All of Springfield Properties future homes will come with already installed cabling for electric car charging points. The Scottish developer’s latest environmental initiative is one of the first in the UK and it will incorporate 7KW cabling to the most practical point in the home, allowing homebuyers to easily install
SAS Europe’s rendered rainscreen system ProWall has been certified with LABC Warranty and Premier Guarantee Product Approval again. This adds to its 60-year BBA durability certificate that the system has been holding since 2013. The cavity based rainscreen has been developed as a hassle free option for new build timber
There are serious challenges ahead to finding suitable properties to convert into much-needed hotels, Ed John, a real estate partner in Shoosmiths’ hotel practice, will tell industry experts at an event hosted by Colliers International in London today. Ed will tell invited guests that due to undersupply of development land,
Andy Swift, national sales manager for window and door foam sealant company ISO-CHEMIE considers the trade-off between airtightness and ventilation in sealing products. The legal requirement to consider airtightness in building design has been around for more than 10 years (2006) and falls within the orbit of UK Building Regulations.
Founder and managing director of mechanical and electrical engineering (M&E) consultancy Building Services Design (BSD), David White, talks through 2017, as well as his hopes for the coming year. The past 12 months have been huge for BSD as we celebrated 25 years in business and continued to thrive in
REL has been selected to provide electrical services at an £11m technical skills centre, which is the first of its kind to be located at a major UK airport. Harlow College, in partnership with London Stansted Airport, is bringing forward the two-storey facility, which will be located on land made
Please click on link to see Mainstay article in BDC Magazine April 2019 with Neal O’Grady, Managing Director of Integrated Property Management (IPM). For further information please contact Pip Gowenlock – Marketing and Communications Officer – PipGowenlock@mainstaygroup.co.uk – 01905 361 035 Mainstay article – BDC Magazine April 2019
With the recent review of fire safety in the UK having revealed an inherent number of ‘failings’ in the current system, Bureau Veritas has asserted that a major teamwork challenge must be overcome to ensure that buildings are constructed correctly and appropriately going forward. In the ‘Independent Review of Building
All of Springfield Properties future homes will come with already installed cabling for electric car charging points. The Scottish developer’s latest environmental initiative is one of the first in the UK and it will incorporate 7KW cabling to the most practical point in the home, allowing homebuyers to easily install a home charge point. Innes Smith, Chief Executive of Springfield Properties said: “At Springfield, exploring new ways to protect the environment has been a focus of ours for many years and installing the infrastructure for electric car charge points in our homes was the next logical step for our customers.” The 3,000-home community in Bertha Park will be amongst the first to benefit from the cabling. This initiative is the most recent one from a series of environmental measures delivered by the housebuilder. Using sustainable materials in the construction of its energy efficient timber-frame homes, offering solar photovoltaic panels as an option, and installing energy efficient hybrid boilers, are all part of Springfield’s green initiative. “The Scottish Government has pledged that by 2032 all new vehicles sold in this country will be electric but we anticipate that the uptake will increase rapidly long before then. One of our values as a company, is to include everything a customer needs in their new home, so, with this is mind, we wanted to make it as easy as possible for our customers to go electric,” said Innes. Those that own an electric car can apply for grants from the Energy Saving trust or the Office for Low Emission Vehicles of up to £500 to help them install a 32-amp home charge point. These external plugs are safer to operate, while cutting charging times by 30-60 per cent, depending on the make of the car. Homeowners that have a home charging point can also apply for an Electric Vehicle Loan, which covers the purchase of a new pure electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle of up to £35,000.
SAS Europe’s rendered rainscreen system ProWall has been certified with LABC Warranty and Premier Guarantee Product Approval again. This adds to its 60-year BBA durability certificate that the system has been holding since 2013. The cavity based rainscreen has been developed as a hassle free option for new build timber frame buildings. It delivers breathable buildings with a tough, attractive, and low maintenance façade due to its rendered surface coupled with a free draining cavity. It can also be an ideal choice for larger public buildings as its adaptable system has the option to be fitted using ‘helping hands’ systems to steel frame constructions. Its integrated fire safety, together with premium render carrier boards and a high quality render finish, make ProWall a top choice for many architect and developers. “We are finding that ProWall rainscreen is being chosen for an increasingly wide range of builds, from one off architect-designed homes to local authority commissioned leisure centres and schools. We expect the use of ProWall to continue to grow in 2018 as it is such a great option for timber frame new builds, and we have increasing repeat customers,” said Adam Powell, Technical Consultant at SAS Europe. ProWall was named a Premier Guarantee Product and was approved to perform to a consistently high quality standard and remain durable for at least 60 years. The system’s manufacturers were audited on assembly, design, on site construction, quality control, and transportation. Being approved by LABC means that the ProWall system has been rigorously checked by Local Authority Building Control surveyors and it complies with the LABC Warranty technical standards. It demonstrates compliance with UK Building Regulations, product testing and third party accreditation, all fulfilling the requirements of the Construction Products Regulations of July 2013.
There are serious challenges ahead to finding suitable properties to convert into much-needed hotels, Ed John, a real estate partner in Shoosmiths’ hotel practice, will tell industry experts at an event hosted by Colliers International in London today. Ed will tell invited guests that due to undersupply of development land, pressures to preserve the character of the local built environment and conserve existing buildings – particularly in urban settings – in some locations the only feasible option is to convert old and sometimes historic buildings, preserving the character of towns, cities and wider communities in the process. “There’s no doubt that the business of converting existing buildings into hotels faces a number of challenges however, with constructive dialogue with local stakeholders, early engagement on design and planning as well as careful consideration of the issues well in advance of implementation, a conversion can yield some tremendous results” he said, ahead of the invitation-only event at Colliers International’s centre in George Street. “We have seen how some truly iconic buildings can be enhanced and their heritage preserved while at the same time boosting local economies and turning some former eyesores into hotels of which our communities can be proud. You only need to look at buildings like The Ned, the former Midland Bank head office in the City – named after Edward ‘Ned’ Lutyens, or The Dixon, after John Dixon Butler – the architect who originally constructed the building in 1905 as the Tower Bridge Magistrates’ Court and police station to see what can be achieved with imagination – and a lot of hard work. “This event will be a perfect opportunity for some of the industry’s brightest figures to get together, celebrate its successes but, more importantly, to share ideas for how we can continue to grow in this space and to develop ideas on how to tackle these challenges head-on.” Marc Finney, head of hotels and resorts consulting at Colliers, said: “We are in a window of opportunity right now for hotel development. Three or four years ago, following the financial crash, you could buy an existing hotel for less than the cost of construction – it didn’t make sense. “Since then, starting in London but spreading quickly to Edinburgh, Manchester and other major markets, we can now see a plethora of UK cities and towns where development profits are available again. “With the availability of clean sites few and far between in good central locations, there is an obvious spotlight on the opportunities that conversions can bring.” As part of the event, hospitality industry expert Jonathan Langston will be interviewing keynote speaker Dexter Moren, founding director of Dexter Moren Associates, who will be lending his insight on the 25 years of his leading hotel architecture practice. Other speakers include Marc Finney, head of hotels and resorts consulting at Colliers International, Ben Turner, a partner in Shoosmiths LLP’s hotel practice; Paul Cook, head of technology at ISG; Jonathan Manns, head of the UK regeneration team at Colliers; as well as Colliers’ head of UK hotel valuations David Hossack; Ben Godon and Allan Davidson, directors of Colliers’ specialist hospitality asset management practice. Andrew Sangster will moderate a panel with industry experts, which includes Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank’s head of hotels Shona Pushpaharan, Colliers International’s head of hospitality management Clive Hillier, PPHE director of acquisitions and development Sabina Wyss di Corrado, and Adela Cristea, senior director, head of business development, UK and Ireland at Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group for Radisson.
Andy Swift, national sales manager for window and door foam sealant company ISO-CHEMIE considers the trade-off between airtightness and ventilation in sealing products. The legal requirement to consider airtightness in building design has been around for more than 10 years (2006) and falls within the orbit of UK Building Regulations. The measurement for calculation air loss out of, or ingress into, a building is measured in cubic metres (m3), per hour (h), per square metre of building envelope (m2) and at a differential pressure of 50 Pascals (Pa) between internal and external air pressure. The back stop maximum leakage is 10, equivalent to 10m3 (h.m2) at 50Pa. When designing to Passivhaus standards, this gets a little more complicated as they refer to airtightness as so many changes of air per hour. This relates more to the cubic capacity of the building or room, rather than the surface area of the envelope of the building. Notwithstanding this, to give some comparison it is generally agreed that Passivhaus is looking for a goal of 0.6m3 (h.m2) @50Pa, or less. Initially, not too much notice was given to the requirement to have a maximum air leakage, as in reality an air loss of 10m3 (h.m2) @50Pa could not really be called an airtight building, so the designs and detailing did not have to change radically to achieve it. However, building standards have progressed with the requirement to conserve more and more energy. Although the legal backstop of 10 has not changed the target air leakage for SAP, separate target values set by the house builders themselves have both significantly reduced. This helps to save heat loss out of the building, thus requiring less use of heating systems to maintain a comfortable temperature within the building, and in turn leading to greater energy efficiency and lowering CO2 emissions. This brings us to the question about air quality within the building. The more airtight we make our buildings the less fresh air we get into them through random unwanted gaps within the building fabric. Such problems can cause other issues for people with respiratory problems or young children, so proper ventilation is crucial. Build Tight, Vent Right ‘Build Tight, Vent Right’ has been a popular mantra relating to building design, particularly to those concerned with the Fabric First strategy, rather than just throwing ‘Eco Bling’ at a building design to achieve the relevant Standard Assessment Procedure credentials. It is often argued that if by reducing air loss you then need to build-in designed ventilation, then why bother in the first place? The answer, apart from the fact that legislation must be complied with, can be summed up in one word: control. It is the difference between controlled air loss, or ventilation, and uncontrolled air loss and draughts, which is the nub of the whole issue. How is ‘Build Tight, Vent Right’ achieved? With regards to ventilation, this generally falls into two major camps – natural ventilation and mechanical ventilation. If you achieve an air loss of 3m3 (h.m2) @50Pa or less, then it is a necessity to use mechanical ventilation. With an air loss of more than 3m3 (h.m2), it is generally considered that well designed natural ventilation is sufficient for most domestic dwellings. For unwanted air loss, it is generally acknowledged that the air loss between the junctions of windows and doors to walls, walls to floors and walls to ceilings accounts for more than 50% of the air loss in a house. Other common factors of air loss relate to fabric of the building itself and the various holes knocked through the fabric for an assortment of reasons such as drainage, heating flues, electrical cables etc. There are many products on the market claiming to be airtight seals. But the key is to use the correct products in the correct environment, and the extent to which they degrade over time. In addition, if one of the major requirements of airtightness is to reduce heat loss out of the building, then thermal resistance to these air leak sources surely needs to be considered as well. Certainly, being airtight will reduce or stop heat loss by convection, but what about heat loss by conduction – often referred to as non-repeating thermal bridges? The industry is starting to understand that airtightness is only half the story for the sealants. That is why the thermal insulation of joints between window, doors and walls is now included in the latest SAP calculations, where previously it had simply been ignored. When choosing a suitable airtight seal, the full requirements necessary to create a long-term solution must be considered. If it is simply to seal the edges or overlaps of an internal airtight membrane, then movement and thermal insulation are unlikely to be major factors to consider as any number of various stick on adhesive strip tapes are likely to be suitable. As there are technical differences between them, some specialist knowledge or advice is always helpful. A different story However, when sealing an actual construction joint between similar or different materials, it is a different story. An illustrative example is the movement between joints created by the junction of different construction materials, such as windows to walls or walls to roof etc. Even joints between the same materials can move, such as brick or concrete expansion joints. The initial drying out of the building must also be considered. In this respect, the differential movement between timber frame buildings and the external masonry facades is well researched and documented. But the different coefficient of expansion factors of different materials is less well known. When selecting an airtight seal for this type of application, consideration must be given to several factors to assess if it’s correct for the joint-type. This is based on: The need to accommodate movement Any need to allow for conduction heat loss, to maintain the thermal integrity of the abutting materials The suitability of the active adhesive system for both initial application and long-term use on
Founder and managing director of mechanical and electrical engineering (M&E) consultancy Building Services Design (BSD), David White, talks through 2017, as well as his hopes for the coming year. The past 12 months have been huge for BSD as we celebrated 25 years in business and continued to thrive in an environment where the next challenge is always just around the corner. As always, we met it head on, overcame it and moved on with added strength and determination. It’s safe to say the industry has changed over the decades, and quite considerably since we opened our first office in Crowland, Lincolnshire, back in 1991. We have since grown nationally, boasting eight offices across the UK – London, Kettering, Birmingham, Manchester, Cambridge, Leicester, Nottingham and Derby – and turning over more than £6 million. This year has been extreme and the roller coaster ride reflects very much the nature of our industry. We have had set backs just like any business, but on the flipside, we have promoted three directors from within, which has strengthened our management team and increased unity within the company – a company culture upon which we were established and have flourished. We started the year by moving into our new Passivhaus head office, based in Kettering, after relocating from our previous headquarters in Corby, where we’d been located for almost 20 years. The carbon neutral building showcases what we do and provides a great working environment for our brilliant team, led by Shaun Gregory. It has exceeded expectations for everyone. We really went above and beyond to achieve the energy efficient building standards because of the benefits both for the environment and staff wellbeing. It’s also estimated we’ll save 60 per cent on our annual running costs. From a personal point of view, our new office is a piece of work that’s been really amazing for me to work on and now work within. It’s the first office space we’ve bought, built and designed ourselves, highlighting a real landmark for us as a business. Promotions have been aplenty, with Mark Dyer, a BSD stalwart of 16 years and Joel Sawyer both becoming directors of the Cambridge and Birmingham offices respectively. Mark and his Cambridge team have made great strides to get us back to our 2012 levels of work – surpassing this year’s targets and gathering real momentum in Cambridge and East Anglia. Joel has been supported in the Birmingham office by Jo Jones, who has also been promoted to associate director – the first woman in the business to take on the senior role. There are very few women in the industry and, at BSD, we are doing all we can to eliminate the stigma attached to construction and engineering being a ‘man’s job’. The Birmingham team are in the midst of relocating to a new, larger suite in Fort Dunlop ready for an extremely busy 2018 so I’m pleased to entrust the team in the safe hands of Joel and Jo. Sean Langton and Charlotte Glover have established BSD in Manchester and we are currently adding to a great team to cope with the new projects the office has secured. Craig Jackson and Eoin Hickey continue to head our London office and continue with their established team to deliver amazing results on a wide range of projects in the capital. As we move into 2018, we are excited by the extent of the high profile projects which are going through design and will enter construction during the New Year. As our reputation grows, we are attracting larger and more complex projects, allowing us to recruit, promote and develop new engineers for the future. Our core business is M&E; I set out to bring something different to the industry, something that wasn’t available in the 1990s – delivering quality, practical, sustainable and commercially-minded designs completed on time and to budget. This hasn’t changed and is something we keep in mind across every job – no matter the size or value. We rely heavily on the relationships we’ve formed over the years and I truly appreciate all of the friends we’ve made in the last 25 years – we’re looking forward to another fruitful year and an active construction industry which is prepared to weather whatever comes its way.
REL has been selected to provide electrical services at an £11m technical skills centre, which is the first of its kind to be located at a major UK airport. Harlow College, in partnership with London Stansted Airport, is bringing forward the two-storey facility, which will be located on land made available by the airport. It will provide specialist further education tailored to fill skills gaps in engineering, business and finance and airport-related industries such as logistics and hospitality. Willmott Dixon is the main contractor for the new facility, which is scheduled to open in September 2018. Appointed by Kershaw Mechanical Services, REL will deliver all the electrical services, including power, lighting, security systems, access control, and data installation. “We’re looking forward to working with the team to help deliver this unique project, which will build the local skills base and support the airport’s future growth,” said Toby Buckley, REL’s managing director. “We’ve worked on many schools and colleges but this one is one of the most unusual in terms of the design and location. Situated in a former aircraft hangar right next to the runway, there is lots of double height space to contend with and both conventional teaching facilities as well as a workshop area, so power usage will be high. There will also be no natural ventilation, so all electrical services will need to be carefully co-ordinated with the extensive mechanical elements.” REL is due to start on site in January 2018 with all electrical work scheduled for completion in August 2018 in time for the new academic year.
Please click on link to see Mainstay article in BDC Magazine April 2019 with Neal O’Grady, Managing Director of Integrated Property Management (IPM). For further information please contact Pip Gowenlock – Marketing and Communications Officer – PipGowenlock@mainstaygroup.co.uk – 01905 361 035 Mainstay article – BDC Magazine April 2019
With the recent review of fire safety in the UK having revealed an inherent number of ‘failings’ in the current system, Bureau Veritas has asserted that a major teamwork challenge must be overcome to ensure that buildings are constructed correctly and appropriately going forward. In the ‘Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety: interim report’ launched on Monday 18 December 2017, former health and safety chief, Dame Judith Hackitt raised concerns about the building regulation process including unnecessary complexities and a lack of a joined up approach. For Bureau Veritas, a leading testing, inspection and certification company with a vast experience of the building control sector, the most pertinent points within the report lie, however, within the remedies for change – with an increased team ethic being central to this. Andy Lowe, director of building control at Bureau Veritas, comments: “As highlighted in the report, there is a major teamwork challenge to overcome if we are to negate failings of the past and ensure that buildings are constructed correctly and appropriately. “However, as detailed in the report, a significant part of the responsibility lies with the industry; with professional and accreditation bodies working to form a suitably robust qualification system and greater input from the fire and rescue services, through to a more structured handover process between building developers and owners, and greater clarity by building control. “For far too long, the many different entities in the fire safety chain have worked predominantly in silo, creating a weak link in the overall system – thus, working more holistically as a team is the only approach forward.” While a final review of the fire safety report is not due until spring 2018 and regulatory reforms may take some time, for Bureau Veritas the recommendation is for all viable parties to take positive, progressive action now. Andy adds: “It is really unfortunate that such a tragedy, one that will never be forgotten, has had to happen to shed light on some of the weaknesses in the current system. However, by taking action now and working more holistically as a team together with all areas of the industry, we can refocus standards for the greater good and ensure grave mistakes of the past do not happen again.” Bureau Veritas Building Control UK combines technical expertise and market-leading systems with unrivalled industry experience to deliver building control services to some of the biggest names in construction. Through effective teamwork, a consistent approach and commitment to excellence, Bureau Veritas’ solutions go beyond just compliance – they can help to reduce costs and manage risk throughout the building lifecycle, from design stages through to site inspections and final certification – whilst giving designers confidence that the project will comply with Building Regulations and all relevant legislation.
