Month: September 2023

CIBSE: “Low Carbon Consultants (LCCs) have been certified by CIBSE to be competent in minimising energy use and carbon emissions from buildings in design, operation and simulation. The training programme enables them to go beyond the current legal minima in improving the energy performance of both new and existing buildings.

“Clients can be assured that buildings designed and operated by LCCs will meet the requirements of Approved Document L Volume 2 2021 and Building Control Officers can be assured that compliance is being signed off by suitably qualified professionals.”

As a Low Carbon Consultant Energy Management Systems Specialist, Rachel can:

• Establish, implement, maintain and improve an energy management system
• Develop energy management systems processes and procedures
• Improve energy performance in a systematic way
• Ensure that it conforms with its stated energy policy & demonstrate such conformance to others

“We would like to congratulate Rachel on achieving this qualification, which demonstrates many of the skills she has developed over the past 7 years at DSSR, and we look forward to seeing where she goes next.”

– Fiona Williamson, Regional Director

If you have any queries or wish to discuss with Rachel how she can support your project, please do not hesitate to contact us via our Contact Us page.

DSSR colleagues from our Building Performance Modelling team recently visited Civic House–Scotland’s first retrofit ‘PassivWareHaus’–as part of Glasgow’s ‘Doors Open Days Festival’ which offers people a unique chance to get a peek inside an array of Glasgow’s most interesting buildings.

On the doorstep of the DSSR Glasgow office at Speirs Wharf, Civic House was once a printing press for worker activist groups in the early 1900s. It was recently transformed into a modern, ultra-sustainable co-working space, featuring a canteen and events hub.

Civic House is an interesting case study for sustainable approaches to repurposing industrial buildings and addressing how vacant spaces can be repurposed and modernised.

Following its extensive refurbishment, Civic House has a new lease of life as a vibrant commercial and leisure space.

Delivered by Agile City, a non-profit and community interest company, it is an excellent example of how to adapt and reuse previously derelict spaces, avoiding the embodied carbon cost of new construction and demonstrating carbon reduction innovation.

Studies have shown that it takes between 20 and 50 years for a new building constructed to the last Part L standards to overcome, through efficient operations, the negative climate change impacts related to the construction process.

As such, applying a targeted holistic approach to the refurbishment of an existing building allows the re-use of existing resources whilst minimising the impacts of climate change.

Carina McKinney, DSSR Lead for Building Performance Modelling: “At DSSR, we thrive to learn from our direct surroundings; having a building on our doorstep, designed to EnerPHit standards, was a great opportunity to learn first-hand from the people who were involved in the refurbishment process.

“For refurbishment projects like this, it’s not always possible to achieve a Passivhaus standard, and so the Passivhaus Institute has developed the ‘EnerPHit’ certificate to recognise structures retrofitted with Passivhaus components to achieve a high energy performance standard.

“One of the things I found particularly interesting was that air-tightness testing was carried out at the outset of the refurbishment process–not just for the finished product–in order to understand the quality of the existing wall structure, which in turn informed the insulation process.”

Congratulations to Regional Director, Fiona Williamson, who recently celebrated reaching the incredible milestone of 25 years working under the banner of DSSR.

Fiona began her career with DSSR straight from university in 1998, and in time was promoted to Senior Engineer in 2004, Associate in 2007, and has been a Regional Director since 2020. A Chartered Engineer and the Sustainability Lead for DSSR, Fiona manages a multi-disciplinary team based in our Glasgow office which has a particular expertise in sustainable building design.

As the Sustainability lead for the company, Fiona keeps abreast of the current energy and sustainability policy, legislation, industry updates and such, applicable to our business, to ensure the company is informed of all relevant requirements.

Fiona is also a Member of CIBSE, Low Carbon Energy Assessor LCEA (Scotland), BREEAM Assessor (NC & RFO), BREEAM Advisory Professional (AP), and CIBSE Heat Network Consultant.

History of Fiona

During her early school years, Fiona wanted to be an Architect. Driven by a love of Lego, drawing, and buildings she found herself led in that direction. Over time, she developed a particular aptitude for more technical subjects, such as maths and physics, and was encouraged to consider the field of engineering.

Fiona later undertook an Undergraduate Degree course at Strathclyde University called ‘Building Design Engineering’ as it covered a variety of building elements including Architecture, Structural Engineering, and Environmental Engineering. She particularly enjoyed Environmental Engineering–in particular Sustainable Building Design–and completed her honours degree in this subject.

Following graduation, Fiona began to look at Building Services Consultancies who, even in the late 1990s, were involved in the design of sustainable and low-energy buildings. Since graduating, she has been able to use her skills and passion to influence building designs and continues to look forward to the opportunities.

“I have loved being part of the evolution of the construction industry seeing the changes in safety and welfare as well as the continuing challenges of meeting the future needs of our world. I am in a privileged position to have the skills required to help contribute to managing Climate Challenge and this is something of which I am very proud.”

Career with DSSR

Fiona joined DSSR straight from university in 1998, jumping straight into an extensive refurbishment project for the University of Glasgow under the mentorship of DSSR veteran, Chris Marriott.

While at DSSR, Fiona has worked on many iconic projects and buildings. From the University of Glasgow project in her early days, she has worked on the News International presses at London and Liverpool – a £500m project which was the largest DSSR had ever undertaken at the time.

In more recent years, Fiona has continued to develop DSSR’s expertise in Sustainability Consultancy in the Built Environment and our national reputation in this continuously evolving field.

“You are lucky in your life if you meet people who make your life a better place; I consider myself lucky to have known Fiona for 25 years. She has enriched my working life, and I am a better person for having worked with her.”

– Bill Chalmers, DSSR Director