A new centre of excellence for Housing has been opened by BRE at its Watford campus.

The centre will include an Innovation Park featuring large-scale demonstration houses to showcase the latest construction methods.

The Park will trial and demonstrate new and emerging construction methods and technologies for buildings featuring renewables and other environmental systems, smart IT and sensor technologies. Three of the demonstration houses have been built in time for OFFSITE2005 by partners Century Homes, Hanson and Van Elle. Those demonstration houses will be retained on the BRE campus for up to two years for education and training.

Jaya Skandamoorthy, project manager for the Park, said: “The industry and its clients need to get a better understanding of modern building innovations and technologies that are available, the benefits they bring in terms of sustainability and performance, and the practical considerations relating to integration, durability and performance in use” .

The Innovation Park will provide “live” construction areas for real-time demonstrations and hands-on training.

BRE is looking to partner with key stakeholders from across the industry to develop the park, including government, regional development agencies, local authorities, training and educational institutions, and industry supply chain partners.

For more information please contact Jaya Skandamoorthy on 01923 664 582 or email skandamoorthyj@bre.co.uk

Topics

Offsite 2005