Partner Article

Red Box make a splash in Sunderland

The architects responsible for a Sunderland swimming venue are celebrating after the building received a sustainability award.

The Sunderland Aquatic Centre, designed by Red Box Architects, has become the first 50metre swimming pool in the country to achieve a BREAAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) excellent rating.

The Centre, has been awarded a BREEAM rating of 72.91 per cent, the highest rating ever awarded to a building of its kind.

Andrew Clark, managing director of Red Box said: “This is fantastic news for both Sunderland City Council and Red Box Architects. We designed the Aquatic Centre with sustainability in mind so it is great to know that our efforts have been rewarded.”

The building, which was built on a brownfield site adjacent to the Stadium of Light, is close to many public transport links and features a number of integral green elements, such as heat recovery from air and water systems within the building, a combined heat and power unit to provide economic and low carbon provision of electricity and heat, and super insulated building fabric, which far exceeds statutory requirements.

Rainwater which falls on the building is also harvested, treated and used to top up the Centre’s two swimming pools.

Mel Speding, portfolio holder for Culture and Tourism at Sunderland City Council said: “As a city, Sunderland is committed to sustainable patterns of consumption and development, which will help it become a clean, green city with a sustainable future, as set out in the Sunderland Strategy - new facilities, like the Aquatic Centre, that are built to these very high environmental standards enable services to keep on improving whilst keeping the environmental impact as low as possible.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .