Materials Research Facility (MRF)
Culham, Oxfordshire
Extension to the existing MRF at Culham Science Campus for UKAEA to increase capacity for the processing and micro-characterisation of materials.
Culham, Oxfordshire
Central Support Facility (CSF)
UKAEA
A new build central support facility (CSF), providing c. 2,000sqm of dedicated facilities for day-to-day logistics, deliveries and engineering-related operations for the Culham campus. Additional laboratory spaces providing cleanroom environments, workshops and storage space are also provided to co-locate wider support activities from across the wider site campus, as well as deal with associated goods in and out of the secure site campus.
The CSF building is a key element of the Culham Campus masterplan; as the site undergoes significant redevelopment and investment to facilitate ground-breaking research into nuclear fusion energy. The CSF will consolidate distribution and logistics within the campus and house several key support teams in bespoke environments for the first time.
With a net internal area of approximately 2,000 square metres, the building will comprise a larger, rear element accommodating a site-wide delivery receiving and sorting zone, including metrology lab facilities, a facility for the manufacturing support group (MSG) comprising mostly workshops and a facility for the special techniques group (STG) comprising specialist plant, workshops and clean rooms.
A smaller building element to the front of the CSF will house the main entry with office, breakout and welfare accommodation.
The CSF building contains specialist workshop areas, with furnaces and a new 5-axis CNC machine requiring special ventilation and clean environments in areas. Process gas requirements from centralised plant are also required.
A fully optimised braced structural steelwork frame was developed to accommodate and incorporate the geometry of the integrated northlights, to minimise the number of internal columns and to reduce the tonnage of the frame as much as possible.
Standardising the typical section sizes and minimising the number of different connection types was a significant cost and also fabrication time saver.
Due to the number of existing below ground utilities, coordinating the proposed new services was a challenge but efficiently done through the use of Civil3D and overlaying different GPR surveys, validating these surveys with onsite checks and measurements.
Our design includes passive design measures and high-efficient services to reduce the energy use of the building and to balance daylight with the overheating risk. Sustainability measures incorporated include high thermal performance building fabric and windows, high energy efficient building services plant and air handling plant incorporating thermal wheels.
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