M P Plastering working with Saint-Gobain Weber For Cotswold Homes Ltd

(image accreditation: Cotswold Homes Ltd)

Experienced rendering contractor M P Plastering of Somerset excels with the use of high performance, technically advanced products manufactured by Saint-Gobain Weber. As a specialist applicator, M P Plastering has a wealth of experience in the application of sprayed renders and external wall insulation. Projects range from one-off domestic applications to large new-build developments for NHBC registered property developers.

Training plays an important role at M P Plastering and managing director Mark Pickthall personally invests in regular training for himself and his expanding team. “All our jobs come with written specifications and guarantees so it is essential that we ensure exemplary standards of craftsmanship if we are to be considered for more work in the future.” In maintaining these standards Mark and members of his 35-strong team have undertaken on-site training provided by Saint-Gobain Weber to install floors using their existing render pumps to apply screed to floors.

They have also undertaken training in floor screed application at the Saint-Gobain Technical Academy in Flitwick. “Expanding the services we can offer has given us the opportunity to tender for both rendering and flooring contracts on some of the bigger projects,” says Mark. A perfect example is the contract M P Plastering has won from Cotswold Homes Limited, a prestigious property developer dedicated to delivering quality new homes in the South West, at their Corsham Rise development in Bath.

Guy Edge, head of construction, Cotswold Homes, comments: “We’ve got a great relationship with Mark Pickthall of M P Plastering. He and his team have been involved in some outstanding render applications over the years; while he champions the Weber brand, Cotswold Homes share this opinion.”

The concrete floors in the kitchens and bathrooms required perfect levelling in preparation for a laminate floor covering. Here weberfloor 4716, an acrylic primer for use with Weber’s flooring systems and products, has been brush applied to the concrete substrate. M P Plastering then followed with a pump-applied application of weberfloor 4150 fine flow at an average thickness of 10mm. This levelling compound, designed for application at thicknesses between 2 to 30mm, is formulated to combine consistent and reliable drying characteristics with strength and durability. It is supplied as a pre-blended dry powder and designed specifically for renovation of existing solid floors in domestic and commercial applications.

“The reason we got involved with Weber for the floor preparation is that we are constantly looking to achieve as perfect a finish as is possible before we cover them with beautiful tiles. Mark enthusiastically recommended Weber’s pump applied floor screeds and, without a doubt, both the application and the quality of the product has been a great success. We’ll be using Weber’s screeds again,” says Guy Edge.

weberfloor 4150 fine flow is suitable for covering with a wide variety of finishes including tiles, carpets, flexible floor coverings and parquet flooring. weberfloor 4150 fine flow has excellent spreading and smoothing characteristics, has low alkalinity and low emissions during drying, is casein-free and manufactured to BSI Quality Assurance Scheme ISO 9001 in the UK.

Weber’s floor screeds have been developed for optimum speed, durability, strength and smoothness, essential for allowing early access by following trades that contribute to project efficiencies and the fastest possible completion times. Here the use of proven, pumpable screeds, that harden rapidly and are self-smoothing, will achieve durable surfaces that are ready for foot traffic in just 2 to 4 hours after application. “In this project the floors were ready for light foot traffic in 4 hours and ready for covering a week later,” comments Mark. “weberfloor 4150 fine flow is probably the most straight forward product we have worked with and is proving successful every time.”

“My real love is using render as you can see it and admire it for years to come. With floor screed it is hidden by a variety of coverings and completely hidden from sight, that’s the nature of the product.”

For more information about this project, or for technical support including award winning training courses and the new RIBA-Assessed Flowing Floor Screeds CPD, 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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Freefoam highlights the benefits of using PVC Roofline in offsite construction

With the well documented housing shortage said to be a ticking time-bomb and the government’s ambitious undertaking to build 200,000 homes by 2020 to address the shortfall, it’s clear that the traditional construction sector, in its current state, is unlikely to be able to meet the demand for new housing on its own.

The advance of off-site construction technologies in recent times would suggest that off-site manufacturing has the potential to play a major role in resolving this issue and increasing house construction capacity enough to meet demand.

Off-site construction aims to replicate the controlled environment that would usually be associated with manufacturing and apply it to the construction process by moving construction into a factory environment.

Constructing buildings in a controlled factory environment has shown numerous benefits:

  • Studies have shown that less labour is required for off-site construction and the assembly processes involved means workers require less training
  • Improved planning and standardisation can significantly reduce waste while improving the standard of workmanship. The increased predictability in the process also increases safety
  • The increased standardisation reduces construction time and protection from poor weather conditions also reduces delays

Freefoam Building Products manufacture pvc product ranges that are the perfect fit for off-site construction, whether fitted in the factory or prepared for final fitting later.

The External wall and roof are the two main elements of a buildings superstructure and the junction is critical for the long-term function of the building fabric. Freefoam roof trim system makes protecting the junction and the roof structure easy.

Freefoam roofline product range is lightweight and easy to handle as well as having the required durability, both for transportation and when fitted, which is why Freefoam can confidently offer market leading guarantees of up to 50 years on roofline products.

The Freefoam roofline system is designed to slot together with ease and includes a range of matching finishing trims for virtually any design scenario. This systemised nature means they can be fitted by a relatively low skilled workforce with minimal tooling and minimal waste, which aligns them perfectly with the benefits of off-site manufacturing.

Freefoam’s Fortex and X-Wood cladding ranges are specially designed for rainscreen systems, which are a modern approach to external wall construction, perfect for achieving the breathability and high insulation levels required in modern, sustainable timber wall constructions. When fitted with insulation materials the Building Research Establishment (BRE) Green Guide to Specification has given PVC cladding an A+ rating.

When fitted correctly, Freefoam cladding systems can be expected to protect the external fabric of the building for at least 20 years.

The cladding systems are extremely lightweight compared to similar alternatives which makes them ideal for transportation and, like the roof trim systems, are designed to be installed quickly, by general tradespeople.

Colin St John, Commercial Director explained “The controlled environment of off-site construction successfully replicates the benefits that we as construction product manufacturers have been accustomed to in our own factories for decades. High tolerance standards, product consistency, low waste and ease of assembly are already a minimum standard for all Freefoam products.

The evolution of construction into a manufacturing process dovetails perfectly with the systemised roofline, rainwater and cladding systems that we produce.

All Freefoam products are manufactured in a controlled manufacturing environment and have been designed to provide the precise standard of finish that is required in an off-site construction environment.”

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The next generation of commercial windows

Advances in window systems and exciting new composite materials are turning perceptions on their heads and extending the limits of commercial windows and doors.

First generation PVC-U windows and doors were bulky and unattractive and came in a very limited range of colours. And if you wanted very big windows and tall, or very tall doors standard PVC-U isn’t the answer. So, specifiers have traditionally favoured aluminium for commercial projects for aluminium’s strong, slim profiles and wide colour selection. But the rate and scale of development in commercial windows has been phenomenal, and it’s now possible to have the best of aluminium with the best of PVC-U in one window. Specifiers can now have the warmth and energy efficiency of PVC-U and the sustainability, strength, looks, and the colour choice of aluminium in high performance composite commercial windows.

Linktrusion™ – the latest exciting commercial innovation by Deceuninck

This new solution is based on Deceuninck’s Linktrusion™ technology, and it comes with many exciting new benefits.

Linktrusion™ composite technology is a true innovation that breaks new ground in the commercial sector. This patented technology is used in our composite 5000 window system which incorporates immensely-strong pultruded glass-fibre in the profiles, plus optional patented thermal reinforcement with embedded steel wires in a low density insulating foam core encased in recycled PVC-U for excellent U values.

Windows manufactured with Linktrusion™ are as strong as steel reinforced windows, but 30% more thermally efficient, with up to 40% savings on materials and weight. Linktrusion™ technology is the first to remove the need for traditional steel reinforcement, and its inherent great strength allows specifiers to consider using very tall windows and very large doors (1100 x 2500 or 1150 x 2400 for a single door). The windows have slim sightlines, are available in countless Decoroc and foiled colours and are 100% recyclable. Feedback from specifiers has been extremely positive. London and Quadrant (L & Q) for example specified this ground-breaking technology for their recent flagship complex in Abbey Road, Barking. L&Q is one of the UK’s leading housing associations and one of the largest residential developers in London. The organisation wanted windows with top performance and aesthetics. Using Deceuninck’s unique LinktrusionTM technology the project was completed in Decoroc Anthracite grey RAL 7016 – a very popular choice of colour in the commercial sector.

Forging strong ties with commercial fabricators and contractors

Deceuninck has an exciting portfolio of commercial projects including Imperial College London (1,100 apartments), Hinkley Point staff accommodation (1,400 apartments), Ocean Village in Southampton (700 frames), and Trafford House in Basildon (4,500 apartments). We develop strong, close relationships with commercial partners to help them meet project specifications, and our technical support team is available to help with complex issues such as weather performance, energy efficiency and increasingly, acoustics.

Acoustics is fast becoming a critical factor in commercial specification, with developers keen to reduce the impact of noise pollution. That’s why Deceuninck is currently investing in systematic acoustic testing of its full range. As far as we’re aware, we’re the first PVC-U window systems company to make this commitment. Working in partnership with one of the country’s leading acoustic testing centres at the University of Salford, we’ve completed testing of our 2500 and 5000, and Fully Reversible Window, with further testing in progress.

Deceuninck’s acoustic expertise was crucial in the Hinkley Point C staff accommodation development. Developers and planners needed to reduce the impact of noise on workers so tasked Dempsey Dyer and Deceuninck to cut the decibel rating down by RW35db to produce windows of RW40db and RW43db.

Call 01249 816 969 or visit www.deceuninck.co.uk for more about our commercial range and commercial work. You can also download Deceuninck’s full product portfolio from the NBS National BIM Library at www.nationalbimlibrary.com/deceuninck-ltd.
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Structural steel fixing goes nut-free

The new TDBL nonut® self-threading screw from SFS, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high performance fasteners, enables a secure connection of pre-drilled supporting steel structures without any nuts or washers.

Compared with the standard method of using nuts, bolts and washers, the precision-engineered TDBL nonut® fastener is a quicker, more efficient and more secure way of fixing together supporting steel structures of various thickness and hardness subject to static load. The installer only needs one component instead of three, and one hand tool. Installation is one-handed and requires access from just one side.

The innovative design of the TDBL nonut®, with its thread-free zone and additional serration under the head, prevents the risk of over-driving in thin steel and ensures a lasting robust connection. European-manufactured to a high quality, the plated carbon steel, case hardened TDBL nonut® is available in eight variants according to length, diameter and clamping length with a hexagon head.

The quality and effectiveness of the TDBL nonut® has been well-established in Germany, as it is the only solution of its kind with the German national technical approval (“Allgemeine bauaufsichtliche Zulassung”). However, it has been widely used across mainland Europe and the rest of the world – and now gaining popularity in the UK – in diverse applications such as steel beams, stairways, railings, pylons, water tanks, grain silos, fall protection systems, rack constructions and solar parks.

TDBL nonut® fasteners were used recently in the construction of a three-storey structural mezzanine system of a 516,750 sq. ft. distribution centre near Ferrybridge for TK Maxx. The fasteners were mainly used in the columns and beam-to-column connections, with the product’s unique design enabling other design changes to be made to the structure of the mezzanine – these have complemented both structural performance and installation benefits.

Andy Stolworthy, Director of Product and Market Development, at SFS UK says “The traditional method of fixing steel structures together by using bolts with nuts and washers represents an unnecessarily awkward and time-consuming way of doing things. We’ve worked to overcome this by developing the TDBL nonut®, a technically superior fastener in one piece rather than three. It’s a risk-free alternative that is guaranteed to make steel structure assembly faster, and the customers get the peace of mind of knowing that it’s a product from a global-market leader renowned for quality.”

The TDBL nonut®, like all products from SFS, is backed with expert technical support that has been at the core of the company’s success in serving the construction and manufacturing industries. Operating from its UK HQ in Leeds, the company is part of the Swiss-based SFS Group which has annual sales in excess of £1.1bn and a history dating back to the 1920s serving customers in the construction, automotive, electronics, industrial and medical products markets.

Find out more about the TDBL nonut® and SFS at www.sfsintec.co.uk.
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Titon appoints new Area Sales Manager for timber and PVCu division

Leading ventilation and window hardware manufacturer Titon has appointed Mark Barzotelli as Area Sales Manager for its Timber and PVCu division.

Mark will be covering the South and South West area of England, along with South Wales. Reporting to Titon’s National Sales Manager Matthew Yates, he will be responsible for sales and specification of Titon’s expanding window and door hardware ranges – including trickle vents – to fabricators of PVCu or timber windows and doors.

Formerly a Sales Manager for Essex-based hinge, fitting and window hardware producer Nico Manufacturing, where he worked for 11 years, Mark brings with him a wealth of experience in window and door hardware. He also has an HNC diploma in building construction.

Commenting on his new role, Mark said “Having been in the industry for some time, I know the Titon team well and I’m delighted to have joined them at such an exciting time for the company. I’m looking forward to working on increasing sales and developing awareness of the brand’s excellent products.”

Mark lives in Brixham in Devon. His pastimes include motorcycling and raising money for charity – he has previously completed a charity motorbike ride from Lowestoft to Land’s End to raise money for the Devon Freewheelers, a team of volunteers who deliver essential medical supplies, including blood for transfusions, around the UK. He was also part of the Teignmouth Lifeboat Crew for 8 years.

For more information about Titon’s Ventilation Systems Division, please visit: www.titon.co.uk
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New skills needed to harness true potential of offsite construction

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Offsite construction could revolutionise the construction industry and provide a solution to the UK housing shortage, but only if the sector develops the right skills.

Faster, Smarter, More Efficient: Building Skills for Offsite Construction shows that 42% of construction industry employers with over 100 staff expect to use offsite methods in five years’ time.

When asked about the use of offsite-specific construction materials and products, 100% said they expected the use of precast concrete panels to increase; 91% anticipated the use of precast concrete frame to rise.

At present however, offsite construction accounts for just 10% of industry output.

The report – which follows the recommendations set out in industry expert Mark Farmer’s government-backed review of UK construction – also reveals that nearly 50% of construction industry clients expect the use of offsite construction to increase over the next five years.

Offsite processes save time and money and can improve quality through pre-fabrication of components – from panels to fully fitted rooms.

Mark Farmer said “The urgency for modernisation has never been greater, set against an insidious backdrop of an ageing workforce and increasing concerns about the impact of Brexit.

“Any strategic shift towards pre-manufacturing and offsite construction creates an immediate requirement to define our future skills needs through collaboration between industry, educators, training providers and government.

“This is crucial to ensuring we can transition to a higher productivity, digitally enabled industry which inherently attracts more of the young talent we so desperately need. It should also set out clear opportunities for the existing construction workforce and indeed workers from other industries to reskill through a new family of career pathways.”

Steve Radley, Director of Policy at CITB, said “There is massive potential for offsite construction. The Government recently announced an additional £1.4bn of funding for affordable homes, with an increase in offsite construction set as an objective, representing a clear opportunity for growth in this area.

“The greatest potential currently lies within the housing and commercial sectors, where mass customisation can create the buildings we need more quickly and to higher standards. There are also opportunities to bring the benefits of offsite to large-scale infrastructure projects – some high profile examples include HS2 and Hinkley Point, which are already using offsite techniques.”

The report outlines six key skills areas related to offsite construction:

  1. digital design
  2. estimating/commercial
  3. offsite manufacturing
  4. logistics
  5. site management and integration
  6. onsite placement and assembly

Increasingly, workers will need the skills to move between offsite and onsite environments and so the training for these six areas must evolve to meet the changing demand.

Currently, significant barriers exist which prevent the delivery of training and skills to meet the needs of these crucial areas. These include:

  • Existing training does not include the required offsite content
  • Lack of awareness and suitability of available training and qualifications – companies are delivering their own ‘in-house’ training, which leads to non-standard approaches
  • A shortage of qualified training providers and assessors

Steve Radley concluded “Successful offsite management hinges on the effective integration of both onsite and offsite functions – and this requires a comprehensive understanding of both aspects.”

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Can modular housing solve the UK’s housing crisis?

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The UK is in the grips of a chronic housing crisis. Rising rent prices, falling wages and a severe labour skills shortage have left housing construction stagnant and properties financially out of reach. Productivity in the construction sector has stalled post-Brexit, and developer focus in recent years has shifted from creating accommodation that is affordable and simple to construct, to complex, luxury projects which often remain unoccupied. With the housing sector contributing to economic inequality in this country, an innovative solution to this crisis is desperately needed.

Modular housing is one solution that has the potential to ease the UK’s housing crisis. Such homes are cost-effective, scalable, sustainable, and efficient to build. However, legislative red tape, local authority dependence on short-term housing solutions, and reluctance by landowners to free up their land have hidebound modular housing’s potential, meaning that the contribution it could make to the easing the housing crisis has not yet been tested.

Currently, housing construction of any type in the UK is being strangled by a severe labour skills shortage. An ageing workforce and a Brexit-induced worker exodus is limiting construction activity, whilst increasing labour costs are making affordable housing financially unattractive for construction companies. Consequently, housing demand is not being met. This is particularly problematic given that the number of new households has exceeded the number of homes built every year since 2008, and estimates suggest there is a need for between 230,000-300,000 additional units per year – a level not reached since the 1970s.

Here, modular could have a significant impact by reinvigorating supply in an affordable and efficient model. Factory, rather than field-based, modular housing can take as little as three days to construct and requires only a semi-skilled workforce who take months, not years, to train. Modular houses also require fewer builders due to being semi mass-produced and standardised, making them appealing to construction companies with diminished workforces and restricted budgets.

The critical shortage of affordable housing in the UK is being exacerbated by legislative red-tape and landowner opposition. Across the country, luxury apartments are plentiful compared to low-cost developments, in part due to landowners who want to achieve the best possible land value, and traditional housebuilders who are perceived as offering the best price. At present off site construction development proposals are less competitive than traditional methods: construction costs are higher than traditional construction meaning a lower land offer for the land, [meaning housebuilders are] less likely to win a competitive bid for land unless the awarding body specifically states the desire to use off-site manufacturing as part of development. Clearly this position may change over time, particularly when site labour becomes more scarce or the demand for offsite manufacturing increases.

However, attitudes could be changing – Wolverhampton City Council is delivering 23,000 modular homes as part of a pilot scheme and a recent decision by the Greater London Authority’s assistant director of housing, to commission a common framework for ‘delivering precision manufactured homes at scale’, suggests that modular, standardised builds are now seen as an acceptable, even attractive, way to work around constrained local authority budgets.

There is, however, a long way to go, and even rising homelessness is currently failing to fuel demand for affordable accommodation. With demand far outstripping supply, local and national government now spend £2 million a day on temporary accommodation, often using the most expensive and least desirable forms of emergency housing, such as B&Bs and hotels, for the over-77,000 homeless households under local authority care. Contrastingly, modular houses can cost as little as £25,000 to build, and offer a permanent or semi-permanent alternative to emergency accommodation which is economically sustainable in the long-run. Some councils are already picking up on modular’s potential to provide stability for those in crisis – in Lewisham, plans for a 25-home modular social rent development are underway; and a collaboration between 16 London boroughs to provide modular housing for use by the homeless has been promised £11m by Sadiq Khan, after a £20,000 seed funding contribution from London Councils’ City Ambition programme kick-started the project.

Creativity, modernisation and efficiency are critical if the UK is ever to solve its housing crisis. The country’s population is unlikely to stop increasing, there is no real answer yet to the severe skills shortage in the country’s construction industry, and the threat of homelessness continues to grow. These are chronic problems for which a solution is needed, and fast. Modular housing could provide just that. Accessible, efficient and sustainable, today’s modular homes are not the prefabs of the past. Instead, they are slick and distinctive; environmentally friendly and architecturally evolved. With the government announcing plans, in March this year to build 100,000 modular homes by 2020, we may finally be waking up to the fact that, in a time of crisis, modular could prove to be just what the country needs.

Written by Ben O’Connor, Development Manager, Kajima

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Demonstrating the potential of offsite technology in the North West

The first North West regional event in the Explore Offsite series will take place on 12 September 2018 in Manchester at the University of Salford. The combined conference and exhibition will bring together a range of offsite technology supply chain specialists and industry leaders to discuss the uptake of offsite construction within the region.

Explore Offsite North West will focus on the key themes of offsite technology, supply chain resources and opportunities within the sector. Through informative case studies and presentations from industry pioneers, the event aims to attract construction clients, architects, engineers, specifiers, building product manufacturers and suppliers.

Offsite manufacture is a progressive step that helps to challenge outdated assumptions about the construction sector and encourage more young professionals into the industry. The sector will generate savings in the long term, but the overwhelming message has been, that companies at every level of the supply chain should invest in offsite manufacture and construction processes sooner rather than later, or risk being left behind.

A well-known figure in the North West – Tom Bloxham MBE, Chairman for Urban Splash, once sold fire extinguishers door to door. Following a meteoric rise to fame, Urban Splash has developed over a billion pounds of regeneration projects across the country. Tom was awarded an MBE for services to architecture and urban regeneration in 1999 at the age of 35.

In his presentation ‘Urban Splash Modular and why we bought the Factory’ – Tom explains the rationale behind acquiring SIG’s modular factory and assets. “Urban Splash is committed to expanding its offsite construction capacity and this purchase is a way to vertically integrate our business and give us control of the production of our houses,” said Tom. “It is a testament to our commitment to, and investment in, modular housing.”

Osco Homes is all about making a positive social impact, in her presentation Gwen Beeken, Managing Director – discusses how their successful affordable housing projects are employing a different workforce. A wholly owned subsidiary of Procure Plus, Osco Homes’ objective is to deliver affordable houses constructed offsite at a factory based in HM Prison Hindley, Greater Manchester. Within three years Osco Homes hope to reach an output of 1,000 homes a year. The model is for the prisoners to be trained and then supported into full time employment upon release. Of the 14 prisoners who are taking part in the scheme and have been recently released, nine gained full time employment and only one re-offended (7%) – the national average for re-offending within six months is a staggering 60%. This pioneering project uses fully offsite manufactured housing solutions – the aim of filling the skills gap in this way, makes it a truly innovative project. It is not just about building affordable homes but providing training and opportunities for people who may have taken a wrong turn in life but are keen to change.

EOS Offsite Solutions design, manufacture and bring fully tested solutions to market which drives specification in UK construction. Peter Burchill from EOS Offsite Solutions will be presenting ‘Lightening the Load for the Residential Sector’. As experts in load bearing light steel frame (LSF) panelised and preassembled systems – EOS Offsite Solutions design and manufacture innovative load bearing pre-assembled solutions for pod and modular specialists, together with systems for multi-rise developments. With continued investment and expansion of production facilities, underpinned by 14 years’ experience in the offsite sector – EOS are geared up and ready to increase market share in the offsite load bearing market.

EOS Offsite Solutions is part of Etex Building Performance which brings together the products and solutions of four dry construction materials companies – Siniat, Promat and EOS Facades.

These speakers will be joined by experts and academics in the field of offsite technology and applications. Tickets cost just £125 plus vat and include; entry into the conference and exhibition, lunch and refreshments. For more information about the event, speakers and to book your place go to: www.exploreoffsite.co.uk/2018-events/explore-offsite-north-west.

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Advanced Launches Brochure for Fire Protection in Historic Sites

Global fire systems leader, Advanced, has launched a new guide to fire protection for historic and heritage sites.

Historic and heritage sites present unique challenges to end users, specifiers and installers. The new brochure is designed to help key stakeholders understand some of the solutions available for the challenges they face. It addresses many common problems in ensuring adequate active fire protection, tackling the challenges of minimising aesthetic impact, quick, safe evacuation and eliminating unwanted alarms, among many more.

Advanced has a global reputation for excellence in the sector and its system, across EN and UL approvals are protecting some of the most famous, valuable and most visited sites anywhere including: Hagia Sophia, Istanbul; Durham Cathedral; The Magna Carta at Lincoln Castle; Iona Abbey; the Natural History Museum and Trinity Episcopal Church, Rhode Island.

Aston Bowles, Head of Marketing at Advanced, said “Advanced systems are protecting some of the most famous and valuable heritage and cultural assets worldwide. Historic structures present unique challenges for the fire system industry, but innovation is delivering significant choice and performance gains for end users, specifiers and responsible people in the sector. The new brochure aims to offer insight into the sector and the solutions that can be used.”

Advanced is a world leader in the development and manufacture of intelligent fire systems. The legendary performance, quality and ease of use of its products sees Advanced specified in locations all over the world, from single panel installations to large, multi-site networks. Advanced’s products include complete fire detection systems, multi-protocol fire panels, extinguishing control, fire paging and false alarm management systems.

To request a copy of the Historic Sites Brochure please contact: marketing@advancedco.com.
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Easing construction with multi-service offering

Installing both heat interface units (HIUs) and underfloor heating (UFH) within communal heating schemes is a great way to improve the efficiency of both the primary and secondary systems. Furthermore, this winning combination is now deemed best practice for heat networks, as recommended in industry codes such as CIBSE CP1.

One Bristol based HVAC company, Giacomini UK, has set about making it as easy as possible for construction managers to meet these guidelines. Its team of UK engineers, including CIBSE Certified Heat Networks Consultants, are well-versed in supplying tailored UFH, HIU and flow control packages to communal heating schemes, with the demand for their joint packages accelerating.

Heat interface units are driven by consumer demand, only extracting what they need from the primary system to accurately provide the consumer with the correct amount of domestic hot water or heating. Whilst on the secondary side, the lower flow and return temperatures of underfloor heating enable the boilers to operate at a higher efficiency.

This combination along with flow control provisions, such as differential pressure control valves, will improve the efficiency of the central boiler plant and help to bring the building design is in accordance with current industry guidelines.

One recent project, which combined all three of the above fields of Giacomini’s expertise, was a large residential and work space development in London, which saw over 2,000 square meters of underfloor heating pipework being installed, alongside 31 twin plate heat interface units and several pairs of differential pressure control valves and static balancing valves.

Discussing the increasing demand for combined services projects, Matt Lowe, managing director of Giacomini UK, commented: “In the past, customers largely came to us needing one service but increasingly we are finding that people are recognising the benefits of having all services provided by one manufacturer. Not only does it boost the efficiency of the system as the components are designed to work together, but it also eases installation as all enquiries go through one point of contact who ensures the same high level of quality throughout.”

Further afield, Giacomini has designed joint packages for a variety of communal heating projects including a 60 bed extra care scheme, 34 amenity flats and 85 luxury apartments.

For each project, Giacomini’s team of technical engineers provided guidance on the design of the heat network to make sure it is done in accordance to CIBSE Heat Network Code of Practice CP1. The team is also equipped to advise on diversity, flow rates, velocities, pressure losses and assist with calculating peak demand.

For further information about Giacomini’s heat network packages please call 01454 809100, or visit uk.giacomini.com.
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