Architects chose timber frame to provide a lightweight building solution for the upper storey of the University of Reading’s Museum of English Rural Life.
Excel Building Solutions‘ EVT technology, used as infill panels on the steel-framed structure, was preferred by Niall Phillips Architects instead of masonry in order to create a different footprint design on the first floor.
The use of timber frame meant walls were not required to align with ground floor masonry walls.
The 175mm deep EVT walls, which consist of a timber frame structure, Panelvent external sheathing, Warmcell 500 recycled newspaper insulation and an internal plasterboard finish, deliver a U-value of 0.21 W/m2K. Roof panels in depths of 200mm and 250mm produce U-values of 0.21 and 0.17 W/m2K.
The upper storey is clad in cedar, while the roof features a zinc covering on a plywood base.
The building will store items from English rural history, such as tractors and ploughs.
