Sacyr’s H2O Housing Development in Barcelona awarded BREEAM Certification
Sacyr Engineering and Infrastructure has been awarded the BREEAM sustainability certification for the Badalona H20 housing development that it built on behalf of Kronos in Badalona, Barcelona.
The BREEAM sustainable certification guarantees that the design, construction and maintenance of a building considers the environmental, economic and social impact it will have on its environment throughout its useful life. Furthermore, this certification is closely aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Kronos Badalona H2O housing project has 252 homes, commercial premises and two stories of underground parking. Sacyr began construction in 2018 and recently completed the project.
This certification consolidates Sacyr’s commitment to developing sustainable projects that add value to society. For this reason, Sacyr Engineering and Infrastructure has spent years working on construction projects which require certifications such as LEED, BREEAM, VERDE, CES (Certificación Edificio Sustentable — sustainable building certification) HOSPITALS, GSAS DESIGN & BUILD, CEEQUAL and WELL. Working to these requirements on construction projects brings environmental, economic and social benefits for everyone linked to the lifecycle of a building.
In addition, Sacyr is a member of the BREEAM® ES Advisory Board and as such, contributes to improving the level of sustainability in construction in Spain.
Assessment process
The entire assessment process includes all of the stakeholders involved in the project such as the owners, project managers, the architectural firm, the engineering firm, the BREEAM advisor, as well as the construction company and installation companies – all to ensure the optimal assessment of the building’s sustainability level.
The most noteworthy sustainability measures that have been implemented are:
- Materials and waste: purchasing construction units compliant with BREEAM criteria and controlling and verifying the sustainability certificates for the materials to be installed or used, using approved landfills for waste management, with a target to reuse 80% of waste and controlling CO2 emissions through transporting the materials used on-site, as well as the waste generated.
- Soil usage, ecology and pollution: developing a protocol to eliminate and manage contaminated soil on the plot, measures to protect wildlife using perimeter fencing pursuant a specialist ecology report, and overhead protection of the plot’s lighting to reduce light pollution while completing the works.
- Management and transport: all construction work has been completed in such a way that it has a low environmental impact and with the highest levels of sustainability, environmental training is provided for site workers, all nearby neighbours are informed of the start and progress of the works and complaints from neighbours are managed.
BREEAM is a sustainability assessment method for construction projects developed by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) in the early 90s in the United Kingdom.
Some of the sustainability certifications awarded to Sacyr buildings are:
- BREEAM: Style Outlets Shopping Center in Viladecans, Airbus factory, housing developments for Quabit and Kronos, Airbus Getafe Prevention Center and Torre Australis in Spain; and Ulster University in the United Kingdom.
- LEED: Campus Repsol Headquarters, Sacyr Tower (Madrid), IMDEA Energía Headquarters, Bilbao Business Park, Biokit Headquarters, Rota Naval Base Control Tower (Cádiz), New Petronor Locker Room and the Navy Lodge Expansion in Spain; PT Data Center in Portugal and Hospital Tlahuac in Mexico.
- GBC Certification: Plaza del Milenio in Valladolid. The work on the Hospital Biprovincial Quillota Petorca (Chile) was awarded the CES HOSPITALES standard and the work on the Ras Bufontas Special Economic Zone (Qatar) was awarded the GSAS DESIGN & BUILD (Letter of Acceptance).
