d+b facades is pleased to announce that its £2m project for the Natural History Museum, Tring, which houses one of the largest ornithological collections in the World, was Highly Commended beating challenging competition from some of the UK’s leading museums including the Imperial War Museum, The British Museum and the National Museum of Wales.
The award was set up in a time of climate and ecological emergency and extols good practice and inspirational ideas in improving environmental sustainability and working towards Carbon Neutral UK by 2050. It celebrates the most outstanding environmentally sustainable initiative, project or exhibition in the heritage sector in 2019.
Despite delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the project was completed in just 13 months. The refurbishment addressed long-standing problems with the building’s external facade of precast aggregate cladding panels which had failed and become unsafe as well as roof leaks. Environmentally responsible measures included 100% recycling of construction waste during three months of construction. More than 300 photovoltaic panels were installed to meet the entire building’s electricity needs. The lifespan of the building has been extended by at least 50 years, heat loss substantially reduced and future water ingress prevented.