(L-R) David Kelly, BRE; Rufus Logan, BRE; Margaret Burgess, Minister for Housing & Welfare; Allan Sandilands, Key Account Manager: Construction, Zero Waste Scotland

Yesterday (21 January) Margaret Burgess, Scottish Minister for Housing and Welfare, broke ground at a plot in the BRE Innovation Park in Ravenscraig, North Lanarkshire, officially beginning the construction process of a new ‘resource efficient house’ that will be displayed there.

Zero Waste Scotland and developers Tigh Grian Limited will jointly manage the project. It is hoped the design will eventually be available on the construction market and provide an affordable and resource efficient housing model, as well as ‘greener lifestyle options’ for families.

Margaret Burgess commented: “This cutting edge initiative will help to bring warm, energy efficient and affordable housing to families across Scotland.

“I am pleased to support this project, which will help to pave the way for the housing sector, informing it about the latest cutting edge sustainable construction methods and how they can be used the build high quality, green homes.”

Artist's impression of the 'resource efficient home'

‘Off-site modular construction’

The house itself has been designed to be airtight and well insulated to cut energy costs and produce net zero carbon emissions. It has also been designed with its eventual sustainable deconstruction in mind.

An ‘off-site modular construction method’ will be used to build the house, which will see parts being built offsite and then being assembled on the plot. This method is intended to provide ‘greater control over cost, waste produced and supply chain accreditation’, and to reduce potential delays caused by problems such as bad weather.

Allan Sandilands, Key Account Manager for Construction at Zero Waste Scotland, commented on the house’s design: “The final design of the house offers a great model for sustainable house building in Scotland, and we are delighted that Margaret Burgess could break ground on this exciting new project.

“The project takes into account the full life-cycle of the construction process from cradle to grave and is an example of circular economy thinking in practice. The use of materials, water and energy has been considered at all stages, meaning that resource efficiency underpins every element, including the design, construction, lifestyle options and eventual deconstruction of the house.

He added that the “real value” of the house was demonstrating “how the construction sector can realise cost savings by building in a more resource efficient, less wasteful way”.

“With rising energy costs, Scotland needs homes that are more energy efficient and affordable to live in. By keeping costs down in the construction process, there are also possible positive outcomes to be achieved for the construction sector and Scottish jobs”, he added.

Colin Machin, director of Tigh Grian Limited, concluded: “In addition to meeting exacting performance standards, we have used a range of sustainably sourced materials to demonstrate how different external finishings can be applied to this repeatable building model to satisfy a wide range of consumer tastes and demand.

“Through careful consideration of the way we source and use building materials and by embracing new technologies which harness renewable energies, we aim to demonstrate how it is possible to balance environmental concerns and increasing build costs with the creation of comfortable and affordable Scottish homes.”

When it is finished, the house will remain at the BRE Innovation Park for at least two years before being demolished.

It will form part of an exhibition at The Lighthouse, Glasgow, in March.