HOPPE locksets end CE Marking confusion

From the July 2013, it became mandatory to CE Mark all hardware for fire and escape doors – where that hardware falls within the scope of a harmonised standard. And while the CE Marking message seems to be permeating into the marketplace, the role of products which do not fall under a harmonised standard – lever handles for escape doors for instance – seems to be causing confusion. Leading handle and hardware manufacturer HOPPE is urging specifiers to ensure that they do not fall foul of the new Construction Products Regulations when it comes to selecting hardware for emergency exit doors.

In order to comply with the requirements of the CPR, any lever furniture or push pad used on an emergency exit door needs to be tested with the EN 179 lock product supplied as a complete unit. And the CE Mark must be applied to lever locksets offering emergency escape on final exit doors, or normally locked doors on escape routes such as wages office or dispensaries.

The lockset must be manufactured under a Factory Production Control system (FPC) and audit testing is mandatory. The locks and levers (which must be tested and CE marked together) can only be used on exits where less than sixty people are likely to use the exit under the requirements of Approved Document B. These locksets can only be used in buildings where the occupants are trained in its use – an emergency door, not a panic escape door.

“When it comes to compliance for external emergency exit door use, ask for a CE marked lockset to BS EN 179, and a Declaration of Performance (DoP) from your supplier,” says HOPPE’s Andy Matthews. “Even more simply, just select the ARRONE AR915 escape lock with one of our compatible HOPPE or ARRONE lever handles and AR228 spindle supplied as standard for your complete CE Marked Lockset.”

The ARRONE AR915 is an escape mortice sashlock, for emergency exit doors hung on either side requiring key operation externally, and single action escape action internally. Available in a range of finishes, it is suitable for use on 30 minute and one hour timber fire doors and up to four hour steel fire doors. The AR915 has been successfully performance tested, CE marked and CERTIFIRE approved in accordance with emergency exit hardware standards and mechanically operated locks and latches.

Founded in 1988 HOPPE (UK) Ltd is a market leader in the field of door and window hardware. Based in Wolverhampton, where it operates from a purpose built state-of-the-art distribution centre, HOPPE UK is committed to serving customers with pride. HOPPE’s products have been tested to meet the latest European and British standards, offering quality and innovation to all sectors of the market. The company is part of the family-owned HOPPE group with manufacturing plants across Europe and North America and more than 3000 employees.

For further information please visit www.hoppe.co.uk

New student accommodation block gets top marks with Cembrit

Building Fabric

New student accommodation block gets top marks with Cembrit

Cembrit PB and Cempanel building boards have been chosen as part of the construction of the façade of a brand new student accommodation block at the De Montfort University in Leicester. The Abode development on Newarke Street consists of sixty one student flats, located a short walk away from Leicester city centre.

De Montfort University is a public research and teaching university and it required new student accommodation for its growing student numbers. The accommodation is comprised of 143 rooms and students can benefit from being in close proximity to the beautiful River Soar and Bede Park. The Abode development is the second phase of new student accommodation, following on from the successful construction of the first phase which completed in September 2013. The Abode development opens in July 2014.

Derbyshire-based DS Insulation was the cladding contractor on the project and specified Cembrit PB and Cempanel Boards. The building boards have been fitted on every level of the seven story block, creating an insulating render system. The Cempanel was used as an inner lining board with Cembrit PB installed as an outer layer render backer for the façade of the building. The building has an attractive finish of which combines smooth white walls and red brick.

“The Cembrit building boards were the perfect choice for this project” commented Barry Bradbury, Site Manger from J A BALL LTD who worked with DS Insulation. “I have never worked with Cembrit before but I was really impressed with the quality of the boards. We could have used plasterboard on the flats but Cempanel is a much stronger product. I would not hesitate in using Cembrit for future projects.”

Cement based Cembrit PB, has low water absorbency and is dimensionally stable. It will neither expand nor contract with heat and cold, nor will it swell and shrink due to changes in moisture, crucial characteristics inhibiting surface cracking in the render finish. Cembrit PB’s specially developed reinforced, chamfered edges mean the board can be fixed close to their edges. This maximizes stability at the butt joints, further reducing the risk of the render cracking along the joints, which can be a vulnerable area of the facade.

Cempanel (cement particle board) is superior to timber and plasterboard panel products when used as internal linings on rainscreen cladding projects (sheathing), general purpose external boarding, floors or studwork interior walls. Cempanel is both stronger and less absorbent than timber and plasterboard. The high cement and alkaline content also resists insect and fungal attack.

For further information please visit www.cembrit.co.uk

Hush Acoustics: Hard wood flooring replaces carpet in apartmen

Interiors

Hush Acoustics: Hard wood flooring replaces carpet in apartment

A 4 month refurbishment project has been completed by Hush Acoustics in a block of apartments in Kensington, London.

The client wanted to replace their existing carpet with a more modern timber flooring in the apartment but the lease dictated that a change in floor finish was not permitted due to potential sound transmission to neighbouring properties.

Hush Acoustics were called in to solve this problem and specified Hush Mat 15 as the acoustic underlay for the project. This allowed the carpet to be removed and a timber floor to be installed. Hush Mat 15 decoupled the hard floor from the existing floor structure. The floor construction consisted of: Hardwood floor finish 15mm, Hush Mat 15 acoustic underlay, existing timber structural deck and existing ceiling.

Hush Acoustics carried out Sound Testing before and after the works were carried out. The results confirmed that the treatment proposed by Hush showed an improvement in both Impact and Airborne acoustic performance. This satisfied the leaseholder and the management company and allowed a timber floor finish to be installed. This is a very common problem within multi-occupancy buildings and Hush Acoustics provide solutions to treat it.

Further information

For more information on the Hush product range please visit www.hushacoustics.co.uk or call direct on 01519332026.

Where do you find practical hands-on information on the latest timber processes, technologies and specialist products?

Building Fabric

Where do you find practical hands-on information on the latest timber processes, technologies and specialist products?

At Timber Expo of course, – the UK’s only dedicated event for the timber industry! By attending the exclusive Toolbox Talks programme of FREE workshops – delegates will be brought bang up-to-date with the latest technologies and innovations from manufacturing processes to onsite engineering solutions.

Pre-register FREE to attend Timber Expo at www.timber-expo.co.uk/book

The full Toolbox Talks programme is available online!

The Toolbox Talks presentations include:

Actis Insulation – Addressing the Performance Gap using reflective insulation

BBA – Windows and doors – do they meet building regulations?

BBA – Consistency in U-value and junction ψ-values calculations

BSW – To present the British Softwoods field trial project and incising in a commercial sense

Button-fix – Fixing interior panels – the easy way

Cellecta – Flawless flooring systems focus: fast fit, flawless flooring solutions for suspended ground and separating floors

Coillte Panel Products – OSB innovation – widening the scope of applications

Deckwise – Hidden deck and cladding fasteners

DuPont Tyvek – Fabric first -The holistic approach to thermal performance and energy conservation

EcoCurves by Jagram – Strength, costs & design advantage through curved glulam constructions

Ecological Building Systems – Airtightness- active moisture management using intelligent vapour checks

Eurochene – Product range from a French sawmill

Frame Wise – Hybrid structural systems – the Wise Wall product range

Frame Wise – Addressing the Performance Gap with Fabric First Principles

IWS – FAST timber engineered separating floor

KdB Insulation – Specifying the correct insulation for the application: designing insulation solutions that will meet planned targets and last. Let’s make it easy on site to apply the products!

Knauf – Knauf’s flooring, finishing and exterior cladding solutions for timber frame developments

Moulin – Moulinvest group and its products

NorDan UK – Panelised building systems – factory fitted, high performance window solutions

Osmose – Micronised timber and the need to protect internal timbers to future protect timber against rot and decay

Ontario Wood – How Canadian stick-frames homes keep warm at -40°C

PIVETEAUBOIS – Discover PIVETEAUBOIS’s innovative softwood solutions for the construction industry and garden & landscaping markets

Rotho Blaas – Technology, know-how and innovative solutions

Rubner – Sustainable and lightweight: Rubner timber facades solutions for multi storey and sophisticated architecture

Tenmat – Fire Protection of timber wall cavities

Unilin Division Panels – Technical wood based panels for timber frame construction

Wallbarn – Height adjustable supports for installation of traditional decking to balconies, pitched roofs, roof terraces and general unlevel surfaces

Wiehag – Bringing timber to the concrete jungle – Wiehag’s huge glulam gridshell roof at Canary Wharf’s new Crossrail station

The full Toolbox Talks programme is available online!

Remember entry to Timber Expo and participation in the Toolbox Talks are completely FREE!

Save time on the day by pre-registering. Visit www.timber-expo.co.uk/book

Aico pledges its support for gas safety week

Fire, Security and Safety

Aico pledges its support for gas safety week

Aico, UK market leaders in domestic Fire and Carbon Monoxide (CO) detection, has pledged its support for Gas Safety Week (15th -21st September), and will be running a competition to win the newly upgraded Ei208 Battery CO Alarm due out later this year to raise awareness of gas safety issues.

This fourth annual Gas Safety Week will see the whole industry coming together to bring gas safety to the forefront of people’s minds. Dangerous gas work can kill, so it is vital that gas appliances are safety checked at least once a year. If left unchecked, poorly serviced gas appliances can cause gas leaks, fires, explosions and CO poisoning. In the last year alone, 343 people were injured and ten people died as a result of gas related incidents.

People can sign up to a free reminder service at www.StayGasSafe.co.uk, and use the interactive gas map to see how many unsafe gas appliances are lurking in an area.

As one of the leading suppliers of quality CO alarms in the UK, Aico has worked steadily over the years to raise awareness amongst installers, social and private landlords, and specifiers of the dangers of CO. The company has produced a range of support literature and an online CO alarm specification tool to help spread the message and encourage best practice.

Find out about the basics of CO – what it is, why it is so dangerous and how to detect it – on Aico’s website at www.aico.co.uk/gassafetyweek2014. Enter the competition for the opportunity to win the newly upgraded Ei208 Battery CO Alarm, due out later this year, on the same page.

Russell Krämer, chief executive for Gas Safe Register, said: “Every year, far too many people suffer from preventable gas related accidents, such as gas leaks, explosions, fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. It’s great therefore, that Aico has pledged its support and is raising awareness of gas safety issues, helping to let the 23 million gas consumers in the UK know about the simple checks they can make to stay safe.”

Further information

A wholly owned subsidiary of Ei Electronics, Aico is a market leader in residential fire protection in the UK. All alarms are designed and built in Europe specifically to meet the UK standards and regulations. For more information, please go to www.aico.co.uk.

September 18, 2014/by Product News

Kladfix supports student housing with its KX01 fittings

Building Fabric

Kladfix supports student housing with its KX01 fittings

Kladfix, the rainscreen cladding support system specialist has supplied KX01 fittings for a new development on Sefton Street, Liverpool. The £15 million student accommodation consists of 135 new halls for the University of Liverpool and is situated in the heart of the city centre, overlooking the Queen’s Dock.

With over 54,000 pupils attending The University of Liverpool, there is a high demand for student accommodation, which is based in close proximity to everything that Liverpool has to offer. The new multi storey student block, which is due to be completed later in the year, will allow residents to have easy access to; cultural sights, nightlife and shopping centres. To provide a unique exterior, four different types of rainscreen cladding have been specified; Zinc, Terrecotta, engineered stone and granite. Indbuild, the industrial building company installed Kladfix’s KX01 cladding support system for this project.

“The Kladfix system is incredibly versatile” commented Dave Kirby, Managing Director of Indbuild Limited. “The design of the project required four different types of cladding to be used on the exterior of the student accommodation and the KX01 system worked extremely well with all the different types of cladding and was easily installed. This isn’t the first time that we have worked with Kladfix and we would not hesitate to work with them again in the future.”

Kladfix KX01 fittings are suitable for use as a back frame system and are the basis to all of Kladfix’s systems. KX01 fittings are also used for face and rivet fixing for fibre cement, high-pressure laminate, ACM and metal rainscreen cladding panels.

Kladfix holds extensive stock to ensure orders can always be met and where necessary, immediate delivery can be provided. All Kladfix cladding systems can be engineered to project specific requirements thanks to the expertise of its technical design support service. This provides architects and specifiers freedom with an almost infinite range of façade appearance and layout options.

Further information

For further information on Kladfix Rainscreen Systems, visit www.kladfix.com or
call the company direct on +44 (0)1707 333 396.

National House Building Council partners with the Build Show

Events

National House Building Council partners with the Build Show

As the housing boom continues to strengthen the UK’s economy, the Build Show is pleased to announce that the National House Building Council (NHBC) has joined as an exhibition partner, lending its considerable industry prowess to the show’s line up.

The move comes at a particularly opportune moment, as the Build Show ramps up development of its seminar programme and NHBC will play a pivotal role in shaping this content.

As the UK’s leading standard-setting body and home warranty provider, NHBC helps the industry to maintain and improve the build quality of new homes for homebuyers, whilst providing the benefit of its 10-year Buildmark Warranty & Insurance protection, when required. NHBC currently protects over 1.6m homes, with a market share of around 80%, giving it a unique insight into the sector that will greatly enhance the show’s development.

NHBC also works to ease the legislative burden faced by house builders and developers, providing its registered builders with a reliable source of technical information and guidance to help them comply with the necessary regulations, as well as meeting requirements under the various levels of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

NHBC will work directly with the Build Show to ensure that the housing specific content is accurate, up-to-date and relevant, with a particular focus on providing the information, contacts and networking opportunities needed to support this rapidly expanding sector.

David Marchant, Head of Marketing, NHBC commented: “It is vital for the house-building industry that the quality of new homes continues to be paramount, providing the homes that people want to live in. The Build Show offers house builders of all sizes a fantastic forum to network, share best practice, and learn new skills, all under one roof.

“We are delighted to be an event partner with the Build Show, which also provides the opportunity for our research arm, the NHBC Foundation, to showcase its topical research for the industry across all three days.”

Paul Godwin, Managing Director of the Build Show, commented: “House building continues to dominate the agenda for both contractors and suppliers, as the recovery in this sector has played such a critical part in moving the construction industry forwards as a whole. Ensuring that the right support is there to help house builders and developers meet the increased demand will be vital for maintaining growth, as well as keeping one eye towards the future and the planned revision of the Building Regulations in 2016 that will make zero carbon homes mandatory.

“Having the NHBC on board as an event partner is a fantastic development, as it means we can tap into NHBC’s significant knowledge and expertise in this area – ensuring our visitors and exhibitors get exactly the information and guidance they need.”

Taking place at the Birmingham NEC on 27th, 28th and 29th October 2015, the Build Show will bring together contractors, specifiers, builders, suppliers, housebuilders, architectural technologists and clients, providing the perfect forum to network, showcase new products and discover opportunities for professional development.

Further information

For more information please visit www.buildshow.co.uk

Solar windows completes window replacement project for Wales and West housing

Sustainability

Solar Windows completes window replacement project for Wales and West housing

Leading commercial fabricator Solar Windows has just completed a large scale project for Wales & West Housing (WWH) under a framework agreement which represents the latest phase in a successful twelve year association between the two organisations.

Originally ‘partnered’ together in 2002, Solar Windows remains a key supplier to WWH and continues to manufacture and install REHAU PVC-U windows and doors for the housing association’s ongoing maintenance and replacement programme.

Most recently, Solar has installed 450 casement and tilt and turn frames in the REHAU TOTAL70C system in the West Lee housing complex in Cardiff, to replace single glazed aluminium windows which were in place previously.

This was part of a major refurbishment project designed to improve both the energy efficiency and security of the 130 flats and maisonettes within the complex. Alongside cavity wall insulation, the double glazed windows are key to improving the comfort levels for residents and reducing their energy costs.

The windows have been foiled in a Rosewood woodgrain finish and those which overlook the busy Cowbridge Road East in Cardiff have been fitted with acoustic glazing to reduce the internal noise levels.

As well as the windows, Solar Windows has also manufactured and installed fire doors for the communal areas and stairways. These feature an intumescent material which expands in heat to create the barrier required to achieve a 30 minute fire rating.

They have also supplied their ‘Solardor’ GRP composite external doors with improved security to provide extra reassurance for residents.

Solar Windows and WWH marked the completion of the project with a joint visit to the West Lee complex where WWH Chief Executive Anne Hinchey thanked all of the team involved for their efforts and hard work.

Ms Hinchey said: “Our West Lee scheme has undergone extensive refurbishment work and energy efficiency improvements over the past year for the benefit of our residents. The WWH team, Solar Windows and our further partners have worked incredibly hard throughout the project to deliver this work to the highest standard, for which I want to thank all involved.

“I’m pleased to say that feedback from our residents living at West Lee has been fantastic. We hope that they will enjoy the benefits of the improvements for many years to come with warmer homes, improved security and substantially reduced energy costs.”

Further information

Solar Windows is one of the UK’s largest commercial window and doors fabricators specialising in work across the public sector. Further details are available at www.solarwindows.co.uk

BM TRADA to stream live fire door test

Interiors

BM TRADA to stream live fire door test

BM TRADA will be streaming a live fire door test on-line on 15 September, offering viewers an opportunity to see for themselves the crucial role played by fire doors in saving lives and property.

The 30-min fire resistance test will be streamed live from BM TRADA’s testing laboratories in High Wycombe in support of Fire Door Safety Week. It will show two identical doors subjected to a prolonged period of fire. One of the doors will have been correctly specified and fitted, while the other will demonstrate many of the common mistakes made. The test, which will start at 11am, will show the significant difference in fire resistance between the two doors, highlighting the importance of appropriate specification and installation and clearly demonstrating why a door must be adequately maintained throughout its life.

Access to the live stream will be via a password protected link. For details of how to register and receive login details, email sdell@bmtrada.com.

Graham Edwards, Group Marketing Manager at BM TRADA, said: “This is an excellent way to show just how important it is to correctly specify and fit fire doors. Anyone viewing the test will see the failure points very quickly.”

Fire Door Safety Week, organised by the British Woodworking Federation and supported by BM TRADA, takes place between 15-21 September. It aims to draw attention to the critical role played by fire doors and to point out common faults and their impact on performance.

The week will be marked by a series of events and promotions supported by trade associations and their members as well as local Fire and Rescue Services, local authorities, landlords and other sleeping accommodation providers.

The live fire door test is an integral part of BM TRADA’s popular Fire Doors Explained CPD seminar, which offers an introduction to fire door regulations, construction, testing, installation and maintenance. For further information on this and other BM TRADA fire safety training days, visit www.bmtrada.com/testing

Pushing Boundaries and Stretching Imaginations at Timber Expo!

Building Fabric

Pushing Boundaries and Stretching Imaginations at Timber Expo!

At the heart of Timber Expo is the most comprehensive and in-depth seminar programme covering the timber sector.

Organised by TRADA, the Timber Focus seminars are a key element of the show and a central part of the Expo experience. The programme will provide valuable insight into crucial industry topics, pressing issues and outstanding projects – at no cost!

With anticipation already growing around the eight Timber Focus sessions, why not take a first look at one of the sessions –

Pushing Boundaries: Stretching Imaginations

This seminar session will examine the opportunities for innovation in timber around the world and new possibilities in the UK. Speakers will be drawn from top engineering firms including Arup, Ramboll UK and Buro Happold and will focus on boundary-pushing initiatives such as: building erection times, more efficient connections, energy efficiency and taller buildings.

Simply click on the speakers names below to find out more about them.

Evan Greenberg

Studio Master at Emergent Technologies & Design and Architectural Association
Fingers Crossed: Pushing Friction Fit to its Limits at the London Design Festival