New Regulations Challenge the Industry
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» THERE ’ S BEEN NO significant changes to the regulatory requirements encapsulated in Part L for the thermal performance of buildings since 2013 . Nine years later we have a flurry of regulations designed to prepare buildings for a ‘ net zero ’ carbon world . Here John McComb , Director of Technical Services at Reynaers Aluminium , reflects on their impact to both the commercial and retail glazing market .
The year 2002 marked a pivotal moment in the industry when thermal performance became the most important driver . For example , the revision of Part L of the Building Regulations saw a reduction in the average indicative U-value for windows from 3.3W / m 2 k to 2.2W / m 2 k . U-values measure how effective a material is an insulator , the lower the U-value the easier it is to keep heat flow through building structures to a minimum .
This signalled a change driven by government , and as an industry we ’ ve been regularly challenged since then with further amendments to Part L in 2006 , 2010 , 2013 and 2016 . To put this in context , the U-value requirement on dwellings in 1995 was 3.3 and in 2013 it was 1.6 - a 51.52 % reduction .
By 2025 the Future Homes Standard will demand new buildings produce at least 75 % less carbon emissions when compared to current levels . The government has introduced new Part L regulations as an interim measure , where all new buildings will need to generate 30 % fewer CO 2 emissions than the current regulations allow .
What this means is a minimum ( limiting standards ) U-value to existing dwellings of 1.4 . This interim measure comes into force on June 15th June 2022 , and is against the backdrop of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050 .
Fortunately , sustainability was already high on our agenda at Reynaers because we have been involved in this government
consultation process to agree the Part L revisions . I ’ ve been a member of the Council for Aluminium Building for over 20 years and sit on various committees . Reynaers is also a member of the Curtain Walling and Cladding Technology ( CWCT ) group which is actively working in collaboration with trade bodies and the Government .
Thermal efficiency has been at the forefront of our design criteria , and we have embraced technologies such as polyamide thermal breaks , and the development of complex thermally efficient polyamide sections in our window and door design . Alongside product innovation , we use new technology to rigorously test the U-values of our range of current products – windows , doors , sliding doors , folding doors , and curtain walls – and planned new products , to ensure they not only meet the new regulations , but exceed them to meet regulatory changes in the future .
We use Finite Element Analysis ( FEA ) to create product thermal calculations – we ’ ve installed a British Fenestration Rating Council ( BFRC ) simulator on our own site to show compliance on thermal
values and conducted additional product analysis with the BFRC . Their rainbow rating labelling system for windows and doors confirms our products are independently verified by experts to give specifiers and installers the evidence they need to make the right choice of product .
We have products which are already compliant with the new regulations and some which are undergoing research and development , something we continually invest in as an innovator in our sector . This contrasts with 10 years ago when new products would have an expected 10-year shelf life , now it ’ s more like five years due to changing legislation requirements .
That means suppliers like us will need to make more investment in R & D as the next generation of doors and windows will have to have extremely high U-values . Inevitably this means their price will increase because they will have more component parts and be more labour intensive to manufacture . Some of the suppliers and guests at our recent Part L roadshows weren ’ t pleased to hear that , but as it ’ s nine years since the regulations previously changed , I think we ’ ve done well really . Afterall , if you bought a car nine years ago you wouldn ’ t expect to pay the same for it now , so why should windows be any different ?
Not surprisingly we anticipate these costs combined with rising supply chain costs will lead to a market tightening , however Reynaers is adapting to these rapid changes .
www . reynaers . co . uk / partL
20 JULY 2022 CLEARVIEW-UK . COM