50 STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS
consumption and therefore reduce bills in any building type. The benefits of this approach are
increasingly widely recognised, and ongoing research continues to reinforce the significant positive impact this approach can have – economically, environmentally and socially. The reduc-
tion in CO2 emissions achieved through fabric measures is built-in for the life of the building, to therefore ensure that the
energy demand and CO2 emissions of a site remains low. Renewable technologies, on the other hand, have a limited lifespan and risk a significant increase in emissions from a development once they reach end-of-life, if not maintained or replaced at a cost to the homeowner. With junctions above openings in
delivered through a lesser increase to fabric standards, alongside use of low-carbon heating and/or renewables technologies.
FABRIC FIRST Whatever the outcome, it’s clear that improving the building fabric will be key to meeting these new regulations.
A fabric-first approach to property design concentrates finance and efforts on improving fabric U-values, reducing thermal bridging and improving airtight- ness. It is a first step before renewable, mechanical or electrical building services or technologies are considered to further
reduce CO2 emissions. A well-designed fabric can, on its own, reduce energy
buildings particularly vulnerable to heat loss through thermal bridging, paying close attention to the details and struc- tural elements such as lintels is key to ensuring energy efficient buildings. A fabric-first approach to property design will provide the all-important framework to ensure ‘as-designed’ performance is achieved, while also futureproofing homes against regulatory changes.
Ben Cheetham is national specification manager at Keystone Lintels
WWW.HBDONLINE.CO.UK
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
