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Tata Steel, LCRI Invest in Generation of Energy from Buildings
04/01/2011 - Tata Steel has unveiled a new center that will develop and demonstrate the ultimate in low-carbon, low-energy sustainable construction technologies.
Tata Steel has unveiled a new center that will develop and demonstrate low-carbon, low-energy sustainable construction technologies.
The new center — the Sustainable Building Envelope Centre (SBEC) — is the result of a collaboration between the Welsh Assembly Government, the Low Carbon Research Institute (LCRI) and Tata Steel. It will be opened by First Minister of Wales Carwyn Jones.
In addition to showcasing sustainable products, SBEC, which will be based at Tata Steel’s site at Shotton, Deeside, will also be used to test and monitor new integrated heating, energy and ventilation systems on the fabric of the building. At SBEC, a team of researchers and technologists will create building façades – the walls and roofs – which will transform the buildings from being energy consumers into energy generators.
SBEC was designed by the Welsh School of Architecture (WSA) in partnership with Tata Steel. It already incorporates several prototype renewable energy systems that will be tested and monitored as part of the initial work programs.
Tata Steel’s involvement in the £6.5 million SBEC project will help to highlight the company’s commitment to designing innovative solutions to the energy challenges facing UK industry. It is the latest in a series of technology investments aimed at improving the sustainability both of the steel industry and the industries it services.
In addition to the technology investments, Tata Steel and Dyesol recently announced that they had decided to expand their £11-million joint photovoltaics development project based at the PV Accelerator Centre at the Tata Steel site at Shotton. Meanwhile the £20 million SPECIFIC project at Baglan in South Wales has been set up to study other new coatings for steel and other substrates that can generate power.
“Buildings are responsible for almost half of the UK’s carbon emissions, half of its water consumption, around a third of its landfill waste and a quarter of all raw materials used in the economy,” said Uday Chaturvedi, Chief Technical Officer of Tata Steel in Europe. “This means that the UK’s sustainable development targets cannot be met without a fundamental change to the way in which buildings are constructed.
“The steel industry can be part of the solution and these projects demonstrate our commitment to helping to develop a sustainable future,” added Chaturvedi.
