Sustainable Practices Applied to the Environmental Management of Archival Collection Storage Spaces at the Southwest Wing in the National Maritime Museum in London, UK

ABSTRACT

The rigidly set bandwidths for temperature and relative humidity have been the subject of discussions among museum professionals to ensure the preservation of collections while reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions to achieve a sustainable practice for environmental management in collection spaces. In 2020 at Royal Museums Greenwich, a group including engineers and conservators from Estates and Collections Services departments worked together to find a strategy to reduce energy consumption while running the mechanical system in exhibition galleries and storage rooms. During this process, a methodology developed by the Image Permanence Institute published in 2017 was followed to verify if the collection spaces at the National Maritime Museum were suitable to test sustainable energy-saving strategies. The focus of this article is on presenting and discussing the results of the first year of seasonal tests conducted at the archives of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. After a thorough assessment, the strategy chosen for the archives was programed shutdown of the mechanical system. The outcome was that collections stored in this area were maintained in a stable environment without the need to run the HVAC system at night, which translates to less energy consumption and lower carbon emissions.

RÉSUMÉ

Les valeurs limites de température et d'humidité relative rigidement fixées ont fait l'objet de discussions parmi les professionnels des musées pour assurer la préservation des collections tout en réduisant la consommation d'énergie et les émissions de carbone dans le but de parvenir à une pratique durable de gestion environnementale dans les espaces de collection. En 2020, aux Royal Museums Greenwich, un groupe comprenant des ingénieurs et des restaurateurs des départements des Domaines et des Services des Collections a travaillé pour trouver une stratégie visant à réduire la consommation d'énergie lors du fonctionnement du système mécanique dans les galeries d'exposition et les réserves. Au cours de ce processus, une méthodologie développée par l'Image Permanence Institute publiée en 2017 a été suivie pour vérifier si les espaces de collection du National Maritime Museum étaient adaptés pour tester des stratégies d'économie d'énergie durables. Cet article se concentre sur la présentation et la discussion des résultats de la première année de tests saisonniers menés dans les archives du National Maritime Museum de Greenwich. Après une évaluation approfondie, la stratégie choisie pour les archives a été l'arrêt du système mécanique. Le résultat a été que les collections stockées dans cette zone ont été maintenues dans un environnement stable sans qu'il soit nécessaire de faire fonctionner le système CVC la nuit, ce qui se traduit par une consommation d'énergie moindre et des émissions de carbone réduites. Traduit par Lucile Berthelot.

RESUMO

Os parâmetros de temperatura e umidade relativa rigidamente definidos têm sido objeto de discussões entre profissionais de museus para assegurar a preservação das coleções ao passo que se reduz o consumo de energia e as emissões de carbono, de modo a alcançar uma prática sustentável de controle ambiental nos espaços de coleções. Em 2020, no Royal Museums Greenwich, um grupo incluindo engenheiros e conservadores do Serviço de Patrimônio e Coleções trabalhou em conjunto para encontrar uma estratégia para reduzir o consumo de energia durante a execução do sistema mecânico em galerias de exposições e salas de reserva. Durante este processo, seguiu-se uma metodologia desenvolvida pelo Image Permanence Institute, publicada em 2017, para verificar se os espaços de coleção do National Maritime Museum eram adequados para testar estratégias sustentáveis de poupança energética. O foco deste artigo é apresentar e discutir os resultados do primeiro ano de testes sazonais realizados nos arquivos do National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. Após criteriosa avaliação, a estratégia escolhida para os arquivos foi o desligamento do sistema mecânico. O resultado foi que as coleções armazenadas nesta área foram mantidas em um ambiente estável sem a necessidade de operar o sistema HVAC à noite, o que se traduziu em menor consumo de energia e menores emissões de carbono. Traduzido por Carolina Lodi.

RESUMEN

Los niveles establecidos rígidamente para la temperatura y la humedad relativa han sido objeto de debate entre los profesionales de los museos con el fin de garantizar la preservación de las colecciones al mismo tiempo que reducir el consumo de energía y las emisiones de carbono para lograr una práctica sostenible en la gestión ambiental de los espacios de colección. En 2020, en los Royal Museums Greenwich, un grupo que incluía ingenieros y conservadores de los departamentos de Estates y Collections Services trabajaron de manera conjunta en la búsqueda de una estrategia para reducir el consumo de energía durante el funcionamiento del sistema mecánico en las salas de exhibición y los espacios de reserva. Durante este proceso, se siguió una metodología desarrollada por el Image Permanence Institute, publicada en 2017, para verificar si los espacios de la colección del National Maritime Museum eran aptos para probar estrategias sostenibles de ahorro de energía. El enfoque de este artículo es presentar y discutir los resultados del primer año de pruebas estacionales realizadas en los archivos del National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. Después de una evaluación exhaustiva, la estrategia elegida para los archivos fue apagar el sistema mecánico de ventilación. El resultado fue que las colecciones almacenadas en este espacio se mantuvieron en un entorno estable sin necesidad de hacer funcionar el sistema HVAC durante la noche, lo que se traduce en un menor consumo de energía y menores emisiones de carbono. Traducción y revisión: David Cohen y Soledad Tancoff; revisión final: Amparo Rueda e Irene Delaveris.

KEYWORDS:

• Environmental management
• collection care
• preventive conservation
• environmental control
• sustainability
• museum

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Alex Smith, mechanical and electrical Engineer at RMG Estates Department for sharing his insight and continuous contribution to the project. Many thanks to the RMG Environmental Management Energy-Saving group for their support and commitment to sustainable practices. Thanks to IPI members Christopher Cameron and Kelly Krish for sharing their knowledge about energy-saving strategies in collection spaces and their feedback at the initial stages of the project.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 PI represents the overall rate of chemical decay in organic materials based on a constant T and %RH. A higher number indicates a slower rate of chemical decay.

2 Maximum %EMC (≤ 12.5%) indicates a damp environment while Minimum %EMC (≤ 5%) identifies a dry environment. These conditions, as well as wide and/or frequent fluctuations can result in mechanical damage as hygroscopic materials change its size and shape according to the amount of water they can retain, and this is closed related to the changes in moisture in the air or %RH.

3 MRF represents the risk of mold germination and subsequent growth. A value of 0.5 or less indicates an environment with little or no risk of biological decay. 0.5 indicates that mold spores are halfway to germination. In a real-life situation, the environment would be evaluated over time to create a running sum of progress toward mold germination.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Maria F. Bastidas-Spence

Maria F. Bastidas-Spence is currently the preventive conservator and IPM coordinator at the Royal Museums Greenwich in London, UK. She obtained a Master of Arts degree in Museums, Galleries, and Contemporary Culture from the University of Westminster in the UK, and she holds a BA in Conservation and Restoration of Movable Heritage from Universidad Externado de Colombia. Bastidas Spence has worked in museums and cultural organizations in Colombia and the United Kingdom for over ten years. As a collection care specialist at the RMG sites, including the National Maritime Museum, the Queen's House, the Cutty Sark, the Royal Observatory, and the new Prince Phillip Maritime Collections Centre with over 2.5 million objects, her research endeavours in the last three years have focused on the sustainable management of environmental conditions in collection spaces and reducing the carbon footprint impact of mechanical systems in museums, archives, and historical buildings.