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Wind Engineering

If you require a wind study to assess the urban environment near buildings and its impact on pedestrian comfort, safety and air quality, our CFD consulting services will support your early design, planning application and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) requirements. We have developed efficient methodologies and workflows for cost-effective evaluation and risk management of new developments.

Wind Microclimate Studies for Planning

Planning applications for tall buildings in the urban environment often require a wind microclimate assessment (wind study) to ensure a new development does not adversely affect pedestrian comfort and safety.

Traditionally, such studies could only be undertaken with wind tunnel testing of a scale model, requiring time-consuming model creation and the use of specialised test equipment. However, computer simulation of wind around buildings, exploiting Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) technology, is now established as a faster, cheaper and more flexible option. It offers greater insight and enables rapid design changes while satisfying the requirements of local councils and authorities for planning applications

Wind Engineering Society Corporate Member
Wind Engineering Society Corporate Member

Using industry leading simulation software like Ansys, we regularly undertake qualitative desk studies and full quantitative CFD wind studies considering Lawson criteria, partnering closely with architects, developers, councils, civil & structural engineers and planning consultants to simulate how air flows around new developments.

Through early involvement in a project while building massing is still flexible (typically RIBA 2 or 3), we can help you avoid expensive last-minute delays in the planning process.  This includes analysing the effects of terrain and studying meteorological data, while applying both “real time” and detailed CFD for early identification of potential issues with pedestrian safety and comfort.

Once the wind conditions have been assessed, our engineering team can provide guidance on how to mitigate any issues by landscaping and other measures.

Example Projects

We have been involved in residential, commercial and student & sheltered accomodation developments in many cities and large towns across the UK and Ireland – from London, Truro, Coventry and Sheffield to Liverpool, Preston, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

We are familiar with guidelines provided by individual planning authorities, such as the City of London, Sheffield and Leeds, and also write EIA chapters on request. Please contact us for links to previous public domain wind studies available on planning portals.

Fish Island, London

Bishop Gate, Coventry

Hollis Croft, Sheffield

Market Street, Aberdeen

Moorbridge Court, Maidenhead

Candleriggs, Glasgow

Strawberry Fields, Stockport

Grove Street, London

Forrester Hall, Preston

Napier & New Plymouth, Rainford

Serena Solar & Sunrise, Hornchurch

Atholl Square, Aberdeen

A Prompt and Efficient Quotation Service

Offering a pragmatic yet effective service fine-tuned for design and assessment, we will support you through your planning application with efficient, timely and accurate results.

We always encourage our clients to involve us in their building development as soon as possible since early stage studies can often identify and remedy potential issues before massing is finalised. It can also reduce the overall cost of the assessments required to satisfy planning applications.

To discuss which level of wind microclimate assessment is appropriate for your development and quickly receive a fee quote, simply complete the form opposite or contact us below:

    Additional Services

    • Expert Witness & Mentoring

      In addition to helping stakeholders with planning applications, we also offer support to councils in developing local wind study guidelines, interpreting quantitative CFD-based reports and assessing third party projects.

    • Complementary Wind Tunnel Testing

      For very tall buildings, some planning authorities require both CFD-based wind studies and wind tunnel tests to be undertaken on the same development. In such cases, we can provide a complete service in association with a wind tunnel partner, practising close collaboration to ensure the geometry and assessment procedures are consistent and compatible.

    The wind assessment undertaken by Wilde benefited the business, as it was a cost effective solution to the evaluation that was required for the planning application. It provided a graphical response to a very technical analysis, which I believe planning officers will appreciate as it is a concise and easy to read/understand... In addition, due to the size of the development, CFD offered a solution that captured all the areas of the development at once.

    PRP Environmental

    ... While the wind report was needed for planning, it was also very important to us to ensure that the design factored in the wind analysis to promote people’s comfort and safety within this development. This is an important factor which is too often slightly overlooked at early stages of planning and design.

    Barberry

    The work provided enabled us to present high-quality information to the client, which is excellent, given that the building is going to be an iconic one.

    Millwood House Consultants

    Wind & Rain Loading

    By modelling wind flows, we can also investigate the effect of wind loading on structures, through 1-way or 2-way fluid-structure interaction (FSI) capabilities. We are experienced in helping clients use structural analysis in conjunction with wind flow simulations to design in accordance to relevant codes such as BS EN 1991-1-4 and BS EN 1993-4-1.

    Rain can also contribute to arduous loading conditions on buildings. We provide services to assess the exposure of walls to wind-driven rain in line with the BS 8104:1992 code of practice.

     

    Pressure contour map due to wind loading (Courtesy: Millwood House Consultants)
    Pressure contours due to wind loading (Courtesy: Millwood House Consultants)

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