This week saw the official opening of the Co-operative group’s flagship headquarters in Manchester – One Angel Square – by the Queen. I had the privilege of photographing this ground breaking, greenest in the world(!) building on architectural interior assignment earlier this year, so it seems an apt time to finally get around to a blog update.

More after the jump…

To quote the AJ, One Angel Square “sets a new benchmark in sustainable design within the sector. Its design will reduce operating costs by up to 30 per cent. The double-skinned facade minimises heating and cooling, and underground concrete earth tubes provide free heating and cooling for incoming fresh air. Thermal mass is provided by exposing concrete soffits in the office areas. Waste air is extracted over the balcony edge using the natural stack effect of the atrium, avoiding large extract risers. This passes through a heat-exchanger that recycles the heat to warm incoming air. A water recycling system and rainwater harvesting lowers water consumption.”

In summary then:  it’s green alright, and has actually been declared the most environmentally friendly building  in the world, which is impressive in anyone’s book. For now, here’s a selection of highlight images from the day. If anyone is interested in seeing these at a larger size, look out for a shiny new web project, coming soon…

by Dan Dunkley

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