Sep 28 2007
New offices, a commercial building and a hospital provide focal points due to their striking treatment with external renders. They each feature in the prestigious Andy Swan Awards 2007, sponsored by the Insulated Render and Cladding Association for the best use of insulated renders in commercial and public buildings.
The winner is 57/65 Great Suffolk Street, London SE1, which comprises private offices and apartments for rental purposes. A very high thermal performance of 0.23W/m2K was achieved using the Epsitec external wall insulation system incorporating 40 mm insulation and silicone render onto a steel frame using drainage cavities. Sun facing balconies were finished in render and rainscreen copper cladding as a major feature. The landlord was Buxton Homes; the architect, BRD Tech Ltd; the system designer, Wetherby Building Systems Ltd; and the installer, CRL Facades, the latter two members of INCA.
The runner up is Judson Road, Peterlee, Durham, a commercial building intended as a focal point on the business park, due to its striking facades. Constructed in lightweight metal framing and blockwork substrates, the building incorporates PermaRock’s mineral fibre insulated render system, finished in two colours of through-coloured acrylic render and contrasting metal cladding. Excellent thermal efficiency with a U-value of 0.35W/m2K, and fire-safe properties were achieved. The specifier was the Dewjoc Partnership; the system designer, PermaRock Products Ltd; and the installer, George Howe Ltd – the latter two INCA members.
Highly commended was the Royal Blackburn Hospital, a multi-storey PFI hospital developed accommodating over 700 beds and combining all East Lancashire Healthcares hospital on a single site. It consists of a lightweight metal frame construction and cement bonded particle boards, overclad with insulated render or terracotta rainscreen cladding. Using the PermaRock mineral fibre insulated render system with 80 mm mineral fibre and an acrylic render finish, the construction surpasses current Part L requirements, achieving a 0.30W/m2K. The practical yet visually impressive hospital has transformed the whole site becoming the focal point of the surrounding area. The client was Consort Health Care; the main contractors, Balfour Beatty Group; the system designer PermaRock Products Ltd; and the installer E J Horrocks Ltd – the latter two INCA members.
These and other winning projects will be described at the INCA Seminar and Exhibition to be held at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, Drayton Park, London N5 on October 16 (gratis invitations to specifiers on request).
To book for the Seminar or obtain information on insulated renders, contact the Insulated Render and Cladding Association at P O Box 12, Haslemere, Surrey GU27 3AH, tel: 01428 654011; fax: 01428 651401; www.inca-ltd.org.uk.