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Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park Authority welcomed Sarah Boyak, Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development to Balloch today (5 March 2007) to witness the erection of their new HQ’s unique Douglas Fir structural frame.
The Minister toured the site at Carrochan Road and met members from the Balloch Forum, a local community group, as well as the project team and the staff user panel for the project. Speaking about the National Park HQ project, Sarah Boyak said, “The construction of the timber frame is an impressive achievement of this project. I am delighted to be here today to mark its progress. The Park Authority and its design and construction partners have met challenges head on to achieve the vision of building an exemplar sustainable headquarters for the National Park. This building will not only be important for the National Park as a whole but it will bring many benefits for local communities and businesses.”
The building is a two-storey structure with twin-pitched slate roofs running along a central glazed ‘street’ providing access to all the facilities. The timber frame is 78 metres long and 20 metres wide.
Mike Newstead , Scottish Divisional Manager, Carpenter Oak & Woodland spoke about the difficulties of working with timber, “One of the major challenges has been combining these components into an assembly sequence so that the structure becomes self-supporting as it’s built and doesn’t require vast amounts of expensive scaffolding to brace it. After months of planning and fabrication in our yard near Kirriemuir, it’s fantastic to see the frame finally going up on site.”
Speaking about the project, Carron Tobin, Director, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park Authority said, “The new HQ will deliver a highly sustainable and stunning contemporary structure that will provide a home for our staff but also a much needed facility for the local community. We have a clear vision for the project but have faced a number of challenges with the build, mostly in the procurement of sustainable materials and construction. Some of the challenges surround Scotland’s position in driving forward sustainability. We have overcome these challenges but want to share and capitalise on our experience. Now the building is rising out the ground, we are looking forward to moving into our new home in January 2008.”
The project is highly sustainable having achieved an ‘excellent’ BREEAM rating (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Matrix) at design stage. It incorporates various features including a biomass primary heating system, minimal mechanical ventilation, a SUDs (sustainable urban drainage system) reed bed and the indigenous Douglas Fir timber structure.
A seminar was held in the morning at the National Park Gateway Centre and featured Page & Park Architects, Happold Engineers and CBC Contractors. Topics included design, striving to achieve a carbon neutral building, delivering sustainability and how to be a ‘considerate’ contractor.
Jim Biddulph, Secretary of Balloch and Halden Community Council said, “The quality of the building can already be seen with the erection of the Douglas fir structural frame. It will indeed be a unique building. The community will be watching work progress over the coming months in what will be a very prestigious building for Balloch.”
David Page from Page & Park Architects spoke about sourcing sustainable materials, “Seeing the timber frame emerging on site confirms the National Parks view that it is possible to source materials locally and that the skills to build them are there. It would have been much easier to buy an off the shelf standard steel or concrete solution from the international catalogue, but the National Park has said it wants to play its part in supporting the emerging timber structural industry here in Scotland.”
The building work is due to complete in December 2007
ENDS//
Notes to Editors
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