Innovate Green Office, Leeds by Rio Architects

Rio Architects' Innovate Green Office in Leeds has achieved the highest ever BREEAM rating.
29 August 2008 - From: Architectsjournal

Here is a British building which takes passive design seriously.
At the Innovate Green Office in Leeds, called the UK's greenest building because it achieved the highest ever BREEAM rating of 87.5 per cent when assessed last year, there is not a single renewable technology in sight. This project exemplifies what passive design can achieve, starting from first principles – orientation, exploitation of thermal mass, optimisation of plan depth and building section to maximise daylight, and a heavily insulated envelope.

Not only have all the obvious moves been realised, but extensive study of different options during the design phase meant that the project was thoroughly assessed for its environmental performance before the design was even finalised.
Client Innovate Property, a niche developer of serviced workspace, challenged its design team – Cardiff-based Rio Architects, structural engineer Scott Wilson and King Shaw Consulting Engineers – to deliver a commercially viable green building. As early design fees escalated, Innovate approached regional development agency Yorkshire Forward to fund prototype research prior to acquiring its Leeds Thorpe Park site. Yorkshire Forward eventually contributed approximately £1 million to the £6 million scheme to fund the difference between a conventional and a green office.

Author: Hattie Hartman. 

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