Airtricity (now SSE Renewables) – a subsidiary of Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) Group – commissioned McLennan Chartered Architects to lead the design of two large substation buildings and a 1900m² Operations Centre at their Clyde Windfarm. Clyde Windfarm is an integral part of the government’s overall initiative to source 20% of the UK’s energy from renewables by 2020. At the time of construction, it was Europe’s largest onshore wind farm.

The substations are nestled in the Lowther Hills and are essential in exporting electricity from the turbines to the National Grid, whilst the Operations Centre – a large staff and storage facility – is sited in a semi-woodland location next to the M74 motorway. The location of the project meant that designs had to be sympathetic to the surrounding areas and the electricity was to be renewably sourced from the adjacent turbines. This required a thoughtful approach – such as the use of strategically coloured cladding on the operations building, so that the buildings blended in with their surroundings.