The wonderful world of the Building Research Establishment
I was lucky enough to be part of a tour of the BRE (building research establishment) the other day. I knew that it was involved in certification and in testing of materials but had no idea quite how extensive and intensive its operations were so the trip was quite a revelation.
Set up in 1916 the BRE was privatised just before the election in 1997. It is now a social enterprise with fee earning activities feeding back into research and development in the Built Environment – they currently fund 25 PHD’s for example. They see themselves in part as a conduit between academia and industry; helping develop new ideas; bringing ideas to market and proving and demonstrating performance.
The tour included a trip round their dozen or so show homes that showcase different construction techniques from hemcrete or brick and block to clay blocks or timber frame. All display a very high level of performance from code level 4 through to code 6. Inside, each of the houses is packed with goodies showcasing technologies rather than finishes. So you have all sorts of different lighting types; phase changing materials (materials that start off solid and change to liquid as a way of absorbing hear before reverting to solid again when they cool down); vacuum double glazing (super thin) and all sorts of insulations.
We then went on to have a look at another important part of the BRE’s work – testing. We were shown 4 huge warehouses each testing different aspects of materials and design – if you like tinkering in a shed or playing with a chemistry set then this will blow you away.
First up was the Wind Tunnel where we saw a mock-up of a planned skyscraper, set in a diorama of its planned location be buffeted by the wind from all directions whilst being monitored to see how each part of the structure and the surrounding buildings will react. We also learnt that this room is also where they blow wind at mocked up roofs to see at what point the tiles fly off and the rain comes in.
Then it was into the huge anechoic chamber where the walls are lined with huge foam wedges that eat sound so that you stand in the hall and hear no reverberation at all. Here we watched an air conditioning unit planned for a new auditorium being set-up to be tested to see if it was a going to be as quiet as it had been promised whilst next door in the Reverberation Hall where the walls were at mad angles in order to reflect as much noise as possible, they were testing windows to see if they cut out as much noise as they should.
Next was the Stress Test which was like a theatre back-stage where all the sets are stored up high except that this was one open room with a huge façade of a planned London structure mocked up within in preparing to have water sprayed at it to see how the rain would run off and how it could be collected. This room could also wrack and heave the façade and measure how all the points in the structure react to the pressures exerted in order to test its stress resisting capabilities. We also learnt how they mock-up buildings that have suffered collapse in this Hall in order to re-enact what happened to understand what caused a building’s failure to educate future design.
Finally there was the Burn Hall – another massive shed – where a 6 storey rendered elevation was being prepared in order to set fire to it to see what happens and how the fire spreads both up the facade and from floor to floor. Again, not only do they test planned structures here but they mock-up disasters to and the Fire Brigade and Police can be involved in trying to understand if a fire was caused by accident or arson. Here they also test sprinklers by setting fire to office interiors and measuring how effective a proposed sprinkler system is at putting it out/controlling the fire again all while watching, monitoring and measuring.
All in all it was a fascinating glimpse into what lies behind our buildings; how products and designs are tested to ensure that when we live with them in everyday life we can rely on them to do what they were designed to do. It was also great to hear about UK excellence as we could see products from all over the world ready to be tested in this UK facility. Thanks to all who showed us around.
