Knauf Insulation has
helped give Rothesay on the Isle of Bute something to really ‘crow’
about! A’Chrannag, Fyne Homes’ dramatic new housing development,
uses Crown® Supafil™ Cavity Wall Insulation to make it one of
Europe’s most energy efficient housing projects. Designed by
architect Gökay Deveci, A’Chrannag (Gaelic for ‘Crow’s Nest’) is
based on a traditional Scottish tower and was selected by the
town’s residents from three alternative design concepts. The
spectacular white tower has won a clutch of awards for design
innovation and energy efficiency.
A’Chrannag was one of just three buildings in Scotland to receive a
RIBA Award this year and was consequently included in the shortlist
for the prestigious RIBA Stirling Prize. It won the Scottish Design
Award’s Best Affordable Housing Design, was runner-up in the RIAS’s
(Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland) Best Building In
Scotland award (but won the independent vote conducted by the BBC)
and was one of the ten buildings to feature in the RIAS’s
’10-out-of-10: Buildings That Made A Difference’ exhibition held in
Edinburgh during the summer.
With the highest thermal insulation performance in the UK,
A’Chrannag is one of Europe’s most energy efficient social housing
projects; its radical design has reduced heating requirements
within each of the 14 flats to just 1.5 KW and CO² emissions by a
staggering 70 per cent! In fact, a combination of high-performance
insulation, triple-glazing, airtight construction and a heat
recovery system has eliminated the need for a dedicated heating
system within the flats. Although a combined electric storage and
panel heater is provided in the living rooms for ‘backup use’, no
heating is needed in the bedrooms – incredible for a building
located in a ‘high exposure zone’!
The thermal performance of a building’s external walls is
fundamental in the quest for maximum energy efficiency.
A’Chrannag’s walls are 600 mm thick and their construction – a
plasterboard lined 140 mm block inner leaf, 300 mm wide cavity with
full-fill insulation and a 100 mm dense concrete block outer leaf
finished with a 20 mm thick acrylic render – results in an
Elemental U-value of just 0.10 W/m²K!
“Selecting an insulation material that would support our stated
objective of significantly reducing energy use – but without
compromising the building’s aesthetic design – seemed quite a
challenge!” said Gökay Deveci. “Apart from having a 300 mm wide
cavity, the wall is also curved which makes it difficult to install
slab or board insulation effectively. Crown® Supafil™ Cavity Wall
Insulation has proved an ideal solution and fully satisfies both
requirements.”
Crown® Supafil™ Cavity Wall Insulation is a loose glass mineral
wool insulation material that is injected into the wall’s cavity
through 25 mm diameter holes drilled through either the inner or
outer leaf. Once installed, the material neither deteriorates or
settles with age and, of course, being glass mineral wool, also
provides both acoustic and fire insulation. Crown® Supafil™ Cavity
Wall Insulation is covered by BBA Agrément Certificate
88/2033
Frequently associated with retro-installation (homeowners are being
offered Government subsidies to have cavity wall insulation
installed) Crown® Supafil™ Cavity Wall Insulation also offers
designers of new-build projects an alternative method of achieving
very high levels of thermal insulation. Crown® Supafil™ Cavity Wall
Insulation is only available from specialist installation companies
that are both fully trained and approved by Knauf Insulation and
approved and monitored by the British Board of Agrément.
For further information, please visit Knauf Insulation’s website at
www.knaufinsulation.co.uk or call the enquiries hotline on 08700
668 660 quoting CR 429 05.
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© Photo, Andrew Lee