The introduction of Part L 2021 in England has placed greater emphasis on thermal bridging heat losses and how they are calculated. Compliance calculations, carried out using the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), have accounted for thermal bridging since 2006. The way the Part L 2021 requirements makes it harder than ever before to ignore accurate […]
Bank holidays and new building regulations are on the horizon, continuing what has been a busy year so far. This issue, after our recent focus on environmental product declarations (EPDs), we’re getting you caught up on our other recent blog posts. And we’re sharing what the Polyfoam XPS team have been up to, out and […]
BES 6001 is an environmental and sustainability standard, developed by the BRE, which provides a framework for assessing the responsible sourcing of products. Originally developed specifically for construction products, it has gone on to be adapted for, and used by, other industries. This post focuses on its use in construction. There can be a perception […]
When compared to Part L 2013’s requirements, Part L 2021 features lower notional dwelling U-values and tighter limiting U-values. The values changed for all thermal elements, including ground floors and flat roofs, which are the two main uses for extruded polystyrene insulation (XPS). Effective from June 2022, Part L 2021 applies in England and is […]
New CAD details from Polyfoam XPS will help designers, specifiers and installers to get the best results from extruded polystyrene (XPS) insulation. The details, which are available in both PDF and DWG format, reflect current best practice in traditional XPS applications like ground floors, basements, and inverted flat roofs. They also include a new application, […]
This month sees us conclude our introductory look at environmental product declarations (EPDs). As the construction industry seeks to play its part in decarbonising, EPDs will have a crucial role to play. We may have only scratched the surface of what EPDs can do and how they can help with understanding the life cycle impact […]
Certification schemes such as BREEAM and LEED make credits available if the specified construction products have environmental product declarations (EPDs). The number of credits varies depending on the type of EPD and whether the EPD has been externally verified. The uses of EPDs also extend beyond certification schemes. EPDs report a variety of environmental impacts, […]
Ground floor edges, at the abutment with external walls, are one of the most common areas for breaks in continuity of a building’s thermal envelope to occur. However, as we seek to further reduce carbon emissions from buildings, and as our understanding of moisture behaviour improves, regulations like Part L 2021 are starting to provide […]
We continue our look at environmental product declarations in 2022 by focusing this month on the similarities and differences between EPDs from different manufacturers. To make sustainable product choices for construction projects, it’s necessary to compare environmental product declarations – but you need to be sure you’re comparing like for like. Elsewhere, you can download […]
To make sustainable product choices for construction projects, it’s necessary to compare environmental product declarations (EPDs). When different manufacturers make EPDs available for their products, it’s important to look for similarities and differences in the reporting so that appropriate judgements can be made. On its own, an EPD is not a statement of whether a […]
