling needed.
Many developers already target BREEAM Outstanding for new offices. Reflecting the rapid progress in the sector in adopting more demanding sustainability targets, the Guide is moving its minimum BREEAM target rating from Very Good To Excellent, and introduces the latest building certification standard, NABERS UK - an energy performance rating relying on measured energy use. The update recommends targeting a 5-star NABERS UK rating for new building design.
Market trends have fuelled a desire to create flexible, relatively column-free, open-plan offices. However, the structural solutions needed can be carbon-intensive. The 2023 update to the Guide aids the future adoption of alternative structural materials such as timber by adding smaller 6.0 and 7.5 m spans to the recommended range. This wider range provides designers with more options to minimise the embodied carbon of the structure.
Richard Kauntze, Chief Executive of the BCO, said: “The BCO Guide to Specification often described as the 'design bible’ for the office sector is an essential resource for the decision makers who invest in, develop or design millions of square feet of office space every year. The 2023 Update will drive the decarbonisation of the office sector, enacting change to help the industry deliver on the UK’s net-zero by 2050 target. This new guidance for the highest-quality offices introduces more generous space standards and greater design flexibility to support wellbeing and sustainability as the office sector adapts to the world of hybrid work.”
Picture: a photograph of a modern office area with standing desks and stools. Image Credit: Unsplash
Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 02 March 2023
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