The Housebuilder Product Awards are in their sixth year of recognising excellence and innovation in the products and systems which aid new home development in the UK. With judges from significant organisations in the construction industry such as Construction Products Association, BBA, HBF and NHBC, we know this is a significant recognition if we win an award.
Our BBA-approved thermal insulation board for masonry cavity walls is an ideal product for consideration for the ‘Best Brand New Product’ award. Alreflex Full Fill is a extremely cost-effective way to insulate masonry cavity walls with dense blocks.
This product was specifically developed because of the challenge many housebuilders face with supply shortages of aircrete blocks. This problem has resulted in many housebuilders switching to dense blocks in masonry cavity wall construction. The poorer thermal performance of dense blocks makes it more difficult to meet the fabric energy efficiency requirements of the Building Regulations particularly the maximum U-value*. The cost of meeting Building Regulations is compounded by recent shortages of PUR / PIR insulation leading to further delays in build programmes.
Although dense blocks are cheaper than aircrete, the increased insulation thickness needs wider cavities; which also means bigger wall-ties and lintels have to be used, leading to greater heat loss by thermal bridging and greater costs. Fully-filling the cavity could be the solution, except this is not always possible throughout the UK due to exposure to wind-driven rain.
Alreflex Full Fill is manufactured from graphite-enhanced expanded polystyrene, which is BBA approved for use as full-fill insulation in masonry cavity walls (including walls built to NHBC Standards and in severe exposure zones). This means a thicker insulation board can be installed without widening the cavity, eliminates the consequential costs of bigger wall-ties and lintels, and demonstrates a reduction in thermal bridging! As such, Alreflex Full Fill is more cost-effective than PUR / PIR & phenolic foam alternatives.
The winners of the HouseBuilder Product Awards 2018 will be announced in Spring 2018 and the winners from each category will form the finalist for the Product of the Year category at the Housebuilder Awards 2018. The event will be attended by more than 500 senior housebuilding professionals in the Autumn. Good luck to everyone who is entering!
* Maximum area-weighted U-value for external walls is 0.30 W/(m2K)