An intensive year-long study into the viability of cardboard as a construction material by the Buro Happold RDI team led to a project to design a building from the material for Westborough School.

Funded by the government, the building was designed for use as an after school club and consisted of a changing area, kitchenette and toilet block. Being made from post-consumer waste paper, cardboard has the potential to be a very 'green' building material.

In this project, cardboard was used in structural tubes to support the roof, structural panels principally to stiffen the timber frame, as insulation for the walls and roof and also as surface layers.

Water poses the greatest threat to cardboard, with fire close behind. In designing the building, Buro Happold found successful solutions to these technical challenges.