Summary
¦ Building systems can help to achieve tighter Part L and CSH requirements.
¦ Masonite Beams and Warmcel have been targeting architects, installers and self-builders.
¦ Masonite’s iFrame can be adapted to achieve Passivhaus standards.
¦ It is developing a new room in the roof system.
Masonite Beams UK Ltd’s main customer base continues to be regional and national housebuilders, and we are listening carefully to what they are looking for from their product suppliers.
Developers tell us that planners are pushing them to higher Code for Sustainable Homes levels; that better value coupled with lower cost solutions are the end game; that better integration of manufacturers to create a system-led approach is crucial; that duplication of effort and processes must be eliminated to reduce waste in its broadest context; and that the better the fabric solution, the less the homebuyer has to worry about heating and ventilating their home themselves. All of these issues and observations are shaping Masonite’s strategy and the company is investing in systems that will ultimately help developers to achieve their goals, and thereby help our distributors in turn to grow their business.
Closed panel system
The TRADIS closed panel wall and roof system, which comprises Masonite engineered timber I-joists and beams, Panelvent external sheathing boards, Warmcel 500 insulation, Paneline internal sheathing board and a vapour control layer, has much to offer housebuilders, especially given the changes to Part L of the Building Regulations that are just coming into force. In addition to having maximum or minimum values (U-values and airtightness) for various elements, housebuilders are having to accommodate the new requirement for a newbuild house to have a 25% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the minimum requirements of the Part L 2006 previous version. This is a 40% improvement over a dwelling built to the 2002 version.
Those developers who adopt good quality control procedures in design and on site will be better able to achieve the new requirement for ‘design’ submission alongside ‘as built’ submissions which are now part of the new regulations. The person carrying out the work must provide building control with the target emission rate (TER), dwelling emission rate (DER) and a list of specifications before work starts on site. They must notify building control of the TER and DER actually achieved no later than five days after the work has been completed, and whether the building has been constructed as per the design specifications.
The emphasis will be on reaching lower U-values (0.2W/m2K or lower for roofs), achieving excellent airtightness, reducing cold bridging through rafters, as well as mixing and matching other trade-off factors such as the building envelope and the use of renewables.
Prefabricated building systems such as TRADIS have a key role to play in this area. They are inherently more predictable in their performance, and thereby offer designers and installers helpful data in order to fulfil the more onerous requirements to demonstrate the performance of a building.
A comprehensive Technical Guide for the TRADIS closed panel wall and roof system is almost complete and over the past 12 months Masonite has worked closely with Warmcel 500 insulation manufacturer, Excel Industries, to publicise the TRADIS system to architects, installers and self-builders.
Ease of installation
Masonite’s iFrame small panel wall system will also be a key element of the company’s focus for 2011. Having been used in many contracts around the country, including self-build and SME developer projects, it is gaining an excellent reputation for ease of installation on site. The system, which uses standard Masonite manufactured engineered timber studs as storey-height panels, has just been recognised as being adaptable to achieve the standards required by Passivhaus. A full technical guide for iFrame is currently in preparation.
For Masonite’s next move, it is developing a new room in the roof system. In an attic truss, the floor component and attic component are traditionally part of the same structural element but in Masonite’s new system the two components will be independent of each other. The main benefit of this approach will be enhanced design flexibility, but also a crane will not be required, which means lower installation costs. The new system uses I-joist components in both the floor and the roof. Further details will be revealed early next year.
After a challenging time relaunching the company in late 2008, at the beginning of the recession, we are looking to substantially grow our market share in 2011 and beyond.
