Structural insulated panels (SIPs) have helped a Southampton developer to overcome last summer’s wet weather and transform a defunct brownfield site into eight flats in 14 weeks.
Palgrave Brown supplied a range of materials and products to developer Wheatshield Ltd for the build close to Southampton Water, including the SIPs system, roof trusses, spandrel panels, TJI joists, flooring, staircases and all internal walls.
Wheatshield said that the wet weather last summer had threatened to delay the build but that the use of SIPs had enabled the construction to go-ahead “no matter what”.
“Even though first fix was delayed by the weather during the wettest summer on record, once the development was out of the ground, we were really pleased with the speed of the build,” said Wheatshield director Scott Pinnick.
“The weatherproof SIPs envelope meant that work could continue, no matter what.”
Mr Pinnick added that the “precision of the engineering” and ease of construction had impressed Wheatshield and enabled it to ensure the buildings met Part L of Building Regulations for airtight installation. It has also led to an order for SIPs for a further 14 dwellings near Southampton Water from the firm.
