DEFRA House (Project ZEBRA at Lion House)
Location: Alnwick, England
Client: Kier Eastern
Value: £1,025,000
Construction Period: 9 Months
Year Completed: 2010
Project ZEBRA was a ground-breaking scheme to create a new ultra-low emissions building to replace offices for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) in Northumberland.
In partnership with AECOM, Defra's new Lion House office in Alnwick won the project of the year, at the Building Services Awards 2009.
The judges were impressed by the project's highest BREEAM rating in the UK in 2008 (80.72%) and the fact that the integrated team were able to produce a building whose energy requirements are met almost entirely by renewable technologies.
The building uses photovoltaic panels integrating them into its brise soleil; its biomass boiler uses locally sourced woodchips; while the wind turbines also contribute to the building's energy requirements.
In a second award, the project scooped environmental initiative of the year. The judges said: "...managed to get all the little touches right. They have done all of the obvious things but done them so well. They never lost sight of what they wanted to achieve. All their processes and ideas are straightforward and could be seen as a benchmark for other companies in the industry."