Clearview Midlands December 2013 - Issue 145 | Page 56

ENERGYEFFICIENCY

ENERGY EFFICIENCY REQUIREMENTS
CALL FOR ENGINEERED SOLUTIONS
No matter which industry you’re in, the
topic of energy efficiency is hard to avoid;
though it is particularly pertinent to the
construction industry: statistics suggest the
sector is accountable for approximately half
of the UK’s emissions of carbon dioxide.
Jamie Lewis, facades and offsite advisor at
SFS intec, argues that this could be markedly
reduced by implementing more sustainable
and engineered solutions; specifically when
setting windows over external wall insulation
zones.
In the last twelve months, government
initiatives such as the Green Deal and the Energy
Companies Obligation (ECO) have played
an important role in educating householders
of the benefits of energy efficient home
improvements.
The Department of Energy and Climate
Change (DECC) reported that at the end of
October, over 85,000 Green Deal assessments
were completed, but only 57 homes have had
energy saving measures installed since January,
with 505 homes still pending. While this
signifies the scheme’s struggle to process the
assessments with speed, it does highlight the high
volume of homeowners who are keen to improve
energy efficiency.
This has been helped by ECO, which is
driving a large amount of sustainable building
work through the public sector. Specifically,

over 244,000 measures were installed under
this scheme up to the end of August. So, while
the implementation of the Green Deal requires
much improvement, the ECO funding is
booming, and both are successfully raising
awareness and instilling a level of understanding
and knowledge about enhancing eco
credentials.
Out-boarded windows

Over the last 12 months, one measure
which has increased in demand is external wall
insulation (EWI). This method can improve
thermal efficiency and reduce heating costs by as
much as 40%, by minimising a building’s heat
loss and gain. However, many system designers
are still failing to recognise the importance of
correctly positioning the windows over the
insulation zone, instead of simply placing in the
same position. Failure to consider the window
positioning in an EWI application will have a
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