Keppie has re-entered the AJ100 top twenty for 2007, and scooped another prestigious award for the design of Scottish Natural Heritage’s new HQ building.

As former RIBA president Maxwell Hutchison commented, “An outstanding building made the case for this year’s award winner.” The notoriously tough AJ100 jury agreed, awarding the 2007 Sustainability Award to Great Glen House in Inverness for “demonstrating that sustainability and commercial viability are not mutually exclusive”.

The 6,700 sqm building was praised for achieving the highest ever BREEAM rating of 84.01% and an A-rating from the BRE Green Guide for its materials, components and systems. In this “sensitive design” solar energy is used to heat water and exposed-concrete thermal mass cools the building, while integral ponds and wetlands incorporate local species. There are even heated roosts for bats.

The jury commented that “Great Glen House is a positive contribution to the Inverness landscape and, arguably, sets a precedent for commercial projects earmarked for rural settings.” The team at Keppie is delighted to add the AJ100 award to the growing list of accolades for Great Glen House.

In the AJ100 itself, Keppie leapt six places to 16. “It’s been a great year for Keppie,” said the judges, highlighting the securing of planning for the 1 million sqm Eurocentral Business Park, and the £40 million shopping complex for Cumbernauld Town Centre, among many other achievements.