Design
The Department of Communities and Local Government (CLG) is leading the drive for
better more energy efficient construction, through the standards derived from the
Code for Sustainable Homes.
The i-SIP structural insulated panel building system, with only minor alterations
to its standard format, can help to reduce CO² emissions by 40% and reduce
the energy consumption from the 62 KWh/m² required by regulations to an outstanding
level of only 22KWh/m²/year for a detached house. This is achieved with assistance
from a developed supply chain network that can supply heating systems, air exchange
units (that can be maximised in their efficiency due to air tightness levels of
typically 5m³/m²/hour against Building Regulations requirement of 10m³/m²/hour)
and solar heating panels.
All these benefits are demonstrated in a real construction situation at the Osborne
House on the BRE Innovation Park in Watford, constructed of Innovaré SIPs panels
and awarded Eco-points Excellent, exceeding the standard by 18 points.
Revisions were made to the Osborne Demonstration House in late 2008. During the
first two years of use the building had received an unusually high footfall of over
15,000 visitors. An air permeability test undertaken at the time of the revisions
to the house achieved an air permeability rating of 2.56m³p/m²p/hr against
original test results of 1.8m³p/m²p/hr recorded when the house was first
constructed in 2006, demonstrating the long term performance of the structural insulated
panels.
A working example of i-SIP sustainability performance can be found on the Mid Street
project completed by Innovaré Systems in conjunction with Raven Housing Trust, Osborne
and the Energy Savings Trust. This affordable housing scheme consisting of two flats
was the first inhabited level 5 Code for Sustainable Homes project and uses the
Innovaré i-SIP structural insulated panel system for the building envelope, with
additional renewable energy sources to deliver low carbons and sustainable homes.
View the project case study.
In-depth analysis one year on of the i-SIP building structure and energy saving
products installed within the homes at Mid Street showed that whilst the SIPs building
structure performed well and proved to be robust enough for day-to-day living, a
number of issues with the eco technology hindered their contribution to the scheme.
A key understanding from the first year of the project is that the SIPs building
fabric is key to sustainability performance. By achieving maximum performance through
the i-SIP building structure, renewable energy technology can then be used to supplement
the performance of the SIPs building envelope to achieve the required standards.
Innovare Systems provide solutions whilst delivering long term
benefits and sustainability:
Osborne brochure PDF
