Northamptonshire architects, Victor J Wigley and Associates, has picked up a prestigious award for innovation.
The award, for Most Commercial Impact, was presented by Wayne Hemingway, one of Britain’s best known designers and champions of innovation, at this year’s Sustainable Construction Innovation Awards ceremony.
Organised by the Sustainable Construction Innovation Network (iNet), the awards showcased innovation in the construction industry in the East Midlands and were held at Whittlebury Hall, Whittlebury, Northampton in April, during the East Midlands innovation Festival (iFestival).
Victor J Wigley and Associates has developed the innovative construction lining system LIMPET Insulating Liner, which is a patented construction lining system to provide a long-life, low carbon, sustainable solution to meet the increasingly demanding environmental requirements in the construction industry.
Victor Wigley, who accepted the award on behalf of Victor J Wigley and Associates, said: “The need for improvements in building insulation is pressing and the Sustainable Construction iNet awards recognises and rewards our efforts to achieve these improvements.
“We have developed the LIMPET system so that it can easily respond, without structural or design change, to future needs and Code for Sustainable Homes upgrades. It can also accommodate all forms of insulation, including new emerging insulants, such as aerogels, vacuum insulation panels and multifoil insulation.”
Speaking after the awards were announced, Director of the Sustainable Construction iNet, Dr John Liddle, said: “As with all innovations in the building industry, care and control is vital during its introduction. We believe that Victor J Wigley has developed an extremely marketable product.”
“The LIMPET Insulating Liner is an innovative non-structural construction lining system which means it can be applied equally to both new-build and retrofit projects. This flexibility is critical when developing sustainable technologies for construction and this is why the judges were so impressed with the concept.”
Award winners were announced from those organisations that have received an Innovation Support Grant or Collaborative Research and Development grant money for their leading innovative projects. Awards were presented for the following categories: Best Innovative Product or Process; Project with the Most Commercial Impact; Best Overall Innovation Support Grant project; and the Best Small to Medium-sized Enterprise / University Collaboration.
Wayne Hemingway transformed the way we thought about design in the 1980s and 1990s and went on to adapt the skills he’d developed to the benefit of the house building industry.
Wayne has won awards from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and Building magazine for his work in designing sustainable housing. He is committed to designing sustainable, affordable homes and has been behind some of the most innovative housing projects of the past decade.
Speaking about the importance of innovation, Wayne said: “Innovation often arises out of necessity to find a solution, this is especially true now as we need to create sustainable communities and not just houses. Sustainability isn’t just about using environmentally friendly products, it’s about understanding what people need from their communities.
“This comes not only from putting need at the centre of your design, it also means using local suppliers and building up good, long-term relationships with people who understand what you want to achieve.”
To qualify for an Innovation Support Grant, the applicant must be based in the East Midlands and operating commercially in construction or an associated industry sector such as mining, quarrying, waste management, energy or water supply. They must also require technical or consultancy assistance for their idea, product or process and expect to protect or create jobs as a result.
The Sustainable Construction iNet is funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The aim of the iNet is to share expertise and stimulate the research and development of new products, services and processes.
Businesses wanting to find out more about the Sustainable Construction iNet and the grants available should telephone 01604 892836 or visit www.eminnovation.org.uk.
-ENDS-
Issued on behalf of the Sustainable Construction iNet by Lava. For further information contact Matt or Lindsey at Lava on 01522 842 800 / matt@lavapr.co.uk / lindsey@lavapr.co.uk
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Notes to editors
About Wayne Hemingway MBE
- Wayne made his name as the co-founder of Red or Dead in the 1980s
- In 1999, having sold Red or Dead, Wayne and his wife set up Hemingway Design, which specialises in affordable and social design. The highest profile project so far is The Staiths South Bank, a 800 property mass-market housing project on Tyneside for Taylor Wimpey Homes. Hemingway Design have been involved from the master planning and architecture through to the landscaping and marketing of this groundbreaking project. Over 400 homes are now lived in and The Staiths has won a series of high profile awards including Housing Design Awards ‘Best Large Project’ and Building Magazine’s ‘Best Housing-Led Regeneration Project’ as well as a Building For Life and the highest rating of any large scale scheme in a CABE audit.
- Wayne has a degree in Geography and Town Planning from University College, London
- East Midlands Innovation is the Regional Science and Industry Council which was established in 2005 by emda.
- East Midlands Innovation’s principle responsibility is to take the lead for emda in implementing the Innovation Strategy and Action Plan for the East Midlands with the aim to grow a long term, sustainable, innovation-led economy.
About East Midlands Innovation
About the Sustainable Construction iNet
The Sustainable Construction iNet supports businesses in a number of ways:
- iNet advisors offer assistance in researching, developing and implementing new services, products and processes
- Develop skills and knowledge in a specific subject area
- Facilitate networking contacts through sector specific events
- Provide access to dedicated grants to help make innovation happen.
About emda
East Midlands Development Agency (emda) is one of nine Regional Development Agencies in England, set up in 1999 to bring a regional focus to economic development.
Ten years on, independent evaluation shows emda has:
- Had a significant impact on the region’s economy
- Generated economic benefits that substantially outweigh its overall costs
- Put back over £9 of economic output (or GVA) into the regional economy for every £1 it spends
- Produced more than £1 billion in economic benefits per year
- A wider impact on people, places and businesses in the East Midlands that cannot be captured by figures alone.
emda is committed to supporting the region through the current downturn and has put in place a range of measures to provide real help during these challenging times.
Over the long term, emda’s aim is to deliver the 2006 Regional Economic Strategy (RES) by working in partnership with public, private and voluntary organisations. The RES highlights the themes of productivity, sustainability and equality and sets out key priorities until 2020 to ensure the vision for ‘a flourishing region’ can be achieved.
For more details visit www.emda.org.uk
About ERDF nationally
The ERDF Programme aims to strengthen economic and social cohesion in the European Union by supporting regional economic development.
The ERDF objectives for England are:
- Promoting innovation and knowledge transfer
- Stimulating enterprise and supporting successful business
- Ensuring sustainable development, production and consumption
- Building sustainable communities
- Improving accessibility and connectivity (for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly only – as part of their Convergence Programme).
A Programme Monitoring Committee consisting of regional stakeholders such as Government Offices, RDAs, Regional Assemblies, Local Authorities, Sub-regional Partnerships, Higher Education Institutions, Trade Unions, and the private and voluntary sectors will monitor and oversee programme implementation in each region.
For more information on ERDF funding generally, please visit www.communities.gov.uk/citiesandregions/european or http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/funds/feder/index_en.htm
About ERDF in the East Midlands
The East Midlands is eligible for €268.5m between 2007 and 2013, which when combined with match funding, provides a programme value of approximately €537m – a significant investment in the economic development of the region.
The East Midlands qualifies as a competitiveness and employment region under the EU’s Cohesion Policy, which aims to meet the EU Lisbon objective to become ‘the most competitive and dynamic knowledge based economy in the world, capable of sustainable economic growth with more and better jobs and greater social inclusion.’
East Midlands Development Agency (emda) is responsible for the programme management and delivery of the region’s 2007-13 ERDF Competitiveness Programme. The responsibility for ERDF programme management was transferred from the Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM) to emda following a decision by the UK Government to seek greater alignment between ERDF and regional strategies and funding streams. The 2007-13 ERDF Programme is therefore set firmly within the framework of the Regional Economic Strategy.
A Programme Monitoring Committee, chaired by the Regional Director of Government Office for the East Midlands (GOEM), guides the strategic direction of the programme and works closely with emda.
To find out more about ERDF, the region’s strategy for delivering the funds, how to apply for funding and how the programme is managed, please visit www.eastmidlandserdf.org.uk
