Features
In August 2014, the British Standard Code of Practice for Slating and Tiling (BS 5534) recommendations were updated to improve the overall security of traditional slated and tiled pitched roofs. Sadly, site practice is still lagging behind – resulting in voided warranties and, at worst, significant roof failures. Dr Kevin Ley, Technical Manager of Redland, explains.
Located on the Elbe River, on the western tip of the HafenCity in Hamburg, Germany, the Elbphilharmonie is one of the largest and most acoustically advanced concert halls in the world and an outstanding example of modern architecture.
Standards within the construction industry are constantly being reviewed to ensure building works comply with regulations and quality expectations. However, despite the efforts taken to meet or exceed these standards, there will still always be complaints forthcoming. Many architects and contractors may see this as an unjustified attack on their good name, or a tactic to avoid payment. This may spur them to defend their business by ‘having it out’ with the complainant.
Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) is used as the foundation for concurrent engineering processes to simplify and fully optimise the structure wherever possible, to reduce manufacturing and assembly costs and to quantify improvements. This process helps to identify, calculate and eliminate waste or inefficiency in the building design. Kevin Riley, board member of the Structural Timber Association and Head of Business Line, LVL, for Stora Enso – discusses why DfMA is becoming an increasingly important consideration.
Tighter requirements for NOx emissions from space heating are set to come into force in 2018, says Chris Meir, Sales Director at Remeha. As air quality rises up the environmental agenda, it’s more important than ever to mind the NOx.
The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre, at Once Brewed in Northumberland, opened to the public on July 29th and has since received acclaim from visitors and Northumberland businesses as a whole.
Heralded as the world’s most sustainable education building, the Atlas building at the University of Eindhoven has taken the top award in the Education category at the 2017 BREEAM Awards. The project achieved a BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ rating and the highest ever BREEAM score for an educational building with 93.86%.
Here John McMullan, Commercial Manager at EPDM roofing and lining specialist, Firestone, discusses the recent refurbishment of the ornamental pools at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE), using the company’s PondGard EPDM liner.
The Musée d’arts de Nantes opened its doors to the public on 23rd June 2017. London-based architecture practice, Stanton Williams, has transformed the existing Musée des Beaux-Arts de Nantes – an exemplary expression of the city’s civic and cultural pride. Located in the heart of a residential quarter in the city, the Musée des Beaux-Arts consisted of the 19th-century ‘Palais’ and 17th-century oratory chapel.
Natural building materials used thousands of years ago are growing in popularity today. The most dramatic are marble and terrazzo and it is very easy to see why these high-performance, aesthetically-led products are still so popular and specification demand for them is escalating.
