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

New retirement housing development to benefit from Polypipe Ventilation’s MEV solutions

Polypipe Ventilation’s highly efficient, Silavent CMX Mechanical Extract Ventilation (MEV) units with Domus Radial duct systems, have been specified for a new retirement housing development in Fleet, Hampshire.

Keble Court in Church Crookham is owned by Anchor, England’s largest non-profit provider of housing and care for older people. When completed, it will consist of 72 luxury apartments and one guest suite over three storeys, including communal facilities. All apartments will come with high quality fixtures and fittings as well as carefully considered design features, making life easier for older people. These include continuous Mechanical Extract Ventilation (MEV), to improve indoor air quality and environmental comfort by reducing humidity within the dwelling.

The installation of Polypipe Ventilation’s Silavent CMX and Domus Radial ducting is being carried out by building service engineers Heatcare Limited. Heatcare is a long standing Polypipe Ventilation customer and regularly uses its award winning ventilation and ducting systems on projects nationwide.

For the Keble Court development, Heatcare specified the Silavent CMX MEV system due to its performance and slim-line design. At just 125mm in depth and 3.25kg in weight, the CMX is one of the most compact and lightweight MEV units on the market, enabling it to be easily installed into a central location such as a loft, cupboard space or even small ceiling voids. The CMX’s versatile design also means that these units can be easily installed horizontally or vertically, ensuring ease of installation in limited or awkward spaces.

Polypipe Ventilation’s Domus Radial ducting system was chosen to work with the CMX. Richard Bamford, Heatcare Contracts Manager, explains why – “the building is constructed via a fusion frame system, so the Domus Radial semi-rigid ducting was the most appropriate approach to the install – thus saving space. In addition to this, the system is a lot more cost effective on application, in regards to both labour and materials, ensuring a better overall solution in comparison to the other options we considered.”

Unlike traditional ducting systems, Domus Radial duct systems serve each room vent (air valve or grille) by singular or dual Ø75mm semi-rigid duct runs which connect directly to a central distribution system, splitting the air from a slim-line, compact Radial manifold. Domus Radial has been specifically designed for use within whole house ventilation systems and whilst it is much easier to design and install, its benefits also include less air leakage, increased air flow, easier installation and commissioning, as well as elimination of room to room cross talk and a reduction in air noise.

For Heatcare, product quality is only part of the story: “It is always great to receive a first class service where we can request certain specifications and receive a full design brief and optimal solution, as well as offering positive feedback where possible. With Polypipe, we have received this and more.” states Richard. “The product happened to be the best solution on this particular contract and moving forward, it is definitely something we would consider utilising again on future contracts.”

Silavent CMX MEV and Domus Radial systems have a deserved reputation for quality; supported by excellent technical support from a market leading manufacturer and designer. Polypipe Ventilation is well placed to offer immediate, practical solutions to Building Regulations Parts F & L. The company continues to provide differentiated solutions in the private and social housing sectors, transforming the way developers, specifiers, installers, distributors and home owners meet emerging environmental standards.

For more information please call 03443 715523 or email vent.info@polypipe.com
www.polypipe.com/ventilation
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Venture launches contemporary LED filament lamp range

Venture Lighting Europe has launched its very first range of VLED Filament Lamps for the domestic and commercial markets.

As the trend for classic filament lamps in bars, restaurants, hotels and homes following an industrial or vintage theme returns, Venture has created a highly efficient, low-energy alternative to the classic lamp using the latest high performance LED technology. Designed to be a direct replacement for halogen or incandescent lamps, Venture’s new stylish VLED Filament Lamps are A+ rated and can help businesses and homeowners save up to 90% in energy and significantly reduce carbon emissions.

The new VLED Filament Lamps, Venture’s latest addition to its growing range of VLED lighting solutions, carries many great benefits besides the attractive aesthetics, and can be selected in a range of traditional or alternative styles and a choice of outputs to find the right lamp to suit any application.

The VLED Filament Lamp is available as a GLS, candle, golf ball, globe or squirrel bulb, all of which offer a 300° multi-directional beam angle for a wide distribution of light across the room. Unlike other, traditional lamps, the LED technology means that the lamps reach the correct level of lighting instantly to avoid lengthy lamp ‘warm up’ times.

Available in 4W or 6W, the low-output lamps significantly reduce the electricity consumption of the scheme, which allows users to save a considerable amount of money on operating costs, with a very fast payback period of about one year. The VLED lamps also offer a 15,000 hour average lamp life, which is up to 15 times longer than average halogen or incandescent lamps. The VLED lamps are dimmable as standard to help save more energy where possible.

Based on the standard screw or bayonet fixing, the full range can be easily installed without the need for a professional electrician to allow businesses or homeowners to simply upgrade their existing lighting to these stylish lamps to create a warm, vintage ambience. The lamps can also be used as a stylish, contemporary alternative to standard bulbs to enhance the attractive aesthetics of pendant fixtures or chandeliers.

Designed for stylish interiors that reflect an industrial, vintage or contemporary design, Venture’s VLED Filament Lamps have been created with a colour temperature of 2700K to emit a warm colour light as standard, reflecting the original design of classic filament lamps. In having these warm light levels, a soft and relaxed ambience is created which is an increasing trend in the hospitality sector. Although the lamps have a low colour temperature, they also offer a high efficacy rate of up to 100 lumens per circuit watt to ensure high quality light is produced.

Venture Lighting Europe has produced an extensive brochure covering the full range of VLED Filament Lamps, highlighting their key features, benefits and application options, as well as an explanatory Payback Calculator to help customers understand the monetary savings involved with the lamp replacement. This brochure can be downloaded from the company’s website, www.venturelightingeurope.com/downloads.

Further information on the VLED Filament Lamp range is available from Venture Lighting Europe on 01923 692600, by emailing: info@venturelighting.co.uk or by visiting the company’s website at www.venturelightingeurope.com.
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The importance of lighting controls solutions tailored for education applications

Important legislative changes have impacted on the use of lighting control systems within the education sector. Contractors must now provide controls which deliver greater energy savings in line with increasingly stringent regulations around sustainability. Additionally, these must be designed to meet each institution’s precise operational requirements, making decision-making around lighting and controls more complex.

Meanwhile, lighting controls have become significantly more sophisticated in functionality and quality. This allows specifiers and installers to select the most appropriate products for each customer, with expectation from end users around lighting controls increasing considerably.

There is now greater emphasis within BREEAM on consultation to truly understand client needs. Similarly, the implementation of BIM requirements means specifiers, armed with this in-depth understanding, must select fully compliant products.

A valuable lesson

As in any sector, it makes sense to select a lighting controls partner with significant experience in educational projects. Where schools and educational facilities differ from commercial spaces or offices is that the primary objective is to create an environment optimal for learning.

Budgetary constraints in the education sector cover both initial cost of purchase and delivering ongoing reduction in energy usage.

For instance, occupancy-sensing controls ensure lighting is used only when required, creating a well-lit classroom suited to effective learning while minimising unnecessary energy consumption and cost.

The best of both worlds

Typically, there will be three or four banks of lighting in a classroom – one close to windows, with another at the front where the whiteboard is. A lighting control system adjusts lighting accordingly to account for varying levels of artificial and natural light.

Typically, this means the lights nearest to the windows will be dimmable, and on a sunny day may dim down to as low as 25% of full output. Further into the space, depending how far the daylight penetrates, other rows may dim down to, say, 75% – or even remain at 100% output.

With widespread use of interactive whiteboards and projectors, dimmer switches help focus students’ attention as these can be used to dim light elsewhere within the teaching space.

Many classrooms, particularly in secondary schools, are used by numerous teaching staff and support staff outside teaching hours. This means the control interface must be easy to use by individuals unfamiliar with that classroom and with varying degrees of technical competence.

Versatility

Classrooms are often also used for extra-curricular and community-based activities. To optimise energy use, it makes sense to implement flexible systems which can cater for this. The absence of such measures can lead to wasteful energy consumption and increased cost, as lights are left on when only a few classrooms, connecting corridors and stairways are in use.

Similarly, rooms in universities and colleges are occupied sporadically, highlighting the need for automated systems ensuring lights are kept on only when in use. Selecting the right occupancy detection can deliver significant savings. In a classroom, for instance, a single microwave detector may offer the same control as two or more PIR detectors, reducing capital costs and cabling requirements.

The same applies to corridors, where the directional qualities of occupancy detectors can provide maximum coverage with the minimum number of sensors.

Conclusion

Lighting controls are continually evolving to meet the precise needs of the education sector. Correctly chosen solutions can help create the optimal learning environment. Seeking advice from those with specialist knowledge and experience in these crucial areas can help ensure clients receive the best solution.

The new Vitesse Plus, a seven-channel lighting control system by CP Electronics, has been specially designed with BIM and EFA guidelines in mind, as well as a growing need to find a cost-effective solution which is easy to set up. Features such as graduated dimming and corridor hold are simple to set up and control, with photocell detectors making adjustments that take advantage of natural light levels.

To find out more visit www.cpelectronics.uk.com.
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Cosmetic surgery from Encasement for new Birmingham Dental Hospital

Birmingham’s new £50 million dental hospital and school of dentistry in Edgbaston is using 200 metres of custom designed elliptical aluminium column casings from Encasement to conceal primary structural steelwork used in the extensive feature curtain walling, which stands the full height of the four storey building.

Constructed on the site of the former BBC Pebble Mill TV studio, the new facility replaces the existing 50-year-old building adjacent to the local Children’s Hospital and is expected to treat more than 100,000 patients each year.

The large glazed facades at the front and rear of the hospital are key design features, which allow natural light into the building and their primary support structure of steel columns and beams are concealed with Encasement’s ‘Forma’ aluminium decorative casings to create a more aesthetic finish to the building’s interior.

Manufactured and installed by Encasement, every horizontal and vertical casing section, the tallest of which stands 25 metres high, was formed into a unique 1500mm deep semi-elliptical ‘aerofoil’ profile and finished in white PPC to complement building’s bright interior colour scheme.

Due to the complexity of the project, Encasement provided full CAD design assistance to develop the concept as part of the planning process prior, which not only helped during the design and manufacture stages, but also simplified the installation, as each 3 metre long ‘Forma’ casing section had to be secured to create smooth, virtually joint free finish.

Martin Taylor, Encasement’s Managing Director, explained: “This is one of the most challenging and rewarding projects we have undertaken. Not only were we working to extended heights, but the casings also used unique elliptical geometry and demanded the utmost precision when being installed to achieve the level of fit and finish required by the client.”

He added: “The end result, however, was worth all the effort and the Forma casing solution add the finishing touch to and exceptionally well designed, constructed and much needed state of the art facility, which is among the world’s best university dental hospitals.”

 

Find out more about Forma column casings range here.
View the Birmingham Dental Hospital project gallery here.
Discover more about Encasement’s product range here.
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RINNAI – reliability really rules

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Rinnai, leading manufacturer of a complete range of A-rated continuous flow gas fired water heaters, is supplying the UK with what is thought to be the most reliable individual units* on the market.

The ErP A-rating** applies over the complete Infinity range – from small domestic models to XXL sized industrial units. Rinnai is the only manufacturer that can field a complete range of gas fired water heaters that more than achieve to coveted A-rating.

Rinnai can combine high efficiencies with high levels of reliability. During 2015 warranty claims against Rinnai stood at 0.05% demonstrating unparalleled reliability.

The next issue is servicing – the Rinnai system is simple and straightforward to service as all components are easily accessible and parts readily available.  Compare this to a business, for example a fast food restaurant or a hotel, running on just one cylinder, they would have to shut down the hot water system to allow it to be drained and inspected as part of the service. This would mean that during this down time the business may have to cease operating for a few hours while the work is carried out.

Another problem is a breakdown: if your only source of hot water fails then you have no means to provide hot water until the fault is rectified. If we take the worst-case scenario of a cylinder failure the whole thing needs to be replaced and this is no easy task especially when you consider the weight. You are now looking at multiple problems:

  1. a) You have lost all hot water capability.
  2. b) You need to pay for a replacement (if it isn’t covered by warranty).
  3. c) You have to pay for engineers to remove the faulty one and replace it, which can take days to change.

If we then look at a Rinnai Infinity water heater or multiples thereof, the down time would be reduced significantly, in the case of multiple units, putting up with reduced capacity for a very short period of time.

Servicing not only reduces the down cost of the business but can also reduce the servicing cost as a Rinnai water heater can be fully serviced and back operating within one hour. If a unit fails whereby it needs replacing, this replacement can be done in a couple of hours and if you have a bank of heaters you will still have the facility to provide hot water, albeit at a slightly reduced capacity, while one of the heaters is down. This is nowhere near as disruptive as having no hot water at all, and perhaps having to close the business while servicing or replacement takes place.

According to Rinnai UK Associate Director Chris Goggin: “The configuration of the Rinnai system is supportive of operational reliability. In effect, if you have a cylinder and you need to service it, or it breaks down, you are left with nothing but a standing body of water.

“Many Rinnai systems supply additional benefits to storage by using multiple heaters, let’s say three so the total system is made up of 33.3% by each heater. If one needs servicing there is still 66.66% still operational so there is no downtime for the hotel, restaurant or any other facility that uses hot water as a criteria feature.

“Some facilities incorporate additional heat engines as a means of built-in redundancy so that the system will always operate at full capacity even during servicing.”

Goggin concludes: “The Rinnai continuous flow system has significant USPs over any stored hot water system while at the same time offering built-in reliability and peace of mind to both installers and their customers.”

* With regards to the reliability of the units themselves a comparison of unit sales from 2013 until April 2016 against Rinnai UK’s warranty database shows 0.003% first year failure rate. (2013 is when the new database was set up.)

** All water-heating products sold in the UK need to meet minimum energy performance criteria in order to be legally placed on the market, and require an energy label.

For more information on the RINNAI product range visit www.rinnaiuk.com

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Maximum benefits from MAXX

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With the new additions to the MAXX family, Delta Membrane Systems offer a range of products that bring to the market the most secure basement pumping systems for type C (cavity drain) waterproofing.

Specifically designed for the basement waterproofing industry, MAXX technology takes an ‘intelligent’ approach in the design of the product range, resulting in optimum functionality, high levels of efficiency and ease of installation and service.

Included in the range are the DMS270 for ground water and surface water applications, and the DMS269 for foul water use.

Also available is the PowerMAXX which can run a standard V3 pump without mains power for up to four days, depending on the number of cycles per hour. It can sit in standby mode for over three weeks, and is virtually inaudible.

Completing the line-up is the MessageMAXX which, combined with AlertMAXX, gives remote monitoring when residents are away from the property. Messages are sent using GSM technology, usually in text format.

All of these models are ideally suited to the range of pumps offered by Delta Membrane Systems, making the company a ‘one stop shop’ for pumping packages.

The company also offers the necessary membranes and channels to ensure damp and wet basements are turned in to warm, dry and useful spaces.

Website: www.deltamembranes.com

Email: info@deltamembranes.com

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COMPAC launch Unique Calacatta – inspired by the beauty and elegance of natural stone

COMPAC have just launched Unique Calacatta, a quartz worksurface that offers a stunning contrasting grey veining design on a pure white background.

Inspired by the beauty and elegance of natural stone, Unique Calacatta offers a mechanical and chemical performance that is superior to nature’s own.

Combining traditional skill with innovation, COMPAC has been able to create a worksurface that makes it possible to decorate private homes and public spaces with elegant overall compositions that transmit serenity and harmony.

The striking contrast of pure white with the powerful grey veins characteristic of marble will give any space clad with Unique Calacatta a truly magnetic personality.

Architects and designers can now specify this new finish for their projects with the confidence. Every reference in this new product category is unique on the market, because just like in nature, each slab presents different nuances and patterns in design.

Added to this is an enviable set of technical specifications, the natural hardness of quartz comes hand in hand with a waterproof, hygienic finish offering even greater resistance.

This means that Unique Calacatta is especially appropriate for intensive use areas such as kitchen surfaces, floor tiling or wall cladding.

For more information www.compac.es.

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Fermacell flags up its flooring credentials

A new brochure on its range of flooring systems has been published by Fermacell.

Leading building boards manufacturer Fermacell has launched a comprehensive guide to planning and installing its dry flooring systems.

The 64-page A4 manual details how Fermacell’s dry flooring systems are a practical and cost-effective alternative to conventional wet screed to concrete floors and how their excellent thermal conductivity makes them a very efficient overlay to underfloor heating systems. In addition, an optional wood fibre layer to the gypsum fibreboard base gives it excellent acoustic properties.

The brochure details the advantages of working with fermacell flooring systems (their light weight and dry and fast installation times, to name just a couple) and gives an overview of areas of application such as home, office and shopping areas, and areas where people congregate, as well as the loads to factor in for each.

It also advises on the substrates that fermacell flooring can be installed on (such as solid floors, timber joist floors with structural decks and trapezoidal steel sheet floors) and how they should be prepared. Step-by-step guides illustrate this process as well as how they can also be enhanced with a honeycombed acoustic infill.

Specific advice is given on flooring that is exposed to moisture and humidity, where fermacell’s cement-based Powerpanel H2O can be specified. A step-by-step guide details this particular installation procedure. And a table details guideline values for tolerance levels for completed fermacell floors over coverings such as carpet, cork, ceramic tiles, parquet and laminate.

Six pages are given over to example drawings of construction details for all the different flooring combinations, with another 11 pages advising on building physics and construction performance in areas such as fire protection and sound insulation. Material usage tables and installation times complete the picture.

Fermacell’s new flooring brochure is available to download from http://www.fermacell.co.uk/en/content/1038.php.

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Armstrong Ceilings prove a multi-acting medicine for CPI

Metal and mineral ceiling systems from Armstrong have been used on a new biologics centre.

A wide variety of ceiling systems from Armstrong have proved just the tonic for a ground-breaking new medical research centre.

More than half a dozen different solutions, including wall-to-wall systems, rafts and linear baffles, were specified by architects NORR for the National Biologics Manufacturing Centre in Darlington, County Durham, which was opened by Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities and Science.

Developed with a £38 million investment by the Government as part of the Strategy for UK Life Sciences programme, it is used for conducting research on biologic products by promoting collaboration between academia, the NHS and industry.

The 5,000m2 facility features flexible laboratory and pilot plant areas, dedicated spaces for Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) process, analytical and technological development, and clean rooms for research as well as offices, meeting rooms and spaces for training and conferencing.

Armstrong Ceilings systems were used widely in white for maximum light reflectance, including the manufacturer’s metal systems – Tegular 2 microperforated tiles with acoustic fleece in the laboratories, B-H 300 microperforated planks (1800mm x 300mm) with acoustic fleece between plasterboard margins in corridors, and V-P 500 perforated metal baffles (1534mm x 150mm x 30mm) at 125mm centres in break-out areas and the double-height reception area. The D-H 700 floating raft ceiling, comprising 2140mm x 500mm x 30mm microperforated panels with acoustic fleece hung from a U-profile grid system, was also used in the reception area.

Mineral systems used were humidity-resistant Hydroboard 600mm x 600mm tiles with corrosion-resistant grid and perimeter trim in the changing rooms, Optima Vector tiles (600mm x 600mm) on a 24mm grid with shadow perimeter trim in meeting rooms, and Cradle to Cradle™ certified Ultima+ Vector tiles (600mm x 600mm) on a 24mm grid in offices, corridors and stairwells.

They were selected by regular Armstrong specifiers NORR, who handled Stage 4 onwards detailed design and full technical delivery to completion, for an equally wide variety of reasons, with particular challenges being the short timescales for a heavily serviced building (it was a 15-month build), aesthetics and services.

A NORR spokesman, who was taken by Armstrong’s Architectural Specialities team to Paddington Station to see Armstrong V-P 500 baffles in service, said: “The Armstrong systems were specified for the look of the ceiling, the excellent pre-specification service, the fact they are a great product, and that they have been used on similar buildings of quality.

“They play multiple parts in the project, from adding interest to a 7m high ceiling, providing easy access and maintenance, acoustics and reducing air intake as the baffles are used to assist the M&E strategy.”

The centre is managed by the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) which provides guidance to companies to develop new products and processes from concept to finished product. It uses applied knowledge in science and engineering, together with sophisticated development facilities, to enable clients to develop, demonstrate, prototype and scale-up the next generation of biologic products and processes.

The NORR spokesman added: “The client is very happy with the Armstrong systems. Quite often ceilings are missed out but the Armstrong systems enhance the space while providing access, ventilation and acoustic performance. The details were very straightforward to create.”

They were installed in the steel-framed building for Darlington-based design and build contractor Interserve over three months by a team of 16 from specialist Armstrong Omega sub-contractor Interceil.

Managing director Steve Jones said: “The biologics centre development was an extremely exciting project to be involved in. The Armstrong products afforded the installation of high-quality specifications providing excellent performance and stunning visual enhancement to the suspended ceilings.”

To view more images of this project, please go to the Armstrong project gallery www.armstrongceilings.co.uk/projectgallery.

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The easy answer for FSC® compliant boiler casing

Encasement is the UK’s only FSC® certified manufacturer of pre-formed plywood pipe boxing and boiler casings, so you can box in boiler pipe work quickly and easily while also ensuring compliance with your company’s sustainable procurement policy.

Every Encasement boiler casing carries a full FSC® ‘Chain of Custody’ certification from the Forest Stewardship Council to verify that the timber used is from sustainable and managed sources, so you don’t have to worry about compliance.

They’re quick and easy to fit on-site too. As our pipe boxing an boiler casings are pre-formed and pre-finished in durable melamine, they can be fitted in less than half the time of site made alternatives and are easily removed for boiler servicing and maintenance, which saves time and money on every service visit.

Further savings can be made as our casings can be easily fitted by heating engineers or plumbers at the same time the boiler is installed, rather than having to arrange a separate visit for a joiner to box in the unsightly pipework. ‘One visit – one fit’. It really is that simple.

With Encasement boiler pipe casings, less is definitely, more:

  • Less time
  • Less cost
  • Less travel
  • Less disruption
  • Less hassle

Encasement FSC® compliant boiler casing. Simple, quick and cost effective – Job Done!

For more information on our boiler pipe casings, please visit:
www.encasement.co.uk/boiler-pipe-work-casing.html
www.encasement.co.uk/gallery_boiler-pipe-casing.aspx
View our FSC® certificate here
www.encasement.co.uk/Encasement-Ltd-FSC_Certificate.pdf
Learn more about our sustainable products here.
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