English Woodlands – Stunning Oak Frame Office

English Woodlands, in East Sussex, approached English Heritage Buildings looking to replace its existing workspace with a contemporary Oak Frame Office that wholly reflected the personality of the company and meet its growing needs. English Heritage Buildings was briefed to design a building which would reflect the high quality of its products.

The project was completed within a remarkably short five month period, between early May and September 2016, completely replacing the existing building with a new Oak Frame Office. Managing Director of English Woodlands, Michael Hardcastle, oversaw the project. He comments:

“We were very impressed with the detailed and well thought-out proposal English Heritage Buildings had provided us with. They gave us an approach to the whole project which helped to minimise disruption to the business. They also provided us with a range of approved services and contractors which put our mind at ease as everything was in hand from day one.”

English Heritage was given a broad scope of work that allowed them freedom to interpret the design and maximise the potential of the building. By utilising the natural insulation properties of Green Oak, English Heritage Buildings was able to construct a well-insulated, light and spacious Oak Frame Office, all while keeping the new construction sympathetic to its rural surroundings and the nature of the business.

In preparation of the build, English Heritage Buildings navigated and successfully guided the client, English Woodlands Burrow Nursery, through the planning phase and ensured there was nothing to fall afoul of regulation. Michael Hardcastle comments:

“While we had some initial questions about the building regulations, English Heritage Buildings were able to advise us at each step, ensuring that all of our designs were fitting with local regulations. They were also able to put us in contact with the right consultant regarding any further concerns we had. Overall, we didn’t have many concerns as we knew the project was in the right hands.”

Using Green Oak as the main material in this project, English Heritage Buildings was able to create a more spacious interior for the office. This is due to the fact that oak, as a structural frame, does not require load bearing walls, and so can create larger internal spaces. On top of this, the durability of Green Oak makes it one of the most innovative materials to build with. Oak-framed buildings are designed to last generations as oak hardens with age and exposure to water, making a revamp like this exceptional value. The English Woodlands office will now benefit from the material strengthening as it dries, twisting across its width, which in turn with add a unique charm to the building.

Not only do English Heritage Buildings construct and design buildings to fit in with their environment, they actively improve it. English Heritage Buildings is the only company of its kind to be awarded the prestigious Exova BM TRADA Q-Mark Certification. This is a certification that all products from English Heritage Buildings have passed the international testing, inspection and certification of this global authority. A pre-requisite of this accreditation is that all timber used must be sourced from managed forests where three trees are planted for each one that is felled, something English Heritage Buildings abides by. As more CO2 is absorbed by a growing tree than a mature tree, this process actually assists in the overall reduction greenhouse gases.

*UPDATE: English Heritage Buildings are delighted to announce this project scooped Highly Commended in the Sussex Heritage Trust Awards 2017. To read more, click here!