INSULATION
MORE THAN A WARM
FEELING BMJ finds out what merchants can expect to see happening to insulation sales in 2019.
U
nderstanding the wider benefits of insulation beyond thermal performance is essential if merchants are to help installers select the right
product for the right application. That’s according to Knauf Insulation’s sales director, Graham Wroe.
“The thermal benefits of insulation are widely recognised and understood. The principal function of insulation is to limit heat loss during cold weather and prevent heat gain in hot weather, helping to maintain a steady ambient temperature within the building” he says. “Therefore, when a contractor comes into a builders’ merchant looking for insulation, it’s easy to concentrate on a product that delivers the best thermal conductivity and thermal resistance for a competitive price. But this can mean that the wider role of insulation in ensuring the fire safety of a building, its acoustic performance and the sustainability of a product can be overlooked.”
The fire performance of insulation has rightly come under the spotlight in the wake of the Grenfell fire, Wroe says. But he points out that if the sole focus of selection is on thermal performance, there could be a risk of inadvertently selling products with an inferior fire classification for the required application. “To prevent such errors, once a product has been identified for its thermal performance, it is important to check its Reaction to Fire classification,” he says. All CE marked insulation materials are given a Euroclass Reaction to Fire Classification in accordance with BS EN 13501- 1, classification ranges from F, the lowest, to A1, the highest. The safest option is to use a product that has been classified as A1 or A2 – such as glass or rock mineral wool insulation – which are classified as ‘non-combustible’ and will not contribute to a fire in any way.
28 Safe and sound
Sound insulation is another area that is becoming increasingly important because there is growing evidence that unwanted noise is far more than just an intrusion. Sound impacts on quality of life, directly affecting people’s health, productivity and educational attainment. It is therefore important that merchants are aware of the need to comply with the legislation that governs acoustics in buildings in certain applications. For example, Approved Document E which specifies the noise protection required for separating walls and floors in homes and dwellings. There are similar regulations for non-residential buildings such as schools, hospitals and libraries which outline acceptable noise levels based on each room’s function. Choosing the right insulation helps create quieter buildings. Insulation such as acoustic glass or rock mineral wool is absorbent and traps sound energy between the individual strands of mineral wool turning it into heat energy. This prevents sound from passing into adjacent rooms or reflecting back as echoes. It is important to remember that not all insulation is designed for acoustic applications. For example, products with a closed-cell structure or those that only offer thermal performance, such as loft insulation, may not meet regulatory requirements. The sustainability of all building materials remains an important consideration, and insulation is no exception. There are a number of measures that can be considered when assessing sustainability, including the total environmental impact of its production and use.
Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) demonstrate the characteristics of a product and summarise the findings of the Life Cycle
Analysis. EPDs are essentially ‘environmental data sheets.’ They provide globally recognised, independent verification of a product’s green credentials, including its environmental impact at different stages of its life cycle. The BRE (Building Research Establishment) Green Guide classifies products or construction elements in six bands from A+ to E, with A+ being the highest.
For example, when awarding the A+ rating of the majority of Knauf Insulation’s products, the BRE Green Guide would consider the fact that our Glass Mineral Wool is manufactured with up to 80% of recycled content. They are made with our patented, bio-based ECOSE® Technology binder, which contains no added phenol or formaldehyde. As a result, they are odourless, softer to touch and contribute to a high level of indoor air quality. And our advanced compression packaging means there is more product in each pack, therefore less packaging is used, resulting in fewer lorries on the roads and a reduction in transport carbon emissions.
Ultimately, by understanding the multiple levels of performance that insulation can provide, merchants can deliver pertinent advice to help cross and upsell products that are best suited for each application.
KNAUF INSULATION: SPONSOR OF THE MULTIPLE MERCHANT AWARD AT THE BMJ INDUSTRY AWARDS 2019
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net February 2019
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