CASE STUDY BUILDING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
PROTECTING
THE PAST The unique challenges of
historic buildings make the
new generation of building
management systems ideally suited
for retroƛ t SroMects says *avin
+olvey of 3riva 8.
Building management systems (BMS) are helping to
maintain historic buildings with the same control-based
technologies found in many modern structures. As well as
boosting energy e iciency and improving visitor comfort, more
precisely controlled temperature and humidity can help to
preserve important artefacts and precious building assets.
However, special buildings come with special challenges:
technology choices need to be nonobtrusive
to the fabric of the
building in order to meet preservation orders and listed status
requirements. At popular tourist sites, upgrade works o en need
to be planned carefully to avoid disruption to visitors. This is why
some of the UK’s best loved heritage sites are using nextgeneration
solutions to address these challenges.
The National Centre for Writing, which has just completed a £2
million extension and refurbishment project at its headquarters
in Norwich, called upon the capabilities of the latest BMS as a
vital part of the upgrade. Since 2015, the centre has been based
at Dragon Hall, a Grade I listed, 15th century medieval trading hall
of significant historical interest. In such a building, factors like
humidity can have an extremely detrimental and compromising
eƒ ect on the internal structure. With this fact in mind, and the
knowledge that the building’s existing BMS was reaching the end of
its life and becoming unreliable, the decision was taken to invest in
new technology.
Although Dragon Hall – the Great Hall of which was built in
1430 – is a fitting home for such a prestigious organisation as the
National Centre for Writing, there is a constant need to ensure that
the building is both fit for purpose and properly preserved for the
future. With this in mind, permission was sought to upgrade the
property.
As a literature development agency, the centre has a long track
record of success, even leading the bid for Norwich to be granted
the UNESCO City of Literature title in 2012 – the first such accolade
in England. Recognising the need for the organisation to continue
its good work, £789,434 from National Lottery sources was granted
by the Arts Council England to support the upgrade project’s
capital costs. The aim was to integrate new educational and
community spaces, enhanced oƒ ice space and technical facilities,
24 MARCH 2019