The future takes shape at Ravenscraig

Ravenscraig Ltd, the company driving forward the rebirth of the former steelworks in Lanarkshire, and Building Research Establishment (BRE) Scotland have confirmed that four consortiums have been selected to take forward plans for the new BRE Innovation Park at Ravenscraig.

The lead organisations within each of the four development consortiums are CCG Scotland with Places for People; Powerwall Systems with Lovell Homes; Build ICF and Kraft Architecture. MacFarlane Wilder has been appointed as the landscape architects. A planning application is due to be submitted by BRE Scotland for the innovation park and it is anticipated that work will begin on-site in January 2010.

Earlier this year, BRE Scotland was awarded £500,000 from North Lanarkshire Council’s Vacant and Derelict Land Fund and this money will be used to prepare the site for development. This will include the completion of landscaping and infrastructure works, such as new roads and a car park, as well as the installation of a sustainable drainage system (SUDS) and street lighting.

Set in the heart of Ravenscraig, the five acre park will incorporate six full-scale demonstrator houses and will channel over £2 million of new technology investment. The houses will showcase how homes of the future will tackle issues such as affordability, energy efficiency, the use of recycled materials, carbon emissions and sustainable methods of construction.

In June 2008, Ravenscraig Ltd and BRE Scotland invited Scottish construction companies to submit their proposals for the park and received responses from over 80 organisations.

The innovation park will build on the lessons learned by BRE’s first demonstrator centre at Garston near Watford, which pioneered the use of groundbreaking technologies such as wind turbines, rainwater harvesting, heat recovery systems and recycled waste timber within individual homes.

Doug McLeod, Chair of Ravenscraig Ltd, said: “The BRE Innovation Park at Ravenscraig will be a model for new ways of living in Scotland and will demonstrate how we can make a lasting contribution to climate change.

“The aspirations for Ravenscraig are closely aligned with those of BRE Scotland with regards to sustainable development, and we share a common desire to create an enduring legacy which can act as a platform for the best of Scotland’s design, innovation and technology.”

Councillor Tom Maginnis, Convener of Regeneration, said: “North Lanarkshire Council is very supportive of the BRE Innovation Park which marks another positive development in the regeneration of Ravenscraig. Our award of vacant and derelict land monies will help address the necessary works to kick-start the project.”