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Warmcel Sustains Playground Adventures
17 June 2004

Architects, Finch Macintosh, have specified Excel Building Solutions' Warmcel 500 high performance insulation for the construction of a new communal building at the Weston Adventure Playground in Southampton. Utilised with Panelvent external sheathing for the walls, roof and suspended floor of the single storey structure, Warmcel 500 combines ultra high energy efficiency with the inherent benefits of an EVT structure, which provides protection against interstitial condensation to safeguard the integrity of the structure.

In an EVT construction, any moisture that gets into the building structure (which happens in any inhabited building) always migrates to the external side where it is harmlessly expelled to the atmosphere. This action, known as 'Enhance Vapour Transfer' or EVT ensures that interstitial condensation does not occur, thereby protecting the timber structure throughout the lifetime of the building.

Built on the site of a former, dilapidated, prefabricated building, which was situated at the bottom of a steep slope rising to the shore of Southampton Water, the new play building is raised off the ground on steel columns, providing added security, a covered outdoor play area underneath the structure, and excellent views out to sea. The building itself accommodates the main play hall, a main kitchen and smaller training kitchen, offices, toilets and a shower.

The building structure is a combination of steel and timber. The hall is spanned by four portal frames, which are themselves spanned above by laminated timber purlins supporting the roof rafters. To increase the depth of the roof sandwich to 300 mm, counter rafters were installed on the underside of the main structural rafters, which support the roof cladding.

This full depth of 300mm was insulated with Warmcel 500 insulation, after being sheathed externally with Panelvent sheathing board, which is manufactured from wood waste. Internally the roof was finished with plasterboard.

The 200mm structural thickness of the walls and 300mm structural depth of the suspended floor also embody this same EVT construction around timber studs/joists, with the floor being finished internally with plywood decking, rather than plasterboard. The U values for the 200mm deep walls and 300mm deep roof and floor are 0.14 W/m2K, 0.13 W/m2K and 0.15 W/m2K respectively.

In addition to its excellent thermal performance, Warmcel 500 was specified for the project because of its excellent sustainability credentials; it is manufactured entirely from recycled newspapers and has very low embodied energy.

Complementing the thermal performance of the Warmcel 500 insulation, Finch Macintosh also specified argon-filled, low E, double-glazed, timber framed, high performance windows and energy-saving features such as natural stack ventilation, exhausting through high-level opening lights, maximum use of natural light to minimise artificial lighting requirements, and low temperature underfloor heating coils fed from a highly-efficient condensing boiler.

Maintaining the sustainability and natural appearance of the building, green oak cladding provides the external finish to the walls, cedar shingles were used as the roof covering, and extensive use has been made of timber decking for walkways and access ramps around the building.

Excel Building Solutions is a division of Excel Industries Limited and is the UK's leading supplier of innovative building solutions. The company is the UK supplier of the Engineered I Beam Building System for walls, floors and roofs; the Warmcel range of high performance insulation; Panelvent, Bitvent and Paneline sheathing; and Sarket roof sarking. Together, these components combine to form the high performance EVT Technology Solution for walls, floors and roofs and the factory-produced TRADIS range of wall panels, floor cassettes and roof plates. In addition to building solutions, Excel manufactures a range of speciality fibres for road making and diverse industrial applications.