Mountain Halls, University of Glamorgan
About the Building
The £18 million Mountain Halls development on the Treforest campus was completed in the autumn of 2011. It provides 476 modern, contemporary and purpose built en-suite student residences – all with hard-wired internet connections.
Mountain Halls comprises five, four storey accommodation blocks, with a single story communal block and external amphitheatre seating area at the centre of the development providing high quality internal and external amenity space for students and visitors. The accommodation has been designed sympathetically with the local environment and is fully secure, with 24 hour CCTV coverage and on-site security.
The challenge was to create a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ development using the BREEAM Multi-residential 2008 route.
Further information
Key Facts
- BREEAM Rating: ‘Excellent’
- Score: 75.10%
- Stage: Post Construction
- BREEAM Version: BREEAM Multi-residential 2008
Main Sustainability Features
The features that have helped the development to achieve a high BREEAM score include:
- Proactive on site management to ensure reduced energy and water consumption, whilst maintaining best practice principles in respect of air and water pollution and achieving recognition under the Considerate Contractors Scheme.
- Buildings capable of providing fresh air entirely via a natural ventilation strategy.
- Maximum use of ‘A+’ and ‘A’ rated Green Guide to Specification materials – recognising the use of construction materials with a low environmental impact over the full life cycle of the building.
- Prime location in terms of public transport and local amenities.
- Low carbon technology employed in the form of a photovoltaic panel array connected to the mains via the distribution board.
- Energy efficient lighting installed throughout the developments to reduce the building’s carbon footprint.
Project Team
- Client: University of Glamorgan
- Architect: Boyes Rees Architects
- Contractor: VINCI Construction UK Ltd.
- BREEAM Assessor: McCann & Partners: Legacy – McCann Sustainability
Wyn Williams – Assistant Director of Estates (University of Glamorgan) said:
‘We are delighted with the new development and achievement of its BREEAM “Excellent” status. In the first year of operation, we have seen a significant reduction in our utility costs. The previous halls on this site were inefficient to operate, costly in terms of utilities and had poor thermal qualities. The new rooms benefit from plenty of natural light, enjoy good ventilation, require little heating and have built-in power saving devices to ensure that energy is not consumed when residents are attending their studies.
‘The feedback from our customers has been very positive as they benefit from some of the most modern and efficient student accommodation in the country. Features such as the photovoltaic panels and the rainwater harvesting installed in two of the buildings demonstrate our commitments to reducing our carbon footprint. The project has certainly met our original objectives, and gaining a high BREEAM ‘Excellent’ score is something that all associated with the delivery of the project can rightly be proud of.’
