Vent-Axia has played a pivotal role in enhancing the quality of student living through its high-performance ventilation solutions at Centre Court, Olympian’s remarkable purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) development located on Alfreton Road in Nottingham. This innovative project is situated on the site of the former Forest Mill, which had remained derelict for over a decade. The development comprises a total of 790 student beds, as well as 19 affordable homes, significantly contributing to the regeneration of the area while addressing the increasing demand for high-quality student accommodation. The £120 million scheme is conveniently located just a 13-minute walk from the Nottingham Trent University campus, making it an ideal choice for students.
Project Overview
The Centre Court development is designed with three distinct buildings: The Alfreton Building, The Spine Building, and The High Hurst Building. This state-of-the-art accommodation was completed in September 2025, with the first residents expected to move in at the start of the new academic year. Notably, this scheme is the first of its kind in the UK to feature an outdoor padel court, catering to the recreational needs of students. Additionally, the development includes a Café & Co-Working Space, Study Spaces, a Games Area, Private Dining Facilities, a Gym, a Yoga Studio, a Cinema Room, Gaming Booths, and a Garden Terrace, all designed to promote a vibrant living environment.
Ventilation Solutions for Modern Living
In collaboration with the project team, Vent-Axia provided a comprehensive array of energy-efficient ventilation solutions aimed at ensuring excellent indoor air quality (IAQ) while adhering to modern airtight construction standards. The installation of Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) units across the development included a selection of Vent-Axia’s innovative products such as the Lo-Carbon Sentinel Econiq Cool-Flow, Sentinel Kinetic Cooker Hood, Sentinel Kinetic Plus, and Sentinel Kinetic High Flow units. Together, these solutions deliver effective ventilation, which is crucial for creating healthy and comfortable living environments for residents, all while satisfying energy efficiency targets.
Collaboration and Design Approach
The Olympian project was completed in under two years, thanks to the efforts of construction partner RG Group and a dedicated supply chain. The project team comprised a range of specialists, including Hodders as the architect, PUMA Capital and Housing Growth Partnership as funding partners, Bond Bryan for interior design, Educated Body for gym design, Meridian Consult as building control, Vitec as MEP consultant, Goddard Consulting as principal designer, and C&D Electrical as M&E Contractors. Ashley Beresford, Commercial Director at C&D Electrical, highlighted the importance of selecting Vent-Axia for this project, noting, “We have collaborated with Vent-Axia for many years and chose them for this project due to their extensive range of high-quality, reliable products. They work closely with our design team, resolving technical challenges and optimising performance.”
Addressing Overheating Challenges
With the evolution of modern developments requiring flexibility in design, the shift away from a one-size-fits-all approach to ventilation has become crucial. Regulatory changes are driving this transformation, necessitating a variety of adaptable solutions to meet specific project requirements. The Lo-Carbon Sentinel Econiq Cool-Flow was specified for this project as it uniquely combines the advantages of MVHR with an integrated DX cooling module, effectively addressing issues of overheating—a growing concern in contemporary student accommodation. Beresford added, “Overheating is becoming a critical issue in modern student accommodation, and effective ventilation is essential in combatting it.”
Key Features of Ventilation Systems
Centre Court is now managed by Homes for Students, providing residents with high-quality accommodation designed with a focus on comfort, wellbeing, and performance. The development illustrates how meticulously specified ventilation solutions can significantly enhance standards across the PBSA sector. The variety of MVHR units installed caters to the diverse demands of the project while ensuring thermal comfort remains a priority in thermally efficient, airtight modern buildings. The groundbreaking Lo-Carbon Sentinel Econiq Cool-Flow integrates intelligent controls that automatically alternate between heat recovery, summer bypass, and active cooling. This system continually measures both internal and external temperatures to maintain comfort thresholds efficiently, boasting an Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) of up to 4.12, alongside best-in-class Specific Fan Powers (SFPs) and thermal efficiencies reaching 93%.
Innovative Design Features
Furthermore, the Lo-Carbon Sentinel Kinetic Cooker Hood combines the functionality of a cooker hood with MVHR capabilities. This unit effectively delivers energy-efficient ventilation by providing healthy, filtered air, while continuously supplying and extracting air, recovering heat that would otherwise be lost. When needed, the cooker hood can be pulled out to purge cooking fumes, seamlessly integrating into the kitchen unit for an aesthetically pleasing finish. Designed specifically for student accommodation, this unit fits within a 600mm wide aperture above a hob, ensuring both practicality and style.
Another notable feature is the low carbon, energy-saving Sentinel Kinetic High Flow MVHR, which is perfect for larger homes. This system offers a comprehensive whole-building heat recovery solution, combining supply and extract ventilation in a single unit. It extracts warm, moist air from wet rooms through ducting, passing it through the heat exchanger before exhausting it outside, while simultaneously preheating fresh incoming air. Capable of extracting air from up to fourteen wet rooms and a communal kitchen, it achieves nearly 90% heat recovery, showcasing its efficiency. The unit is equipped with four fully adjustable speeds and a purge setting, along with energy-saving Vent-Axia DC motors, further enhancing its efficiency and reducing carbon emissions.