The building, for operator Greystar, was originally designed traditionally, but we adapted it for factory manufacture without altering the architectural vision – and increasing net lettable area by 560m2 in the process.
Delivering Tillermans Court through volumetric construction shortened the construction programme by 18 months, a saving of 50% compared to traditional methods, allowing future phases to begin more quickly.
After completion, Heriot-Watt University carried out detailed analysis to compare the volumetric approach with the original construction strategy. By drastically cutting waste and vehicle movements, and optimising material, we saved 26,000 tonnes of embodied carbon – a reduction of 44% compared to traditional construction and a 10% improvement on RIBA 2025 and LETI Band C benchmarks. This is equivalent to:
Volumetric manufacture accounted for more than 60% of construction, but less than a third of total construction time.
Tillermans Court is part of a mixed-use waterfront neighbourhood that will ultimately include 2,118 new homes in seven main buildings on derelict industrial land, breathing new life into a previously inaccessible stretch of the Grand Union Canal.