...AND SEVEN 7
Titan Wood on the other hand is a growing solution. This Texas company markets wood called Accoya created using a process called acetylation. This technology has apparently been around for 75 years and is the method of improving wood to deliver superior performance Acetylation effectively changes the free hydroxyls within the wood into acetyl groups. This is done by reacting the wood with acetic anhydride, which comes from acetic acid (known as vinegar when in its dilute form). When the free hydroxyl group is transformed to an acetyl group, the ability of the wood to adsorb water is greatly reduced, rendering the wood more dimensionally stable and, because it is no longer digestible, extremely durable. There you have it and yet another interesting import coming our way.
And from Austria….. On the day, it is announced that Vienna is one of the top, if not the best, cities in which to live, it is worth looking at Austria and what they want to sell us. Here is another country which thinks the UK is ripe for cultivating and 22 companies were represented in the Austrian Pavilion at EcoBuild. The products ranged from passive house technologies (both for residential and commercial buildings), prefabricated buildings, solar and
biomass heating system to modular structural timber and formwork systems.
Wood proliferates which is surprising given that Vienna’s charm is patently built on stone. There are some jolly good wood windows and doors and a lot of reference to pellets as in 96.3% pellet-fired boilers, biomass heating systems and their appropriate feeding systems. They want us to buy softwood lumber plus glue-laminated and cross laminated solid timber as well as fine timber engineering. Tilo want to interest us in natural flooring, ceilings and wall coverings, skirtings and decking. Heradesign have decorative panels and ceiling systems.
And from Holland…..
It appears that British builders are very impressed with Dutch innovations so much so that the Netherlands British Chamber of Commerce last year represented 45 companies at EcoBuild and produced a remarkable hard-backed catalogue which would grace anyone’s shelves if not their specifications.
The recent NBCC organised visit for builders included the ‘Strijkijzer’, a 42-story high-rise development in The Hague built with prefab
elements – two storeys a week compared with half that in the UK. Heijmans Bestcon is a factory that produces complete precast concrete constructions and masonry - ready- to-assemble concrete walls with insulation and brickwork at one location. The Ooms Avenhorn Group offers solutions like Booneland (image opposite) – a floating design village. As an idea, the London Olympics could have additional facilities on the Thames which……. I am sure you get the drift.
And finally… It’s obvious that there is a wealth of overseas manufacturers who now see the UK as a fertile market. In a special autumn report, I understand Specification magazine aims to bring together all the talent and examine what products are available from where, from whom and why they should be important for our building industry - it’ll be Knotweed-free knowledge at its best.
Interesting, huh?
comments@tspltd.co.uk
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