About Inverdee House

The name Inverdee (coming from the Gaelic "the meeting of the waters") was chosen as a simple reminder that three environment organisations have come together, at the mouth of the Dee, in one building

The site is located in the district of Torry on the southern side of Aberdeen harbour, facing the River Dee. This collaborative project provides high value jobs in Torry as well as developing a brown field site at the rear of the new shared building which will accommodate an element of social housing.

Inverdee House was featured in issue 42 of SEPA View

Design

Inverdee House forms a buffer between the harbour and residential areas behind. It has been designed to provide a focal point at the mouth of the harbour. The design includes a large number of windows on the harbour front aspect, breaking up the scale of the building and emphasising its simple form.

The building is positioned in such a way as to ensure the main circulation spaces face the harbour, with the windows maximising the use of light. This northern part is three storeys high. The secondary spaces and main entrance face south and reach two storeys in height.

Landscaping sensitive to the local area will provide a buffer between the housing and office sections of the development.

The use of a single material for the external façade and roof unites the building form. Zinc was chosen for its longevity and durability in a coastal climate. Zinc is also an A rated material in the BRE Green Guide to Specification.

Sustainability

The design of Inverdee House has been designed to the BREEAM Excellent rating (BRE Environmental Assessment Method) by incorporating a number of sustainable technologies:

Solar Thermal Panels
Solar thermal panels will be mounted on the south facing roof of the building and will pre-heat the domestic hot water for the building.

Wind Turbines
A quiet revolution wind turbine provides additional electrical power to the building. The design has been chosen because of the suitability for urban environments where wind speeds are low and constantly shift direction.

Lighting
A lighting control system adjusts the level of artificial light in response to external conditions and movement sensors ensure that lights are turned off in unoccupied areas. Roller blinds internally prevent any excess glare. The result is a workspace with comfortable, even and largely natural lighting throughout.

Heating and Ventilation
The building is designed to make full use of the exposed concrete ceilings to absorb heat from the office space during the working day creating a more comfortable environment. In summer secure external vents automatically open at night, allowing the whole structure to cool. Inverdee is naturally ventilated. Some windows have vents which are controlled automatically by the building management system and others can be opened manually. During the winter the heat is provided by a biomass boiler which will be fuelled by wood pellets.

Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater from the roof is collected in an underground tank and is returned to toilet cisterns for flushing toilets.

BREEAM

BREEAM is the leading and most widely used environmental assessment method for buildings. It sets the standard for best practice in sustainable design and has become the de facto measure used to describe a building's environmental performance.

Inverdee House achieves a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) post-construction score of 79.58%, a rating of EXCELLENT

The building is:

One of only 5 buildings in Aberdeen to have achieved a BREEAM Excellent rating Only the second building in Aberdeen to achieve an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) A rating

The building scores particularly highly in:

Construction management (BREEAM section score = 91.8%) through the adoption of best practice construction principles and commissioning practices

Efficient water use (BREEAM section score = 87.5%) through the integration of low water consuming devices and the utilisation of rain water harvesting

Building usability (health and wellbeing) (BREEAM section score = 87.16%) through making maximum use of natural daylight and passive ventilation techniques while not compromising on building functionality

Energy supply (BREEAM section score = 83.7%) through the integration of a number of renewable energy technologies including biomass heating, solar hot water modules, solar electric panels and wind generated electricity

Design Team

Keppie Design (Architects) Edinburgh, DSSR Consulting Engineers (Mechanical Electrical) and URS Corporation (Engineering and Environmental Consultants)