United Kingdom

The Carbon Neutral Business Zone (CaNeBuZo) near Spalding in Lincolnshire is a ground-breaking development which aims to prove that commercially viable buildings can be created with today's technology to meet the aspirations of Level 6 of the UK's Code for Sustainable Homes - a standard which will not be mandatory for commercial buildings until 2019.

Designed by architect Dr Jeremy Harrall, the £1,300,000 CaNeBuZo development includes earth-sheltered office buildings, an eco-cafe, classroom and demonstration eco-house.  The architect wanted to prove the potential of earth-sheltered buildings by designing the UK's first truly zero carbon business park, and showing how they could require no heating, eliminating associated CO₂ emissions. 

Additionally, all the electricity required is designed to be generated on site by wind turbines, photovoltaic cells and solar water heating, and all waste products have the capability to be managed on site.

The single storey, earth-sheltered office buildings vary in size from 50m² to 150m².  Earth covers the majority of the buildings, except for large windows to the south and smaller north-facing windows.

Dow Building Solutions provided 300mm of STYROFOAM-A to provide insulation for the roof, floor and walls of the earth-sheltered office buildings - as well as for the residential 'autonomous house' on site - to maximise thermal insulation and minimise the need for heating.

The architect specified STYROFOAM-A not only for its excellent insulation properties, but because it uses CO₂ recycled from industry as a blowing agent. The boards are also lightweight, and easily cut and shaped on site, generating minimal waste. They can be installed in any weather thanks to their moisture resistance, and coped well with the design demands of a circular shaped building.

Dow's STYROFOAM insulation was used in combination with exposed internal concrete (90% Ordinary Portland Cement-free) within the buildings, which was used to make the most of the thermal mass properties of concrete. The concrete - which was supplied by Lafarge and incorporates recycled aggregate - absorbs heat (principally in the summer) effectively cooling the buildings, and releases the stored heat during cooler weather to provide a natural heating regime.