Norwich-based LSI Architects has broken into the Qatar market winning a major contract for an eco villa after years of research and training.

The company has won a competition to design the country's first 'eco villa'.

It has been working with UKTI and the British Embassy in Qatar and also completed training in Qatar's sustainability assessment system, which is considered to be the most comprehensive in the world.

LSI Architects partner Trevor Price, who is leading the Qatar project, said: 'We began researching The Gulf as a new market in response to the recession. I went on a UKTI trade mission to Abu Dhabi and Qatar in early 2010 and talked to packed meetings about LSI's expertise in sustainable design. The trade mission was followed by a series of one-to-one meetings in Qatar to establish our credentials and explore partnerships.

'I qualified in Qatar's sustainability assessment system, known as QSAS. This led to us being invited, along with two other practices, to submit proposals for the Eco Villa to the Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD), which is championing the project. It is wonderful news for the practice that our design has been chosen for the Eco Villa and we look forward to working on the villa from the autumn.'

The Eco Villa will be the first of its kind in the region and will be constructed using sustainable and recycled environmentally friendly building materials that have low volatile organic compounds emission rates. Green features in the villa include an in-house energy generating system, water efficient plumbing and irrigation and intelligent building control systems.

Bassam Al Tahtamouni, commercial attach� at the British Embassy in Qatar said: 'LSI Architects is an excellent example of a UK company that has invested time to develop relationships before winning their first project in Qatar.'