Data Center image showing Mechanical and Electrical Engineering by Bryden Wood

Bryden Wood’s core purpose of Design to Value underpins everything we do, including M&E design. It means that we examine every aspect of every project in order to maximise what we deliver for our clients – across a wide range of value drivers, including cost, performance, programme time and sustainability.

In Mechanical and Electrical (M&E), our principal goal is to minimise the amount of intervention required by M&E building services – which is key to delivering truly efficient and sustainable buildings.

Our M&E engineers work as a core part of our integrated project teams across multiple project types and under differing scopes, depending on our clients’ requirements. We apply detailed engineering techniques to evaluate and refine the design, prioritising sustainability and the environmental concept. We continue into the production engineering phase and, where required, provide detailed information for fabrication and installation.

Throughout the design process we follow a number of guiding principles, against which we test all our designs. These include:

  • Optimising the use of materials with high carbon content to ensure that if they are used, it is always to maximum effect. Our digital design processes allow us to produce a carbon inventory of a project as it develops, leading to more sustainable buildings.
  • Creating M&E designs that minimise the use of energy for M&E building services, including the provision of heating, cooling, lighting, power and ventilation. We use highly sophisticated analytical tools to quantify precisely the energy use of a building, enabling us to make data-driven decisions on the selection of M&E building systems.
  • Designing for DfMA and Modern Methods of Construction (MMC). Wherever we can, we aim to make use of factory pre-fabrication of building elements, ranging from large primary plant modules, to small sub-assemblies of M&E systems.

 

Our approach to Mechanical & Electrical Engineering

Design to Value requires considerable engagement and a deep understanding of the end user. Our aim is to deliver M&E engineering solutions that provide them with exceptional value, performance and reliability in their M&E building services.

3D models are the core around which we develop our designs for every project. This helps the client and design team to visualise a project and identify where economies are possible. It also helps ensure coordination between building elements.

We produce an early 3D M&E engineering model to establish a strategic approach, which lasts all the way to the point where the installing contractor adopts it for installation.

Our integrated, multi-disciplinary approach gives us a unique insight into the balance between capital cost, performance and long-term operational and facilities management.

We use Building Information Modelling (BIM) to generate and manage data that maps the entire life cycle of the building, from inception, through construction, to end of life and recycling. We create models that contain not only the building geometry, but are data-rich in terms of relations, time, costs and quantities.

The result is a collaborative tool which the whole team can use, including clients and end users. We generate comprehensive and data-driven information, including construction drawings and the automatic scheduling of components.

The proven benefits of this Design to Value approach include:

  • a significant reduction in risk through improved coordination, control and flow of information throughout the design and build process
  • improved accuracy of cost and programme planning
  • increased productivity and efficiency as a result of managing teams and data centrally and
  • reduced re-work on site.

With our collaborative, integrated, innovative, efficient and rigorous approach we can take projects from inception to completion. We work on the relatively straightforward and the highly complex, often within the severest of site constraints.

We take enormous pride in the quality of our work and operate best-in-class quality standards throughout our designs and processes. Together with an exceptional team, this ensures we consistently deliver exceptional M&E services and results for our clients, as well as efficient, sustainable buildings that benefit our built environment - and our planet.

 

Read more about how we maximise benefits for M&E using DfMA.

Read about how we use DfMA and our integrated approach to maximise returns in data centre design.

 

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