LIFE at the AMP
LIFE is based at the
Advanced Manufacturing Park - Technology Centre, Sheffield City Region (formerly called the Innovation Technology Centre or ITC). The AMP is located minutes from Junction 33 off the M1 Motorway and is in a central position in England with excellent communications infrastructure.
About the Building
Managed by Oxford Innovation, the AMP Technology Centre provides flexible, serviced accommodation for office, laboratory and workshop use within units of varying size, with 27,000 square feet of lettable space in a total overall floor space of 50,000 square feet. Shared spaces include reception, administration, meeting rooms and social spaces to encourage interaction between the occupant companies. The AMP Technology Centre offers all the services usually associated with a managed workspace including reception, telecommunications, broadband internet connection, conference facilities etc.
Future Development
LIFE has pioneered the concept of a low carbon building which is currenlty being built onto the back of the AMP Technology Centre which will: -
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Be an international example of a low carbon, sustainable and highly energy efficient building.
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Be built to exemplar building standards, of “iconic” design, and have a very low environmental footprint plus low energy life cycle costs.
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Utilise various technologies to acheive these aims.
Technologies
The building has a mini electricity grid which would export electricity to, and import electricity from, the local electrical network. The building would have its own electricity generation equipment including photo-voltaic cells, wind turbines, a fuel cell and micro combined heat and power (CHP) equipment. It would also host a Hydrogen generator and Hydrogen store and utilise a ground source heat pump to provide heat to the building.
The building would be a pioneering example of a “Hydrogen economy development”.
Technology and Efficiency - The principal energy technology and energy efficiency features that could be incorporated into any building include: -
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Hydrogen fuel cell, probably Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
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Hydrogen generator
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Hydrogen storage
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Wind turbines
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Photo Voltaic cells
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Ground source heat pump
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Micro combined heat and power (mCHP)
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Increased insulation levels
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Reduced air leakage rates
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Optimisation of passive solar heating and lighting