Grimshaw joins our 'Sustainable cities' forum

Image: London Bridge Station - designed by Grimshaw

Future Cities Forum is delighted that Dr Paul Toyne, Head of Sustainability (Group), Department Head, will be contributing to our 'Sustainable cities and tall buildings' forum this month at EY's London offices at More London by the Thames and London Bridge Station.

Paul has a diverse background, having worked all over the world as an environmental campaigner, conservationist and sustainable built environment specialist.

Within the fields of property and construction, he has held Group Sustainability and Environment Director roles at LendLease, WSP and Balfour Beatty.

His project experience includes all elements of the built environment, from flagship buildings and developments to infrastructure. Paul is a London Sustainable Development Commissioner appointed by the Mayor of London in 2010 and a member of the UK Government Green Construction Board’s infrastructure working group.

He is also a non-executive director and independent advisor to business and government including clients such as Volvo, Polypipe, Anglian Water, Skanska and Cory Riverside Energy. From 2010 until 2018, he was chair of the sustainability group at Constructing Excellence.

Paul has a PhD from Imperial College London and is a fellow at both the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment and the Royal Society of the Arts. He also has a species of butterfly, one of several he has discovered, named after him.

Our forum is being hosted by EY in its offices at More London, by London Bridge Station. The station has been an important project for Grimshaw with measurable sustainability.

The redevelopment of London Bridge station was one of the most complex and ambitious rail station redevelopments in the UK, including complex multi-staged infrastructure realignment and the complete rebuild of London Bridge station while maintaining operations.

The scheme has sustainability as a driving factor in both design and construction, introducing strategies such as geothermal piles and natural ventilation that are unusual for such a large public space.

London Bridge station is the linchpin of the Thameslink Programme which links Brighton and Ashford to Cambridge, Peterborough, and Bedford, through central London. The development was driven by the need for Network Rail (NR) to increase the number of through-trains accommodated at the station and to meet the anticipated growth in passenger numbers from 56mppa to 96mppa. To accommodate this growth the scheme creates a grand new street-level concourse, providing new entrances on two nearby streets.

The sustainable design approach relied on close collaboration between the client, design team and construction partner, in order to understand opportunities, risks and agree targets that were realistic and measurable. A primary goal was to implement passive measures, ensuring the concourse is filled with natural, glare-free north light, and natural ventilation and cooling, which filters through the canopies that protect the platforms above. Secondary drivers include active energy-efficient measures such as lighting controls, geothermal energy piles and intelligent escalator/ lift controls.

Above all, Network Rail committed to implement sustainability into the construction of the programme. This was manifested in the Thameslink Programme Sustainable Design and Construction Strategy. The document set out sustainability objectives with several targets under each objective, one of which was to achieve a CEEQUAL Excellent award for the project.

Image below: Dr Paul Toyne - courtesy Grimshaw