The Building Envelope

Orbit Housing’s Fordham House development in Stratford-upon-Avon is an 82 apartment block designed to shield its residents from noise, many of whom are local workers in restaurants and bars so have to work shifts outside the usual working day.

This is achieved with special acoustic ceilings added to deep hollow concrete floor slabs. Fitted blinds within the window reveals also provide an additional noise cushion.

The Kingspan TEK Building System of structural insulated panels (SIPs) has been used to create a spectacular, cantilevered self-build in Oxfordshire, achieving excellent airtightness and energy efficiency with a fast-track build programme.
Homeowner, Daniel Frazer, identified timber frame as his preferred construction method at the outset of the project due to its speed of build and ability to be constructed in most weather conditions. Following discussions with Greenspace Architects and Kingspan TEK Delivery Partners, Point 1 Building Systems, he finally settled on the Kingspan TEK Building System. “I was attracted to SIPs due to their air-tightness and even faster erection speed,” Daniel commented. “I particularly liked the ability to have a roof fabricated from the panels.”

Langley Structures Ltd has welcomed the updates to the Permitted Development (PD) rules that will allow increased utilisation of upward extensions to provide much needed social housing. However, Langley Structures, experts in rooftop capitalisation, warns that the quality and design of new developments and the impact on the local community must be prioritised.

The new rules allow the construction of up to two additional storeys on purpose-built, detached block of flats, subject to certain conditions. This includes that existing blocks must be three storeys or more and the extended building must not be more than 30 metres high.
   

Mention curtain walling to any specifier or contractor and it’s an odds on bet they won’t associate the term with residential projects. However, technical developments have gradually extended the design scope of such systems, first to multiple occupancy housing and subsequently to individual architect-designed homes.
So, what has prompted this? When you look at what curtain walling is this should come as no real surprise. Essentially, it is a façade with framing made of metal, PVCu or timber with vertical or horizontal elements. These are anchored to the supporting structure to provide the functions of an external wall without it being load-bearing. This has positive benefits in terms of installation speed and cost.

BMI UK & Ireland has enhanced its portfolio of market-leading pitched and flat roofing technology solutions with new Green and Blue ‘Active Roof Systems’. Active Roof Systems is how BMI UK & Ireland describes roof coverings that perform a greater function beyond shelter and protection. While weather-tightness is the primary purpose of a roof, with the right technologies, roofs can be transformed into power stations, rainwater recycling systems or an opportunity to reduce energy costs.

Langley Structures Ltd is changing the roofscapes of our towns and cities across the country.  Whether it be the conversion of existing flat roofs to either new pitched ones or erecting new habitable dwellings with their ‘upwardly-living’ Rooftop Development innovation.
 
Langley can provide a complete end-to-end package from conceptual design, planning and building control approval, through to the monitoring of the installation on site.

Global building industry leader Kingspan has launched a major 10-year strategy to play its part in reducing the world’s carbon emissions by 45% by 2030, as determined in the Paris Agreement, and contribute towards the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The Planet Passionate strategy is made up of 12 ambitious targets, addressing the impact of Kingspan’s business operations and manufacturing on the four key areas of energy, carbon, circularity and water, with commitments by 2030