Latest innovations and products in the interiors section of the construction industry.

Rinnai to headline sponsor CIBSE Tech Symposium in London

Rinnai – the UK leader in gas-fired high efficiency continuous flow water heating units and systems – is to be the headline sponsor of the forthcoming Chartered Institute of Building Services Technical Symposium being held this year 12-13th April 2018 at London South Bank University.

The CIBSE Technical Symposium 2018 – themed as ‘Stretching the envelope’ will encompass techniques, applications and technologies for healthy and productive environments.

“The uncertainties of climate, resources, environment, and security will mean that there is an increasing need for those with a responsibility to deliver healthy and productive environments to stretch beyond ‘business as usual’, says CIBSE.

The 2018 symposium theme is aiming to provide the industry with a technical insight into the methods, technologies and techniques that are available, or just over the horizon, that will drive the development of increasingly sustainable future environments. This will include presentations and discussions on both the established and proven, as well as the developmental and cutting edge.

Topics presented may include the following: Assessing, assuring and improving occupant health, comfort and wellbeing; Developing and applying leading edge products and systems for a sustainable building future; Moving towards net zero energy and net zero water built environments; Delivering human friendly ecosystems beyond the ‘built’ environment; Fusing passive and active building systems; Designing and operating to meet future climates; Creative technologies and systems for an aging population; Intelligent systems and knowledge based tool; Metering, intelligent monitoring and control techniques to predict and manage energy use; BIM (and other information tools) for improved building development and operation; Case studies and measured performance of buildings in use

Rinnai Managing Director, Tony Gittings said “we are an industry-leading manufacturer of water heating technologies, products and systems for commercial sites and we have been a main sponsor of the CIBSE Technical Symposium, held in the Spring, for the past several years now. We believe it is the best event of its kind.

“We get to speak in a relaxed and informative manner about continuous flow hot water technology with members from all types of consultancies, building services and academia backgrounds. The fact that it moves around the regions makes it even more attractive to Rinnai – yes the South East has the biggest concentration of population but there is a lot more outside of the M25 area!!

“The event is well organised and, more importantly, it is well attended by CIBSE members all looking for new product and practices to improve the industry’s offering to end-users. Rinnai looks forward to continuing our sponsorship of the event well into the future.

For more information on the RINNAI product range visit www.rinnaiuk.com.
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Altro Aquarius helps transform dining room to wet-room for disabled teenager

Altro Aquarius™ has been used in a life-changing home adaptation to create a wet-room for Devon-based teenager Mya Bolt.

Despite enduring years of tests, Mya’s parents are no closer to a diagnosis. “If asked, we call her ‘a unique’ and she certainly is, in every way. She’s a very happy, giggly girl, who loves music, make-up and wearing pretty clothes,” says her mother, Claire. “But she also needs total support with self-care, is non-verbal and has severe learning disabilities and poor mobility.

“We have accepted we may never have a specific name for her condition, she is just a very special girl, but it does makes it hard to plan for her future, as we have no idea what to expect,” explains Claire.

It was with her future in mind that Claire and her father Bert decided to convert their dining room into a level-access wet-room. “The older and bigger Mya got, the harder it was to get her upstairs to the bathroom,” says Claire. And, with no ground floor toilet, Mya had no choice but to use a commode in the living room.

Bathing was also becoming increasingly stressful with Claire often getting wetter than Mya and the physical task of lifting her in and out was becoming progressively harder. “It was clear she needed a way to achieve more independence. So when our Occupational Therapist suggested a shower-toilet, I knew it was the perfect solution,” says Claire.

Turning a dining room into a wet-room wasn’t an easy task. Located on the opposite side of the house to the soil pipe and sewage system, Bert had to hire a digger and excavate a whole new sewage network around three sides of the property. A new wall was installed to create a hallway past the bathroom, connecting it to what will eventually become Mya’s downstairs bedroom, and the rest of the family home.

Not knowing how Mya’s condition would develop, the Bolts decided to design the new wet-room with their worst-case scenario in mind – total wheelchair dependence. In addition to sanitaryware that accommodates Mya’s needs, for superior grip, Claire selected Altro’s Aquarius safety flooring. “I did consider regular tiles but we stayed in a hotel with Altro and the grip is just incomparable, plus it comes in lovely colours,” explains Claire. It runs straight into the shower space, and up the walls, effectively tanking the entire room.

Altro Aquarius was ideal as it is a specialist safety flooring developed for lasting performance in shoes or barefoot. Achieving Class B to DIN 51097 for barefoot use, plus PTV ≥50 (Slider 96), it provides optimum lifetime sustained slip resistance in wet and dry environments. The range features plain and tonal chip options to help you achieve high contrast and design flexibility. It has been extensively tested with a variety of shoes and contaminants to ensure top performance in high-risk environments. It’s also easy to clean, making it ideal for home adaptations.

While every element was planned to ensure Mya never outgrows her new bathroom, Claire is delighted to report that her dream of giving her daughter dignity and independence has come true. “This whole project really has been life changing for Mya, and our whole family.”

For more information please visit www.altro.ie.
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Armstrong Ceilings feature in University’s striking new library

A mix of metal and mineral ceiling and wall systems from Armstrong were specified for a new development at Royal Holloway, University of London, one of the top 30 universities in the UK .

The new BREEAM “Excellent” rated library and student services centre, named the Emily Wilding Davison Building after one of the university’s most famous alumni, is set in a new landscaped events square at the heart of the university’s campus in Egham, Surrey.

The 10,500m2 state-of-the-art building delivers inspirational library and study spaces, together with student facing services under one roof, putting enhanced student experience at the forefront.

Some 1,000m2 of RAL 9010 Armstrong custom Metal B-H 300 ceiling planks, Metal R-H 200 ceiling tiles and custom Metal W-H 1100 wall panels, as well as Armstrong’s Cradle to Cradle® certified Perla OP mineral tiles on a Prelude 15 TL grid were specified by Associated Architects for the £57 million new Davison Building at Royal Holloway.

The Metal B-H 300 perforated linear planks with acoustic fleece on a 300mm C-profile were used for the soffit of the triple-height atrium at the core of a series of wings and for three link bridges at first and second floor levels, while the Metal R-H 200 Hook-On tiles and Perla OP mineral tiles (which perform to sound absorption class A and are 85% light reflectant) on a Prelude 15 TL grid feature in offices.

Project architect Joe Belcher said “We were looking for a product that, in conjunction with the perforated timber veneer panelling, would help provide absorption to soften the acoustic of the atrium. As well as providing a neat and crisp aesthetic, we chose a self-finished material to avoid an unnecessary maintenance burden, especially relevant for tall spaces where maintenance access requires special equipment.

“We were especially pleased with the way the Armstrong product has been coordinated to align with other features such as the large feature rooflights. The 300mm plank module and edge trims enabled us to ensure the crisp junctions envisaged were achieved. For all these reasons, and the fact that Armstrong is a known and trusted name for our clients, it made sense to specify Armstrong.”

Throughout the building, a careful, consistent approach was taken to the internal character. Associated Architects developed a mature and sophisticated interior scheme to fit in with the university’s campus. This included visual concrete columns and soffits, extensive timber finishes and feature lighting.

Extensive areas of exposed visual quality light grey concrete to soffits, columns and stair core walls form part of the passive thermal strategy for the building, allowing generous floor-to-ceiling heights which give a sense of permanence and solidity.

Joe Belcher added “As a practice we regularly specify Armstrong products. As well as the more common modular suspended ceiling format which regularly appears in education, higher education and commercial office projects, we have used Armstrong products in previous laboratory and library projects.”

The Armstrong ceiling and wall systems were installed by specialist sub-contractor Rosguill Developments for main contractor Osborne. The Davison Building officially opened in October 2017.

More information is accessible via the Armstrong Ceilings website www.armstrongceilings.com/commercial/en-gb/ or the manufacturer’s app which is available from both the Apple store as well as the Google Play store, or by clicking on one of the links below with your mobile device www.armstrong.com/CeilingDownloads-Apple or www.armstrong.com/CeilingDownloads-Android.
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100% CIBSE pass rate for Giacomini!

Over the past year, Giacomini UK has been making vast steps to ensure its technical sales team is fully up-to-speed with the very latest in the industry and to ensure that its employees are experts in the sector.

As part of this, the technical sales team has been undertaking courses from the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) and Giacomini is delighted to announce that all of its UK technical sales engineers are now fully registered CIBSE Heat Network Consultants.

Technical support manager, Helen Gibbons was the first to receive the accreditation in June 2016, followed by Giacomini’s UK and Ireland sales manager, Alistair Moore, and technical sales engineer, Warren Smyth, in May 2017. Hot on their heels was Oliver Gledhill, also a technical sales engineer, who was the most recent member of the team to pass the exam, ensuring that the entire technical sales team are now CIBSE registered consultants.

This reiterates Giacomini’s position of expertise in the sector as well as being a leading supplier of heat interface units and a specialist in providing unique complete underfloor heating packages. It also demonstrates Giacomini’s knowledge of HIUs and the intricacies of communal heating and district heating networks.

Matt Lowe, managing director of Giacomini UK, commented: “Having our entire technical sales team become CIBSE recognised consultants is a huge achievement and something of which we are very proud of. This gives our team wider expertise within the building services sector. Engineering technologies are rapidly evolving; at Giacomini, we strive to retain our positions as leaders of this so having our team receive the CIBSE accreditation for being Heat Network Consultants is a great feather in our cap!”

For more information about Giacomini UK visit www.giacomini.co.uk.
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Impressive Results for Evinox ModuSat® Under BESA HIU Testing

Evinox are very proud to announce that the ModuSat® XR Heat Interface Unit has been tested to the BESA (British Engineering Services Association) UK Standard for HIUs, achieving impressive results all round.

Launched in late 2016, the BESA UK Standard for Heat Interface Units was introduced to help designers and specifiers evaluate the performance of a particular HIU on their network. This new standard aims to provide HIU benchmarking, similar in many ways to the well-known SEDBUK scheme for domestic boilers.

Currently, only a handful of manufacturers have published results for the HIU test regime, with Evinox being one of the first to undertake the testing process.

With an overall VWART of just 33.4℃, impressively low domestic hot water return temperatures and the ability to deliver flexible Keep Warm operation, the BESA test results provide a clear, independently verified confirmation that the Evinox ModuSat® XR range delivers outstanding heating and hot water performance for modern heat networks.

Mike Shaw, Commercial Director at Evinox Energy commented “We believe independent testing is a vital step forward for the Communal & District heating industry, and as one of the UKs most established HIU manufacturers, we were determined to be involved from the early stages. Our latest ModuSat® XR and XR-ECO models have been developed very much with the new standard in mind and we’re confident that this regime from BESA will lead to more efficient heat networks being designed and delivered”.

The BESA standard is currently optional for HIU manufacturers, however, Evinox believes this will be a mandatory requirement in the near future, and asks designers and specifiers to start insisting on the use of BESA tested units for their heat network projects going forward.

The full report and test results can be found by visiting www.evinoxenergy.co.uk, or contact Evinox to book a CIBSE accredited CPD Seminar on 01372 722277.
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A strategic partnership based on trust

When energy industry guru Mike McDonald recognised that the commercial underfloor heating sector was becoming “commoditised”, with installers choosing a pick ‘n’ mix policy of bringing together the various components on a lowest cost basis, he took a decision to base his young business on a manufacturer’s brand.

With a life-time in the energy industry, including as Divisional Board Director at BSS and Managing Director of two BAXI Commercial Heating businesses, Mike approached Giacomini UK, a company whose products and expertise he knew well, and formed a strategic partnership with his Cardiff based Ecofit Energy Systems business.

“Five years later Giacomini accounts for more than 80% of our UFH products and we would not have enjoyed our great rate of growth without the support of Giacomini. We are a true partnership, playing to each other’s’ strengths. We identify and win the business, and they design the systems and provide the components, with full technical support,” says Mike.

Ecofit Energy Systems offers a complete design, installation, testing and monitoring service for environmentally friendly energy systems throughout Wales, the South West and along the M4 corridor into central London.

“When you are working with major commercial undertakings, local education authorities and universities, you need the confidence of the guarantees, product supply and technical support that only a major manufacturer, such as Giacomini, can offer,” he adds.

His is a real family business with his daughter Lauren as managing director and her partner Kieran technical director.

The business partnership goes from strength to strength and has recently won a contract to provide underfloor heating at five primary schools in Powys and its largest order yet, a 174 apartment development in Bristol. Mike often works with Giacomini’s approved sub-contractors as part of the package.

“It is rather like a marriage relationship. We have been together now for five years and are looking forward to even greater benefits from our partnership. Pooling our separate skills into one symbiotic relationship enables us to target bigger and more complex installations with confidence,” says Mike.

For more information about Giacomini UK visit https://uk.giacomini.com/
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Staircraft make Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 League

Staircraft are delighted to have achieved number 51 in the 2017 Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 league, an index which ranks Britain’s fastest growing private companies.

Managing Director, Andy Hamilton, founded the Nuneaton-based company in 1985 using innovation through design and manufacturing to reach today’s position of Europe’s largest staircase manufacturer, supplying 1000+ new-build homes every week.

The proposition has grown significantly, now offering ‘fully integrated solutions’ in the design and manufacture of staircase, i-joists, floor-kits, MDF painted profiles/mouldings, with door-kits on the horizon. The extended range also positions Staircraft as Europe’s only i-joist and floor-kit manufacturer.

In 2017 Staircraft added 5 manufacturing facilities, ending the year with 8 facilities with more planned in 2018. 3 units were opened in Hinckley supporting the main stair factories and providing capacity for future product areas. 2 further units were opened as follows:

  • an industry-leading MDF paint line, producing various profiles with an end-to-end process, achieving a superior coating on all 4 sides
  • already one of the UK’s largest cut floor kit providers Staircraft announced they are now manufacturing i-Joists under a new brand

The new i-Joists are available in depths from 220 to 300mm, featuring a bespoke OSB web with quality softwood flanges and a unique, strength-enhancing finger joint profile. The new high technology production line will also allow for further innovation and built-in enhanced performance to a standard joist.

Andy Hamilton, Staircraft Founder & Managing Director commented “Nothing much has changed since i-Joists were invented 48 years ago, until now! Our investment in a high technology, bespoke production line, enables us to take i-joist performance to a new level. Our new capability will enable us to significantly increase performance by eliminating web joints, the weakest area, greatly improving the web/flange connection strength. These innovations will future proof our offering to the market.”

Andy continued “Of course our success would not have been possible without the support of our customers and suppliers who we recognise as our extended team, helping us achieve greater market share. Lastly, and most importantly, I want to place on record my sincere gratitude to each and every member of the 300-strong Staircraft team. Their hard-work, flexibility and dedication through a significant period of improvement and change has been truly admirable. Here’s to 2018!”

For more information please visit www.staircraft-ltd.co.uk.
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Kingspan OPTIM-R provides slim solution for Scottish renovation

A derelict Grade B listed hotel in Kinross, Scotland, has been transformed into an impressive modern family home, with help from the ultra-slim Kingspan OPTIM-R Flooring System.

Delivered by M&S Character Homes, the renovation plans combine the former Royal Hotel’s main two storey building with the L-shaped additional building to create a single dwelling home. Built in the early nineteenth century, the property boasts striking period features such as oak beams and low ceilings. However, both the owners and architect’s dedication to retaining as many of these features as possible and the listed status of the building, meant there were some inherent design issues that needed to be considered in order to comply with the Scottish Building Standards.

Architect Scott Strachan commented: “the much-altered historical building fabric, current dilapidated state of repair & new owners’ enthusiasm for the property provided a unique opportunity at this stage in the life of the building to both conserve the existing historic building fabric and create a new 21st century chapter in the history of the building.”

Ceiling height in the ground floor hallway where a new staircase needed to be installed was particularly low. To meet the Building Standards for both the head height for the staircase and thermal performance, the Kingspan OPTIM-R Flooring System was specified in a 30 mm thickness. Homeowner and Director of M&S Character Homes, Murray Mitchell, explains:

“As the property is Grade B listed, there are certain limitations to how far it can be altered. The Kingspan OPTIM-R Flooring System was used as it met our thermal requirements at a third of the depth of a normal insulation board. Additionally, the head height in the other part of the hallway is very limited as there is an oak main beam. If Kingspan OPTIM-R hadn’t been used, the floor-to-ceiling height would have been 60 mm less.”

Kingspan OPTIM-R vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) feature a microporous core which is evacuated, encased and sealed in a thin, gas-tight envelope. This design allows them to achieve optimum levels of insulation performance with a declared value thermal conductivity of 0.007 W/m.K despite their minimal thickness.

As with every installation of a Kingspan OPTIM-R System, Kingspan’s specialist technical team provided detailed System layouts and instructions for the project to help streamline the installation whilst keeping the construction thickness to a minimum.

20 – 40 mm thick Kingspan OPTIM-R panels are the only vacuum insulation panels in the world to be certified under the independent BDA Agrément scheme. This confirms that the products will perform as expected when installed to Kingspan Insulation’s recommendations. The certification is also recognised by bodies such as the NHBC and LABC.

For more information, please call 01544 387384, email info@kingspaninsulation.co.uk or visit www.kingspaninsulation.co.uk/optim-r.
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Brio runs forward with soft finish

New additions to Brio’s Zero Clearance and Single Run systems bring useful 100kg weight bearing capabilities to the ranges as well as a soft close option and a clip stop. Both these features are also available on Single Run 80 and Zero Clearance 80.

Zero Clearance and Single Run work with various panel types and provide numerous guide options and cope with panel weights from 80kg to 350kg.

The new Zero Clearance 100 and Single Run 100 hangers work with Brio’s existing hardware including the 80CS clip stop and 100SCT soft close for 100kg applications. Brio’s clip stop holds panels in their parked position while the soft close device fits discreetly inside the track and controls the panel’s momentum when closing against the jamb, protecting little fingers from slamming doors.

Brio’s new weight capacity is ideal for commercial or residential living spaces and the fittings are easy to install and operate with the use of precision bearings and the option of stainless steel hardware for exterior applications.

Single Run is available in a number of weight capacities – 60, 80, 100, 120, 180 and 350KG per panel while Zero Clearance may be obtained in 80, 100,120 180 and 350kg per panel for timber panels and 80KG, 100, 120 and 180 Kg for frameless Glass panels.

“We will have other new features to add to our straight sliding range during 2017 and 2018 – so watch this space,” concludes Brio UK’s David Newton, adding that Brio offers an unbeatable 10-year warranty on its hardware.

For more information please visit www.briouk.com.
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weberfloor – the only flooring products for Weber HQ refurbishment

Major refurbishment is underway at the Saint-Gobain Weber HQ in Flitwick, Bedfordshire where weberfloor products are being used extensively. The work involves renovation of 240m² of industrial and commercial floor space.

The Flitwick warehouse project involves the demolition of the old training workshop to make way for a new product storage area. Here the floor area has been pre-treated and primed with weberfloor 4716 primer which is designed for use on all substrates prior to application of weberfloor products to achieve a thin but tight membrane. It regulates the porosity of the substrate and improves adhesion while reducing the formation of pinholes in the levelling layer. weberfloor 4716 primer should be diluted with clean water and can be spray-applied for use on large areas.

weberfloor 4160 industry top industrial floor screed was then applied to a thickness of 10mm. Compliant with BS8204 it is a pumpable, rapid hardening and self-smoothing floor screed for use as a surface layer on industrial flooring with a compressive strength of C35 and flexural strength F10. It is especially suitable where renovation time is limited and is ready for foot traffic 2 – 4 hours after application. weberfloor 4610 industry top is designed for intensively trafficked industrial floors with medium or heavy rolling loading where exceptional flatness is required such as factories, production areas or warehouses. weberfloor 4610 industry top does not require any finish but may be coated with a suitable resin and is ideal for use on both new floors and renovation projects.

In a separate area of the building work is ongoing in the creation of a new open plan office area. During the preparation stage a slip membrane was installed to create a floating floor and to effectively de-bond from the existing substrate. This has been reinforced with alkaline-resistant weberfloor 4945 glass fibre mesh. Mesh is normally used on weak substrates or in case the screed is laid un-bonded.

Fibre-reinforced for added durability, weberfloor 4310 fibre flow has been applied to the mesh at 25mm thickness but can be applied up to 50mm. This high performance, pumpable, levelling floor screed is ideal for solid and floating floors, in both commercial and residential applications. It has excellent spreading and smoothing characteristics, is suitable for heated or wooden floors and, importantly on this project, can receive foot traffic after only 2 – 4 hours.

“Ease and speed of application has been critical to allow early access by following trades,” says Tracey Dempster, head of marketing, Saint-Gobain Weber. “These facilities are used regularly by staff and overseas visitors so downtime essentially had to be kept to a minimum.”

“The transformation of this space is really impressive,” continues Dempster, “and no one understands more than Weber that time is money and floors must be laid in the shortest possible time.” Weber’s comprehensive floor screeds, which are manufactured in the UK, have been developed for optimum speed, durability, strength and smoothness and are the most technically advanced products on the market.

For more information about this project, or for technical support including award winning training courses, please contact Saint-Gobain Weber on 08703 330 070, or visit www.netweber.co.uk.
A free download of the Weber App for iPhone and iPad users is also available from iTunes and from Google Play for Android smartphones and tablet users. Follow Saint-Gobain Weber on Twitter @SGWeberUK for the latest company news and updates.
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