Innovative SIPS House Construction at Waldens Farm: A Sustainable Home in Rural Wiltshire
At Waldens Farm, Adam Knibb Architects’ design philosophy of blending modern architecture with natural surroundings is fully realized. By focusing on a context-led, landscape-driven approach, they created a home that seamlessly fits into its rural Wiltshire setting. SIPS house construction (Structural Insulated Panels) was employed to address the construction challenges posed by the site’s remote access, minimizing disruption and enhancing energy efficiency. This innovative approach highlights how SIPS panels can be used to create sustainable and efficient homes in challenging environments.
The material palette, featuring accoya timber cladding, stone, and glass, was chosen to harmonize with the agricultural surroundings, while the home’s structure maximizes views of the picturesque landscape. This project exemplifies how contemporary design, prefabrication, and sustainability can converge to create a home that both respects and enhances its natural environment.
Photography by Richard Chivers, Published with bowerbird
How does Adam Knibb Architects’ design philosophy influence the approach to creating contemporary homes like Waldens Farm, particularly in a rural context?
At Adam Knibb Architects, we study all aspects of a brief to create our bespoke and dynamic contemporary houses. Our approach is context and landscape led meaning that all projects will fit within their site and respond to nature. This is not only in a visual sense but also within an ecological and sustainable way.
How did the prefabrication process impact the SIPS house construction of Waldens Farm, especially considering the site’s access challenges?
Due to access challenges and the tranquil rural location, the clients aimed to minimise disruption to neighbouring properties during construction. They achieved this by using prefabricated SIPs panels, reducing on-site construction time and benefiting from their superior insulation properties, allowing for more spacious internal rooms.
In what ways did the picturesque Wiltshire landscape and agricultural surroundings shape the material choices and design of Waldens Farm?
The choice of materials was heavily influenced by the rural surroundings, with accoya timber cladding blending the new house into its agricultural context and complementing existing barns and outbuildings on the site. This was combined with traditional stone and contemporary glass to harmonise with the landscape and create a seamless indoor-outdoor connection.
The design incorporates a skillion roof and vaulted ceiling, sweeping upward to the rear of the property to maximise the views and connect the main open-plan living area to the outdoors. To ensure privacy, the bedrooms are positioned along the rear side, opening up to these key views, and mature trees provide a natural screen.
What were the advantages of using prefabricated SIPS panels for Waldens Farm, and how did this method contribute to the home’s overall energy efficiency?
The property sits within a large expanse of land on a fishery, with views of a lake as well as a forest and farmland. The building aesthetic needed to maximise this location, it was decided that timber would be the main component – a soft finish that would age into the landscape and fit seamlessly.
The property has obtained a better than average impressive score of 86, energy rating B. All features have achieved a ‘Very Good’ or ‘Good’ rating, with the roof and floor achieving 0.11 W/m2K and the walls achieving 0.15 W/m2K.
The CO2 output is also below average and currently measures 2.0 tonnes (average being 6 Tonnes).
Looking forward, how do you see the role of prefabrication evolving in rural architecture, particularly for projects that prioritize sustainability and harmonizing with the landscape?
The Architects, clients and contractors worked together to ensure a tightly run SIPS house construction project. Clays meet the brief with their SIP structure and Accoya timber used their sister company Jewsons to secure the cladding, which was designed in three different widths. Jon East, Timber Development Manager at Jewson, said “Jewson were successful in securing the contract to supply the Accoya cladding for Waldens Farm due to our close working relationship with both the client/builder and the team at International Timber Parkend. The team there were, as always, really helpful and easy to work with”
Accoya is a great sustainable wood, which is a huge factor as to why it was chosen in this project. It also has many other great benefits, including the fact it is incredibly durable, has a 50-year above-ground warranty, and is trusted not to visibly swell, shrink or distort, with minimal movement. The fact it also provides a fantastic finish is another fantastic reason to go with Accoya.
