McLaren building giant £23m eco-warehouse - PHOTOS

Warehouses aren't usually associated with cutting-edge construction, but the Blue Planet distribution centre in Chatterley Valley is using state-of-the-art technology to achieve optimum sustainability. Grant Prior reports.

Below: Artists impression of how the Blue Planet warehouse will appear.

The £23m eco-friendly structure uses energy-saving techniques such as kinetic plates that convert the motion of delivery lorries into power.

Technology that wowed the world on the Beijing Olympic's futuristic "Water Cube" swimming pool is at the heart of a new distribution centre in Newcastle-under-Lyme.

It's a long way from China to Staffordshire. And warehouses are not the first buildings that spring to mind when it comes to the cutting edge of construction.

But the Blue Planet at Chatterley Valley is ripping up the rulebook when it comes to distribution centres to usher in a new area of structures with sustainability as the number one priority.

Below: ETFE cushions in the roof are inflated to allow wider spans.

Eco-friendly

Main contractor McLaren Construction has just completed a nine-month £23m construction programme which has seen the whole site team embrace the eco-friendly ethos of developer Gazeley. McLaren divisional director Dave Gavin explains: "Gazeley came up with the concept and were keen to work with us because of our experience with many of the techniques used.

"A lot of credit for this building must go the client and the local development body Advantage West Midlands because they didn't go for the cheapest building - they went for the best concept and the chance to create something special."

The tactic has certainly been a success. The Blue Planet - which is actually painted green - sits in the surrounding hills like a lozenge-shaped spaceship.

From the site you can see a traditional warehouse being erected on a neighbouring plot - and the contrast couldn't be more marked.

The Blue Planet reeks of state-of-the-art construction technology while the old-style building just looks like a shed.

Gavin says: "There's quite a difference and hopefully buildings like ours will become the norm."

Light enters the building using the same Ethylene Tetra Fluoroethylene (ETFE) technology seen at the Beijing Olympics swimming centre.

ETFE cushions in the roof are inflated to allow wider spans than traditional glazing with better insulation properties.

Solar wall

The rooflights complement the south side of the building which is a complete solar wall while the building contains one of the largest underfloor heating systems in the country.

Gavin says: "We have installed a large underfloor heating system on a similar job in Beckton, east London using the same contractors Stuarts and Velta, but this is the largest system I've known."

The heating system will be powered by a biomass generator creating enough extra energy for 650 local homes.

Gavin adds: "Things change quickly with sustainable technology. We were going to have a biofuel generator but rapeseed oil prices have shot up so it's now uneconomical and has been changed to biomass.

"The heating pipes run all the way around the building underground, so a hell of a lot less steel is needed in the main structure.

"In a tall building like this a lot of heat is usually wasted when it radiates down from above."

Another energy-saving technique being installed is kinetic plates to convert the motion of lorry deliveries into power.

Plates are being installed in the warehouse approach roads which will generate power when trucks roll over them. McLaren senior project manager David Bramwell says: "This technology is really new and is only being used at Longleat Safari Park at the moment.

"It fits in with the whole ethos of the building to try to harness the energy of all those lorry movements."

Major components like the underfloor heating and solar wall have set the tone for the whole approach to the job.

Every trade contractor on the site is committed to a pioneering type of construction (see box) which McLaren hope will result in a BREEAM Outstanding certificate - the first of its kind for a distribution centre.

"Every aspect of this job has put sustainability first", says Gavin.

"We have tried to source as many materials as possible from within a 30-mile radius while all offcuts are recycled.

"We have asked all trade contractors to come up with their own waste strategies and their environmental policies played a major part when it came to getting on the supply chain for this job."

Increased cost

The technology used means the Blue Planet costs a lot more than traditional warehouses and Gazeley has still not confirmed a tenant for the job ahead of its completion on 31 December.

Gavin says: "It's a very brave move by Gazeley but this is surely the way we will have to go because of the amount of environmental legislation coming into force.

"The economic situation is concentrating people's minds on price rather than the wider benefits, so perhaps local authorities may have to look at subsidising projects such as this.

"This is really pioneering stuff and will hopefully become the role model for all buildings like this."

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Project factfile

• Construction value: £23m
• Completion date: 31 December 2008
• Client: Gazeley Properties
• Main Contractor: McLaren Construction
• Client Project Manager: Lysander Associates
• Architect: Chetwoods Architects
• Groundworks: Strandhill
• Structural Steelwork: Atlas Ward
• Cladding: FK Roofing Services
• Internal Concrete Slab: Stuarts Flooring
• Underfloor Heating: Velta
• M&E: C A Sothers