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Cromar PRO GRP is a cold-applied flat roof weatherproofing system which has been formulated using the latest glass fibre technology. It combines high impact and fire resistance and will withstand extreme temperature variation to provide a seamless, flexible, virtually maintenance-free finish. The high build, reinforced coating is easy to form around complex details and will withstand heavy foot traffic, even as part of a non-slip walkway. Standard sizes are 10 and 20kg for resin and topcoat, 1 and 5 litre for hardener and 5 and 15 litre for Acetone, with two weights of glass fibre reinforcement available – 450g/m2 and 600g/m2. Upstand, fillet and drip trim sections can be supplied together with fillets, moisture trap and simulated lead flashing. Trims are fixed using specially developed, gun-applied PRO GRP Trim Adhesive which comes in standard 310ml tubes. Fully trained contractors throughout the UK undertake projects of all size, with scope to offer a 25 year performance guarantee.

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With the NHBC’s decision to make dry fixing mandatory, Klober’s new Uni-Click® Dry Verge Plus offers the ideal solution for both roofers and merchants. For house builders, its 260-350mm batten gauge means it can be used with all commonly used large and medium format concrete tiles manufactured in the UK. For Scottish contractors in particular it can also be used with Scotcem interlocking tiles. The Uni-Click Dry Verge Plus has a built-in drip tray, can be used for either new build or refurbishment on roofs from 12.5° to 90° and in conjunction with a wet or dry ridge system. It is available in brown, slate grey, terracotta and black with matching eaves closures, ridge closures and ridge end caps.

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Capable of providing accurate measurements up to 10 TΩ for 5 kV versions and 20 TΩ for 10 kV versions and having facilities for IR, IR(t), PI, DAR, DD, SV and ramp tests, Megger’s new high-voltage insulation resistance testers (IRTs) offer exceptional versatility in a compact, rugged and light unit that weighs little more than half as much as its predecessors.

• Small, light and sophisticated
• PI, DAR, DD, SV and ramp test
• Improved productivity – operate from line power/mains if battery dead
• Li ion battery – extended capacity, rapid charge
• Advanced memory with time/date stamp
• CATIV 600 V safety rating

Improved productivity

The new instruments also provide enhanced productivity – they can be used from an AC source even when their internal rechargeable battery is fully discharged – and they are capable of delivering dependable results even in noisy electrical environments, such as electricity substations, with noise levels up to 3 mA.

Three new testers

Megger’s new IRTs are available in three versions. The MIT515 5 kV insulation resistance tester is an entry-level 5 kV test set which offers insulation resistance (IR), timed insulation resistance (IR(t)), dielectric absorption ratio (DAR) and polarisation index (PI) test modes.

The MIT525 5 kV insulation resistance tester, which is also a 5 kV unit, adds facilities for dielectric discharge (DD), step voltage (SV) and ramp diagnostic testing, as well as a large-capacity internal memory for storing time and date stamped test results, which can subsequently recalled to the display or downloaded to a PC via the instrument’s electrically isolated USB interface. Real-time output of results during tests is also supported. The MIT1025 10 kV insulation resistance tester offers the same facilities as the MIT525, but is a 10 kV unit.

The MIT515 and MIT525 allow tests to be carried out at five pre-defined voltages from 250 V to 5 kV, while the MIT1025 provides pre-defined test voltages from 500 V to 10 kV. All models allow an additional user-defined ‘lock’ voltage to be set, a specific voltage range to facilitate repetitive measurements to guard against excessive test voltages being applied to sensitive equipment.

Fast charge battery

Equally suitable for mains or battery operation, Megger’s new IRTs incorporate a user-replaceable rechargeable li-ion battery, which is automatically recharged when the instrument is connected to a mains supply. Discharged batteries take less than 2.5 hours to fully recharge and, when fully charged, they provide up to 6 hours of testing at 5 kV and up to 4.5 hours at 10 kV.

Improved features

Other key features common to all of Megger’s new high-voltage IRTs include a large liquid crystal display with automatic backlight, a dedicated voltmeter function covering the range 30 V to 660 V, and a CAT IV 600 V safety rating in line with IEC 61010.

The instruments are supplied as standard with test leads and clips, and a user guide on CD-ROM. Additionally, for the MIT525 and MIT1025, a USB cable is provided together with a copy of the Megger PowerDB lite software package, which is a convenient and versatile tool for storing, analysing and reporting test results.

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VortX, the next generation of drainage solutions from iron technology leader Saint-Gobain PAM UK, part of leading materials group Saint-Gobain, includes a range of innovatively designed trapped gully bodies which are lighter in weight and easier to install than traditional trapped gully bodies.

A trapped gully is used to prevent foul air entering a building. The ‘P’ and ‘S’ traps, which accommodate horizontal and vertical water flow respectively, require less installation space – only 180mm borehole – delivering savings on installation and a more convenient and compact floor drainage solution.

The gully bodies are supplied with 110mm spigot outlets and three-plugged two-inch BSP inlets that incorporate flange design features, which can be installed with or without a standard clamp ring. Non-trapped gullies can be used with a ‘P’ trap installed in the drainage systems.

Mike Rawlings, Marketing Manager – Soil and Drain at Saint-Gobain PAM UK, commented: “The intelligently-designed ‘P’ and ‘S’ traps are lighter and smaller than traditional gully bodies, significantly improving the installation process for users.

“These innovative gully bodies are part of VortX, a new range of cast iron floor drainage products that complement and enhance our established Ensign and Timesaver cast iron systems for the commercial and construction market.. Designed in accordance with BS EN 1253:2004, the range comprises more than 60 components. Full flow rate information for all grating options are available on request.”

For further information on Saint-Gobain PAM UK’s VortX range, visit www.pam-vortx.co.uk.

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SAVING A FREE, VITAL COMMODITY – IT’S COMMON SENSE

There’s not much that comes for free in life, but in the UK we are lucky that there is something we get a lot of, that costs us nothing. Sadly we take it for granted most of the time, even bad mouth it, so much of it is wasted.

Water is the most precious commodity we have on this planet and there’s plenty of it. But less than 2% of what we have is fresh water. We need it for the basic necessities of everyday life – we drink it, we need it to maintain good hygiene, it’s required for the manufacture of most of our food and for pretty much every key product in our everyday lives. There is no alternative.

With forecasts suggesting that the south coast could be experiencing a Mediterranean climate by 2050, water could become a very expensive commodity and any help available from naturally occurring sources of water should be met with open arms. The UK’s position as an island, with prevailing winds for much of the time heading at us from the south west across the Atlantic Ocean – and a warm current into the bargain – does give us a number of benefits and conserving precious rainwater supplies clearly makes sense. ‘Now’ would not be a moment too soon to take rainwater harvesting seriously.

An amazing one third of all water used in the home gets flushed down the toilet – and in most homes, that’s drinking quality water. The roof on an average 4-bed family home can capture more than 100,000 litres of rainwater each year – most of which currently goes down the drain and is wasted. When you think that a typical family uses 70,000 litres of water each year on flushing the toilet, clothes washing and outdoor use – watering the garden and cleaning cars – it simply makes sense to harvest it and use it and save on your water bills into the bargain.

And like most good ideas it’s not new. Rainwater harvesting as we understand it today, was first practised seriously in about 300BC in Baluchistan – present day Pakistan and Afghanistan! Even earlier in a way, in ancient Egypt. In some parts of India, rainwater harvesting is compulsory – every home in Tamil Nadu has to have a rainwater harvesting system. China and Brazil are the leading rooftop rainwater harvesting nations today and as usual, rainwater harvesting has been practised extensively across Europe, before we in the UK arrived at it a little late in our history. But we are beginning to embrace the technology wholeheartedly now, as parts of the UK – East Anglia in particular, are becoming extremely dry with reducing amounts of rainfall over the year.

It’s clearly far easier to install a rainwater harvesting system in a new build property than to retrofit one to an existing property with all the existing below ground infrastructure although that isn’t stopping many people from adding a rainwater harvestings system to an existing property – it just means making a bit more effort and a bit more thought to find the right location for tanks and pipework. Selfbuilders are increasingly incorporating rainwater harvesting systems to their dream homes and we are seeing significantly more systems fitted to social housing developments – reuse of rainwater contributing to the targets for the Code for Sustainable Homes. It seems here in the UK we’ve woken up to the possibilities of rainwater harvesting a little late in the day but now we have, we’re taking the concept to our hearts.

Here in the UK the majority of rainwater harvesting systems are still specified by architects or developers as part of the plans for a new property, and the contractors are left to find the system that suits the property best. There are two types of rainwater harvesting system available in the UK from the main suppliers. They are available as gravity fed or pressurised systems. Within a gravity fed system, water is pumped from the usually underground collection tank to a header tank in the loft of the property the system serves. The water is then fed to each appliance by gravity. Pressurised systems use a pump to feed water directly to the appliance or appliances in the property on demand. In the main, the RWH units come pre-assembled ready for installation – you can select from a wide range of tank sizes to meet your specific needs – and the rainwater harvested by the system goes through a usually three stage filtration process, down to around 130 microns. Installation of a rainwater harvesting system will typically reduce mains water usage by around 50% – a valuable saving particularly if you’re on a metered water supply. The control panel is usually small and neat and it’s the only outward evidence that a house has a rainwater harvesting system on the property.

Polypipe Building Products has recently launched a new range of solutions into the rainwater harvesting marketplace, targeted specifically at the residential market and an ideal additional product for installer to get to grips with, offering them an additional potential income stream. It’s been launched in response to the growing acceptance that the time has come to stop using high quality drinking water to quite literally flush down the toilet.

Polypipe offers Rainstream – a range of rainwater harvesting options designed for everyone. Ideal for new build, for retrofit and already seeing major interest from the self-build marketplace, Rainstream is a very simple straightforward rainwater harvesting ‘package’. You can even see it on YouTube at www.youtube.com – just type in Polypipe Rainstream in the search bar!

….and Polypipe helps local college to get to grips with Rainwater harvesting…

And as part of the plan to support rainwater harvesting in the UK, Polypipe Building Products has responded to a request for some of the equipment it manufactures locally to help a local college to teach apprentices on a heating and plumbing course, run from Doncaster College in the town.

Polypipe has supplied a rainwater harvesting set up through builders merchants Crosslings, that will allow students on the course to understand how rainwater harvesting works. Ian Kennedy is the Programme Co-ordinator for Construction and the Built Environment at Doncaster College: “The partnership we have developed with Polypipe helps us a lot and in this case the equipment will help us with one of the modules on a course run by JTL Training here. Rainwater harvesting has been built into the curriculum reflecting its increasing importance.”

For more information click on to www.polypipe.com/building-products.

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The owners of Oxford’s latest boutique hotel have ensured that the bathrooms at meet the highest aesthetic standards by installing showering equipment from Mira Showers, the UK’s leading manufacturer of showering products and accessories, and its commercial division, Rada.

The Bocardo, named after the city’s medieval prison, will be a 10-room hotel above Jamie Oliver’s restaurant, in George Street is being developed by city hotelier Rajinder Pal – who also owns The Tree Hotel in Iffley and the Marlborough House Hotel in Woodstock Road, Oxford, as well as another hotel near High Wycombe – together with his business partner Hardeep Gidda.

Mr Pal said: “We had the option of just cleaning up the existing premises but we decided to do it using quality materials. It is a perfect location, the demand is there and we are investing for the future.”

The products fitted include Rada V12 shower and diverter range, Mira Flight Trays and Mira enclosures. “We chose these products because we know from experience that they’re reliable and good value for money while providing the ‘wow’ factor that we need for this sort of upmarket hotel where quality and appearance is all-important,” Mr Pal commented.

The V12 features Rada’s ground-breaking InsutechTM safe-to-touch technology, which reduces the temperature of the hot inlet so there is no risk of accidental scalding while safe hot water is delivered consistently through the TMV3-approved thermostatic mixing valve.

The Mira Flight shower trays are manufactured from hard-wearing acrylic resin stone are extremely light – 20% lighter than similar products made from acrylic capped resin stone. They incorporate the BioCote® finish which not only reduces bacteria and mould by up to 99% but also protects against discolouration. Unlike other forms of protection BioCote® will never wear off or wash away.

The shower trays are complemented by the range of shower enclosures that include pivot, bi-fold and sliding doors and were designed with retrofitting projects such as the Bocardo in mind so the accent is very much on ‘installability’ – with adjustment available on each wall profile – providing an enclosure solution that’s easy to fit, delivers a cleaner, more professional installation and improves productivity and/ or profitability on site.

Designed along simple yet strong lines, doors and panels can be combined to give up to 16 different enclosure styles: from extended alcove enclosures to more compact arrangements for en suite situations.

Quality is integral to all Mira shower enclosures, and the enclosure range is no different. Doors are tested for 32,000 slam cycles – equivalent to 20 years use by a family of four showering daily. Similarly, every panel tested to BSEN14428+A1 (2008) which represents the impact of being hit by a falling 20 stone person.

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Honeywell ED&S launches lighting consultancy service to support facilities managers switch to LED lighting

Honeywell Electrical Devices & Systems (ED&S) has called for a worldwide switch to LED lighting, claiming that organisations across the globe – large and small – have a responsibility to seriously consider this energy-efficient lighting in the drive to combat climate change and save energy.

With lighting representing on average 21 percent of a building’s total energy consumption(*1) and accounting for 19 percent of global energy production(*2), the global electrical products and systems company believes a switch to LED lighting could now be one of the biggest drivers of energy savings.

Energy savings can in fact equate to 60 percent when comparing a Honeywell LED tube at 23 watts with a typical fluorescent tube at 58 watts.

In order to aid companies that pledge to investigate the switch to LED technology, Honeywell ED&S has launched a free global consulting service. Through consultations, site surveys, devising bespoke lighting schemes, producing detailed energy and cost saving calculations and offering pilot installations, the company aims to arm facility and energy managers with a rigorous energy-saving and ROI assessment before making an investment.

“It’s been predicted that LED technology could dominate the lighting market by 2015 – but it needs to be sooner,” comments John Storey, Global Business Director of LED Lighting for Honeywell ED&S. “Currently, around two thirds of lighting is based on older, energy wasting technologies developed before 1970 – this is not sustainable.

“Until now though, the lighting industry has failed to deliver a much superior proposition to be used for general high-quality lighting in almost all applications. But we’re at a turning point. LED lighting is the most exciting thing since the electric light – and every bit as revolutionary. However, we recognise that the key issue for facilities and energy managers is justifying the initial investment to switch – that’s why we’ve launched our global consulting service, and our online energy calculator to empower them with answers to questions about the long-term return on investment through energy and cost savings.”

With a significantly longer life span of 60,000 hours compared to a traditional fluorescent tube lasting 10-15,000 hours, LED lighting lasts for an additional five years, and with a wider optimum temperature range, LED lighting is more effective as well as more efficient. According to the International Energy Agency, the worldwide switch to LED lighting could save energy consumption for lighting by 40 percent.

The switch to LED lighting is supported by global independent body, the Lighting Industry Association. Peter Hunt, Joint Chief Executive of the association, said: “The pace of change in LED technology has brought not just high efficiency but also the opportunity to improve the quality of the lit environment as manufacturers invest in continuous improvement.

“For facilities managers looking to reduce costs and meet energy targets, the switch to LED lighting is a logical, effective solution.”

To perform a quick energy-saving calculation between fluorescent and LED tubes, an online tool can be found at the campaign website. Please go to http://led.honeywell.com for more details.

Footnotes

(*1) – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2009. Clean Energy Strategies for Local Government; Energy Efficiency in Local Government Facilities and Operations. June 2009. Found online at: http://www.epa.gov/statelocalclimate/documents/pdf/ ee_municipal_operations.pdf

(*2) – International Energy Agency: International Energy Agency. 2006. Light’s Labour’s Lost – Policies for Energy- Efficient Lighting. Press release: (06)11. June 2006. Found online at: http://www.iea. org/press/pressdetail.asp?PRESS_REL_ID=182

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The Briton access covers range from iron technology leader Saint-Gobain PAM UK, part of leading materials company Saint-Gobain, is now accredited to meet the exacting requirements of F900 for heavy duty loads, passing the most stringent level of the British Standards’ (BS) EN 124:1994.

Group 6 – the top level of the standard – stipulates that access covers and gratings must be able to withstand up to 90 tonnes of static load. Certified by the British Standards Institute, the accreditation means Saint-Gobain PAM UK’s Briton range is now suitable for sites where exceptionally heavy loads are the norm, such as airports and docks and is available in a range of clear opening sizes including 600mmx600mm, 675mmx675mm, 1220mmx685mm and 1840mmx685mm.

Paul Thompson, marketing manager – municipal castings of Saint-Gobain PAM UK, commented: “We are pleased to announce that our Briton access covers range now complies with the most stringent level of the BS EN 124:1994 standard, successfully passing a series of assessments and tests overseen by the British Standards Institute. Developed at our Holwell site in Melton Mowbray, customers can feel confident in the capabilities of a system which can safely withstand loads of at least 90 tonnes, guaranteeing a high level of quality and durability.”

For more information about the market-leading range of Briton access covers available from Saint-Gobain PAM UK, visit www.saint-gobain-pam.co.uk/access-press.

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Zinc provides lasting colour on Members’ Pavilion

Ettwein Bridges’ design for the £8.2 million upgrading of Lords’ Grade II* listed Members' Pavilion, said to be one of the most celebrated, historic and beautiful buildings in world sport, was completed in April 2005. Following extensive consultations with the MCC, conservation organisations and local authorities, Richardson Roofing undertook construction of a new roof terrace using VMZINC interlocking panel facades and a roll cap roof in Quartz-Zinc®. The 8 years since completion have shown how effectively the zinc has retained its pre-weathered appearance, proving its suitability for such sensitive refurbishment work.

VMZINC faÇade and roofing systems are available in a dark charcoal ANTHRA-ZINC as well as the subtle PIGMENTO shades of green, blue, red and brown. The surface colour is created by adding mineral pigments to a durable protective coating, creating beautifully organic shades which enable the naturally grained texture of the metal to show through. All, including the natural zinc finish develop a natural self-protecting patina which is essentially maintenance-free.

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