Default hero image

BRE Trust reports on latest built environment research

Note: This press release is over six months old and the details may have been superseded. Please contact the Press Office for the latest information.

BRE Trust has published its annual review of some of the latest built environment research. Available online, the report outlines research projects and activities across areas ranging from infrastructure sustainability and resilience to occupant wellbeing and energy.

Projects

The BRE Trust Review includes summaries of completed projects and their results including the three-year Future Cities research programme, which was delivered in collaboration with over 70 partner organisations and had a total project value of over £30 million. ‘With the global population and urban migration continuing to rise, this important programme was created to explore critical future cities issues and the complex challenges involved in 21st century urban development.’ said BRE Group research director Dr Deborah Pullen. ‘The programme has delivered tangible tools, guidance and standards, all of which will be of benefit to diverse stakeholders across the built environment. We will also be using the outputs to inform further research in this area.’

The review also addresses active projects including the Resilient Built Environment themed research programme, which began in April 2015. During the year, five research projects focusing on climate resilience were launched, with flooding, wind and overheating the priority areas. The programme has also developed to include research into community resilience, incorporating themes such as cyber security for smart homes and how to increase uptake of climate and flood resilience measures by building owners.

Partnerships

New strategic research partnerships with Loughborough University, University of Hertfordshire and University College London feature in the report as well. This includes funding by BRE Trust for applied research in high performance buildings, sustainable construction, and resilient buildings and communities at Loughborough University’s Royal Academy of Engineering Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Building Design.

The new strategic partnerships expand on the research and education activities at the five existing BRE Trust University Centres of Excellence – in Bath, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Strathclyde and Brasilia – which continue to carry out outstanding research. With 102 PhDs funded, the portfolio of active and completed research now topping £60 million and over 600 papers and conference proceedings published, the review highlights projects and their outcomes across all eight of its university partners.

Publications

The report also outlines recent publications spanning a wide range of research, knowledge and guidance for sustainability, fire and security, energy, health, materials and future cities. One of the current bestsellers is the Lighting and Health report which reviews existing research on the health effects of lighting (including daylighting) typically found in buildings, offering expert guidance for lighting designers, and building occupiers and their managers. Equally, it details how the Trust is working to produce new and engaging dissemination formats to enable easier and more widespread uptake and learning.

To download a copy of the report click here

 

For further information please contact Linda McKeown, BRE, email [email protected]


NOTES TO EDITOR

BRE Trust

The BRE Trust is the largest UK charity dedicated specifically to research and education in the built environment. Set up in 2002 to advance knowledge, innovation and communication for public benefit, the Trust uses all profits made by the BRE Group to fund new research and education programmes that will help to meet its goal of ‘building a better world together’. www.bretrust.co.uk