The Hub, Birmingham
 |
| Products
Used |
Rocksilk RainScreen Slab |
| Project |
The Hub, Birmingham |
| Client |
Crosby Lend Lease |
| Main Contractor |
Sisk |
| Architect |
Peter Taylor Associates |
| Knauf Insulation Manager |
Craig O'Donnell |
| “Knauf Insulation’s products are
industry-leading, consistently on budget and readily available at
short lead times. We opted for Rocksilk RainScreen Slab largely due
to its non-combustability. It’s easy to handle and install, too,
which makes our job easier! I’m proud we’ve been the first in the
UK to use the product in this way" - Andy Bassett, site
contracts manager at Sisk |
Challenge
The Hub, is an innovative and contemporary seven storey
canal-side development of studio,one and two bedroom apartments in
Birmingham. The developer, Crosby Land Lease, required the use of a
perforated rainscreen system for the apartments and wanted to use a
dark slab product which would look good aesthetically as it would
be visible through the perforations. This is the first time such a
system has been used in the UK, reinforcing The Hub’s status as a
cutting-edge development.
As an integral part of the rainscreen system, The Hub, required
an airspace to separate the insulation from the outer cladding
panels, allowing wind-driven rain to run down the back of the
rainscreen panels, providing additional protection to the
insulation layer.
Solution
Knauf Insulation, the UK’s leading manufacturer of insulation
products, has supplied 4,000m2 of Rocksilk 115mm
RainScreen Slab to thermally insulate the rainscreen cladding
system at The Hub development.
Knauf Insulation’s Rocksilk RainScreen Slab is a black tissue
faced stone mineral wool slab containing a water repellent
additive, specially developed for rainscreen cladding applications.
Rainscreen cladding systems typically comprise outer cladding
panels that are bolted to a supporting framework of rails, which
are supported by cleats fixed to the building structure. A layer of
Rocksilk RainScreen Slab has been fixed independently against the
building’s substructure using proprietary insulation fasteners.
Knauf Insulation’s Rocksilk RainScreen Slab is lightweight, but
rigid enough to resist the compression forces generated when
installing the insulation slabs to the masonry substrate. The water
repellent additive in Rocksilk RainScreen Slab also provides a
further line of defence against rain penetration of The Hub’s
external wall.
With increasing thermal performance requirements, Knauf
Insulation is proud to be at the forefront of recommending,
manufacturing and supplying compliant insulation products. What
sets us apart is the effort we put into building relationships with
architects and contractors, and it’s great that we are working on
The Hub as a result.
