We are committed to tackling the Climate and Biodiversity Emergency both through our work and our business practices.

We think critically about how to embed sustainable design principles into our projects, and we challenge our clients and collaborators to make better decisions, achieving lower-carbon buildings, championing reuse and refurbishment, and moving beyond business as usual.

Our commitment is demonstrated by our long-standing efforts to minimise material use through good design and employ low-carbon materials. Notable examples include Atlassian Central in Sydney, the world’s tallest hybrid timber structure, and the Black & White Building in London, with its fully timber structure and facade. Our expertise in adaptive reuse has produced standout exemplars like the LSBU London Road Building, which saved 3,000 tonnes of CO2 through frame reuse; UNESCO Building V in Paris, with a facade clad in reused aluminium; and 1 Exchange Square, where 50% of the stone facade was retained and upgraded.

We do not approach sustainability as a tick-box exercise. Instead, we use our structural and facade engineering expertise to practise ‘applied sustainability,’ delivering real impact on carbon reduction and performance.

Digital design tools are central to our approach, enabling rapid feedback in assessing structural and facade design options for embodied and operational carbon. Drawing on our extensive project database, we make early decisions that maximise impact. The development of such digital tools and workflows is funded by our internal Research & Innovation programme, which is now principally directed at sustainability goals.

Our leadership extends beyond our projects to industry-wide initiatives such as GlazingRecovery.org, our collaboration with the CWCT in co-authoring their Guide to Facade Refurbishment, and our research into novel materials in partnership with industry and academia. We continually seek to widen our sphere of influence, amplify our impact, and share our specialist knowledge more broadly.

We have publicly stated our commitments through Engineers Declare (UK and FR) and our ECAP response to SE2050 (US). We actively engage with our peers through collaborations via Reuse Booster, CWCT, SFE, Hub des Prescripteurs Bas Carbone, Timber Development UK, and The Engineers Reuse Collective.

Internally, our global sustainability network connects participants across all offices, fostering a culture of knowledge-sharing. By learning from each other and debating different approaches, we gain a deeper understanding of the issues and identify where we can make the most difference.

We do not have all the answers, but we are committed to progress, applying our expertise, and collaborating with those who share our values to accelerate change in our industry.

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