The centre is a major new teaching and research facility and the first of its kind to be located in an urban setting with a dedicated space providing opportunities to research and develop sustainable and environmentally friendly technologies for urban buildings.  The centre also provides the ability to monitor the real-time performance of some of the building’s own sustainable technologies including photovoltaic arrays, solar hot water, tri-generation (CCHP) and a fibre-optic daylight lighting system with sun-tracking.

The opening of the new facility was marked by the two day sustainability conference ‘Energy in the City’ organised by the International Solar Energy Society and hosted by London South Bank University.

Martin Ratcliffe, senior sustainability consultant at Roger Preston & Partners (and honorary research fellow of the university), presented a well received paper to the conference on the potential C02 reductions available from the application of Combined Heating and Power (CHP) and community heating systems in London.

Martin also gave a poster presentation of the Roger Preston & Partners’ 7 More London Riverside project, a building which has recently set a new benchmark for sustainable development by becoming the first office building in England to achieve a BREEAM Outstanding award.