Local thatch used in innovative thatched cassettes on UEA Enterprise Centre building
The installation of highly innovative thatched cassettes cladding the £11.6m Enterprise Centre – the UK’s greenest commercial building – marks another key construction milestone at the University of East Anglia.
A completely new way of using thatch, the cassette cladding is one of the key sustainable elements being incorporated into the build project, developed by the Adapt Low Carbon Group and delivered by Morgan Sindall.
The cassettes have been constructed by local joiners, Fox Joinery, and thatched in straw from the Norfolk Suffolk borders by a skilled team led by the Master Thatcher of East Anglia, Stephen Letch
Combining traditional craft with modern methods of construction, it is the first time this unique thatch cassette cladding system has been used anywhere in the world. It is anticipated that the technique, which comes with a wide range of economic, environmental and safety benefits, could be replicated on many future construction projects – paving the way for thatch to return to its former position as a mainstream construction material. Read more here.