Sustainability News - Award Winning Refurbishment

The police station in Southend-on-Sea, Essex has a new custody suite which opened its doors to the public this year.

Munro Building Services provided the full mechanical and electrical installation on this project, working alongside Logan Construction and Essex Police & Kent Police Estates Services design team. The first phase of construction began in June 2015 where the main station was refurbished. Following this, the new build second phase began which is now home to the new 30 cell custody suite.

The project required our mechanical and electrical engineering team to hold high level security clearance and possess exceptional understanding of performing and working in business-critical areas of this nature. It is this expertise of working in secure environments with Essex Police over many years which helped secure the contract.

To top off the successful completion of the first phase, the refurbishment also won a Public Sector Sustainability Award for Best Refurbishment hosted by PSS Magazine.

Award Winning Sustainable Solutions

Munro’s mechanical and electrical installation played an important role in the client securing this award for the project, particularly on energy efficiency. The solar panels installed will provide enough hot water to run the entire custody operation. Meanwhile, the LED luminaires used achieve efficiency levels of 138 chip lumens per watt, double the figure required and recommended by Part L2 building regulations.

The lighting’s efficiency is increased further using fitted sensors, that will ensure natural light is utilised whenever it is available. Daylight sensors of this nature have not been installed in custody suites before but this, combined with the addition of sun pipes for cells that would not normally receive natural daylight, will contribute further to reducing electricity and lighting costs.

Whilst improving the efficiency through this lighting system comes at a greater initial cost, the new higher efficiency lighting system installed by Munro will reduce electricity usage and decrease the carbon footprint of the building. This will save vital revenue in the long-term for the client as well as providing an excellent example of best practice in building sustainability for other public sector clients, the construction industry and further government buildings.

Take a look at the video walkthrough of the project.

Or if you would like to read up more about this project, read our Case Study here.