Permanence and sustainability

Among the many benefits aluminium has to offer, Andrew Cross of Kestrel Aluminium discusses its ability to forecast the cost of maintenance over a system’s design life. With increasing pressure to specify building systems offering clearly defined sustainability, the use... View Article

Take the lead on lead

Steve Leigh of Groundbreaker asks housing providers, is your property’s drinking water harming your tenants? Awareness of the potential health problems caused by lead in the water supply, particularly in infants and children, is growing. Houses built before 1970 would... View Article

The capability of IoT

MRI Software explores how the Internet of Things (IoT) can improve safety in social housing. For some time, anticipation has been building for the capability of the IoT to transform social housing. The path to mainstream adoption has been slow,... View Article

Lifts in housing

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Alastair Stannah of Stannah Lift Distribution & Service (UK) answers some of the most frequently asked questions around the emergency use and upgrading of lifts in the housing sector. Today, there are estimated to be more than... View Article

Turn down the volume

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Karen Wilding of Forbo Flooring Systems explains how noise can be minimised in multi-occupancy buildings by retrofitting acoustic flooring solutions. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), excessive noise seriously harms human health and interferes with people’s... View Article

Tackling radon to keep residents safe

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Exposure to radon gas is a real health risk. James Kane of Airtech Solutions explains how landlords and housing providers can protect residents. Since the introduction of the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, landlords are... View Article

Water-tight partnerships

LISTEN HERE 🔊 James Homard of Urban Environments explores how housing professionals can maximise value from their water hygiene consultancy. Many housing providers and landlords appoint a specialist water hygiene consultancy to manage Legionella control. Particularly for those with extensive... View Article

The smart approach to specifying smoke vents

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Tony Stevens of Bilco UK shares the top three considerations they believe housing professionals should focus on when specifying NSHEVs. Natural Smoke and Heat Exhaust Ventilators (NSHEVs), more commonly known as smoke vents, provide essential ventilation in... View Article

Waterproof wall panels: the modern option

LISTEN HERE 🔊 In these turbulent times, waterproof wall panels may offer social housing providers and local authorities a more effective bathroom walling solution, explains Nicola Lewis of Fibo. This past year has been an unusual one for social housing... View Article

Fire safety and signage – what to know

An effective evacuation strategy in the event of a fire is crucial – and this requires meeting key legislation for exit signage and fire doors. Here, David Saxby, Senior Category Manager at IronmongeryDirect highlights the requirements. There are several aspects... View Article

Gas safety in 2021

Joe Beesley of CORGI explores how landlords can stay on the right side of gas safety regulations. In 2020, a new problem significantly exacerbated the age-old problem of access to residents’ homes to perform gas safety checks and repairs and... View Article

One size does not fit all

LISTEN HERE 🔊 John Mellor of Glidevale Protect explains why specification matters in roofing membrane and ventilation products. Specifying pitched roofing underlays for new build or refurbishment projects is often a confusing subject with so many options available on the... View Article

Why specify recycled plastic?

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Sarah Mitchell of Goplastic explores how and why landlords and social housing providers should utilise recycled plastic in their projects. The world’s annual consumption of plastic materials has increased from around 5 million tonnes in the 1950s... View Article

Reducing drainage noise

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Adam Cafer of Polypipe Building Services discusses how sound pollution can be reduced, especially in tall building drainage systems. With one third of the UK workforce currently working from home, issues such as noise pollution from building... View Article

The advantages of electric heating

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Bill Walters of The Electric Heating Company explores how advances in technology and new energy efficiency standards mean there’s never been a better time to invest in electric heating. Electric heating is continually becoming an increasingly viable... View Article

Driving up Standards on Fire Door Safety

By Kevin Underwood, BWF Technical Director Over a year ago, in October 2019, Sir Martin Moore-Bick made a number of recommendations in conclusion to Phase 1 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, which he chaired. His aim was for these recommendations to be... View Article

Remote management: sensible or intrusive?

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Terri Hickman of Intergas Boilers discusses the pros and cons of remote management in the Covid-19 era. Working from home, such an alien concept at the start of lockdown, is now a much-loved (or tolerated, depending on... View Article

Balcony fire safety

Richard Izzard of AliDeck explores the prevalence and causes of balcony fires. Following the Grenfell tragedy, various building regulation updates and Government initiatives have attempted to resolve the flammable cladding issue by outlawing combustible materials and mandating its replacement in... View Article

How to deliver on flat roof refurbishment projects

LISTEN HERE 🔊 Clients are constantly trying to make the smartest investment, presenting surveyors with the challenge of delivering predictable project costs and providing precise technical data to enable clients to make the correct decision. Bauder explores how to deliver... View Article