Here’s how we build and design with environmental care protection at the forefront.
Building materials can contribute directly to environmental problems, such as deforestation. They can also contribute indirectly, through the amount of greenhouse gas emissions needed to make them. Cement is particularly carbon-intensive, for example, which is why we design lightweight buildings that don’t need concrete foundations.
Heating is a major source of energy use in the northern hemisphere and therefore of carbon emissions. The amount of heating that a building needs is basically locked in at the design stage, so designers need to give careful consideration to how heat will be lost from their buildings. We minimise heat loss by using SIPs (Structurally Insulated Panels), which embed high performance insulation right into the wall of the building. That gives us great insulation without giving your studio walls that are three feet thick! By supplying your building with electric heat, all you need to do is to make sure you’re on a green energy tariff, and you’ve got yourself a low carbon building.
Sustainability is vitally important to us. All our standard builds have an Energy Performance Certificate score of A.
The construction industry is a major source of waste, as you may have noted if you’ve ever spent any time on a building site. It’s the single biggest contributor to landfill, with vast amounts of excess materials, rubble and mixed waste. As a modular builder, we have a major advantage. Your buildings are made in our factory and only assembled on site. That means that we deal with any waste at the factory, which is so much easier than the ad hoc nature of building sites, where everything tends to go in one big skip. We’re able to use exactly what we need, and reuse scrap in other projects.
Of course, there is the waste created within the building, which is a slightly different issue. But if you want to ask us about composting toilets, we can do those!
Finally, eco-friendly buildings leave more room for nature, through sensitive landscaping, creating habitats, and avoiding disruption to nearby trees and water courses. Our clients’ needs vary, so we don’t have a one-size fits all approach to nature-friendly construction. We do always consider how our buildings will fit in with their surroundings though. We prefer the natural look of timber cladding, and we often fit green roofs. Planted with low-growing sedum, a living roof creates space for nature on the otherwise unused roof space of your building.
Vertis promises a simple modular construction process for beautiful, sustainable school buildings. We specialise in building single and double classrooms that teachers and students love – and we do it all in just a few weeks.
We’re experts in construction for educators – we’ve built over a hundred modular school buildings so far. We understand the needs and challenges teachers face, and we know how vital an educational space is for young people.
Our productive environments foster learning, fit the needs of a teacher and keep students engaged.
We know the demands for space that schools face, which is why we prioritise a swift, simple, non-disruptive building process that can run during term time.
