NEWS All the latest news from around the building industry
LIVING WALL BREATHES LIFE INTO VICTORIA
A six-storey living wall has been retrofitted onto a hotel in London’s Victoria. The 350 m2
vertical garden, featuring buttercups, strawberries and
crocuses, has been installed on the end wall of the Rubens at The Palace Hotel by urban greening specialist, Treebox. The company says the 10,000 plants will improve air quality by
absorbing microscopic pollutants known as particulate matter (PM10s). The wall features irrigation tanks to store rainwater. It will be
programmed to respond to heavy rain by slowly distributing water across the wall, increasing storage capacity in the tanks, taking the pressure off drains and helping to reduce the risk of surface water flooding.
Part L changes show lack of ambition, say experts
After a long delay, the government has finally released details for Part L of the Building Regulations 2013, which will be implemented next April.
The building services sector has been left generally underwhelmed, with many condemning the watered down revisions as the minimum the government could have delivered. In general, carbon reduction targets have been increased by 6% for new residential buildings and 9% for commercial.
There is a greater focus on improving building fabric standards, which were welcomed as a step towards greater use of passive design solutions and reducing reliance on renewables. However, the relatively low level of improvements have left many doubtful about the likelihood of new builds achieving zero carbon targets by 2016 for residential, and 2019 for commercial, which has long been the government’s stated aim.
represent the majority of UK emissions,’ he said. He added that the government was gaining a reputation for ‘setting headline-grabbing green targets, then watering down definitions when actions are needed’.
A number of consulting practices said they would be urging clients to aim higher than Part L’s new basic standards, to improve building performance and reduce running costs. Hilson Moran’s director of sustainability, Chris Birch, said the targets were a step forward, but left the industry with ‘a very steep learning curve’. ‘We are disappointed with the lack of ambition in the new regulations, particularly in relation to the lack of new standards for refurbishments and existing homes, which
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‘The government is gaining a reputation for setting headline- grabbing green targets, then watering down definitions’
The revisions – which were the subject of heated arguments and even legal action over the decision to remove consequential improvements – were condemned as a ‘missed opportunity’ by Hoare Lea’s Ashley Bateson. Speaking on behalf of the CIBSE Homes for the Future Group, he said the step changes in carbon reduction were much less than expected.
‘The proposed implementation of the fabric efficiency standard for new homes is probably the most important change, as it will drive fabric specifications towards a more passive approach,’ he said. ‘But we still need to know more about how new homes will actually become zero carbon in practice.’
He welcomed the new consultation on ‘allowable solutions’, which will allow industry to ‘review and influence how carbon off-set measures might be implemented.’
The Heat Pump Association said it was ‘puzzled’ by a set of revisions that seem to contradict the government’s stated objectives of lowering running costs for new homes.
Miliband backs women apprentices
A group of female building services engineers have been selected to spearhead a campaign to attract more women into the industry. The Apprentice Ambassador Initiative was launched by training charity, JTL, and has received backing from a number of MPs, including Labour leader Ed Miliband. The ambassadors will act as ‘real-
life role models’, going into schools and speaking at local events to inspire another generation of young female engineers. The 10 inaugural apprentice
ambassadors were chosen from across England and Wales and are all current and former JTL apprentices, selected because of their personal success and passion for apprenticeships. They will also act as mentors to any young woman who signs up for a JTL apprenticeship. ‘We have helped more than
40,000 apprentices train over the last 24 years, but only a small percentage have been female,’ said JTL chairman Dr Ian Livsey. According to statistics from
the department of Business, Innovation & Skills, women make up just 2% of apprentices in the construction sector.
September 2013 CIBSE Journal 7
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