Under the MHCLG categorisation, volumetric modular construction (known in Singapore as Prefabricated Prefinished Volumetric Construction or PPVC and in Hong Kong as Modular Integrated Construction or MiC) is an example of a 3D primary structural system..
Therefore, using electricity as our primary, or only, source of power on-site means we’ll be tracking alongside the decarbonisation of the grid.That’s well known in the industry; there’s guidance in place and our focus on sustainability in design has meant that we’ve been working towards that for years now..
Grid electricity carbon factor.The electricity grid had a much higher carbon factor a few years ago than it does now.This is due to coal plants, etc.
However, substantial development and investment in recent years by the government and private bodies has reduced the carbon factor of the grid, through the use of renewables, nuclear power stations, and so on.The National Grid is responsible for working out the carbon factor for the entire grid.
They have scenario modelling and are aware of where things could end up in the best case scenario.
However, they also look at what’s happened over the last year.over the long-run.. Capacity model for a biopharma QC lab showing utilisation of individual equipment items over time.. 2.
Height.. Limited headroom in existing offices may be insufficient for taller lab equipment or increased services distribution.. An ideal starting-point for a lab is a floor-to-floor height between 4.2 and 4.5m, with an office typically being in the 3.6 to 4.2m range.. Taller items such as fume cabinets and MBSCs can normally be accommodated under a 2.7m high ceiling (similar to what you might find in a modern office), however some specialist or larger-scale equipment will require additional headroom or maintenance and withdrawal space, and localised raised ceilings may be necessary, or the equipment simply might not fit.. Labs require many more services than an office, which normally means a deeper ceiling void.Limited risers in offices can also result in more service crossovers and congestion, increasing this depth further still.
It is often possible to mitigate some of this through good design, such as lowering ceilings in corridors to accommodate main ductwork runs or positioning lower height rooms close to risers.Ground floor units and older office buildings may also have larger floor-to-floor heights, and there can even be opportunities to increase headroom by removing raised-access floors (though this will impact floor thresholds.)