Sixpenny Group nominated for Brownfield Award
Hot on the heels of our nomination for the ‘2023 EG Industrial & Logistics award’, Sixpenny Group has also been shortlisted for the ‘Best Sustainable Brownfield/Urban Regeneration/Infrastructure Scheme’ at the Brownfield Awards.
Run by Environmental Analyst (an international membership and intelligence community for the environmental services space), the awards recognise developments that “clearly show real positive economic, environmental and social impacts, clearly linked to sustainable development goals and demonstrating social value.”
Sixpenny Group put forward the Gemstone Building at the Manor Royal business district as an example of a high-specification BREEAM ‘Excellent’ certified warehousing logistics development on a vacant brownfield site.
The development demonstrates how ESG factors are core to how Sixpenny Group invest, develop property and run our business.
We’re fully committed to responsible, sustainable delivery of real estate that has positive impacts on surrounding environments and communities.
This is reflected clearly in the Gemstone Building which:
-Was shaped by a program of close stakeholder engagement – ensuring the development both responded to market demand and met the needs of employers and the wider community.
-Is highly regarded locally and has underpinned local jobs by securing the presence of major employer Evri on the Manor Royal site for the next 15 years.
-Used products, materials and methods throughout the demolition and construction phases that are efficient, durable, have low environmental impact and can be reclaimed and reused as part of a circular economy.
-Obtained BREEAM ‘Excellent’ certification.
-Was the first development in the region to have ‘water neutrality’ signed off at Planning Committee. Independent experts calculated that the Gemstone Building saves over 10,794,000 litres per year, enough to meet the needs of 98 homes in perpetuity.
-Reduced gas dependency by removing the site from the grid.
-Includes EV charging for 30% of all car spaces and the capacity to allow the future electrification of Ervi’s distribution fleet of both cars and lorries.
-Uses the latest rainwater harvesting, low carbon heating and solar panel technology to minimise environmental impacts.
-Has enabled occupier Evri to meet rapidly growing demand by doubling the capacity of its previous operation in Crawley and opening an efficient 24/7 operating window.
-Provides significant external landscaping areas, including the additional green public spaces to the north and south of the development.
-Saw 98% of the building recycled (278 tonnes of material) with a substantial proportion of this used to create a new purpose-built facility for a community-focused sports club in Surrey. Core Judo is one of only 6 England Talent Development Centres in the UK, coaching more than 750 children. The academy works in partnership with ‘CLUB4’, Surrey County Council’s holiday, activity and food camps for children who receive benefit-related free school meals. Sixpenny Group also used recycled show suite materials from the Gemstone Building to refit our new head office (carpet tiles, led lighting, furniture, plants, kitchen, toilet fittings and appliances etc).
-Delivered an increase in car parking spaces to relive the acute parking issues in the surrounding area.
-Was selected by Vodaphone as a ‘modern built environment’ filming location for an advert. Permission was granted after a £2,000 donation to the St Catherine’s Hospice charity was secured.
The Gemstone Building is delivering significant environmental benefits and social value aligned to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals:
• Promoting sustainable economic growth and good quality jobs.
• Supporting the sustainable management of water.
• Providing access to sustainable and modern clean energy.
• Building resilient industrial infrastructure.
• Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Director of Sixpenny Group, Egor Shestakov, said: “This nomination and the recent EG award shortlisting are real landmarks for our business.
“The Gemstone Building was an opportunity for us to demonstrate our commitment to sustainable development at any scale.
“As well as meeting the highest sustainability standards we were able to transform unproductive space into an asset that is positively impacting the community.
“Its success is also underpinning our long-term focus on sustainable development, enabling us to focus on other priorities such as delivering energy positive residential developments in areas of high housing demand.
“It’s fantastic that our approach is being recognised as one of the best around.”