Insulate Magazine Issue 10
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www.insulatenetwork.com<br />
The only independent insulation industry trade magazine<br />
Read All About It!<br />
Read More from the BBA:<br />
The Top 5 Reasons Products Fail<br />
(<strong>Insulate</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>, <strong>Issue</strong> 9)<br />
<strong>Insulate</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> <strong>Issue</strong> <strong>10</strong> - September 2017<br />
Hot news - The BBA is set to tackle failed<br />
cavity wall insulation problems once and for all.<br />
Recent times have seen an increase in news items featuring problems<br />
experienced by some UK home dwellers caused by cavity Wall Insulation.<br />
It’s a subject much in debate at present, with questions being asked in parliament<br />
as well as on radio programme discussions and in topical trade magazines.<br />
First invented in the 19th century and<br />
introduced in its current form into general<br />
housing during the 1970s, cavity wall insulation<br />
is arguably one of the best heat and<br />
energy saving developments in history.<br />
However, during the last 30 years the<br />
number of products and installation<br />
methods have increased significantly, and<br />
there is growing confusion as to best<br />
practice and what’s actually<br />
right for householders.<br />
Some time ago It became clear to the<br />
British Board of Agrément (BBA) that,<br />
in some cases of cavity wall insulation<br />
retrofit, consumer confidence is being<br />
undermined by the fact that insulation is<br />
being installed into properties which are<br />
unsuitable.<br />
To address the problem and bring peace<br />
of mind to consumers, the BBA has developed<br />
the Cavity Assessment Surveillance<br />
Scheme (CASS®), which monitors<br />
the competency of Property Assessors<br />
responsible for overseeing<br />
these interventions.<br />
CASS team leader at the<br />
BBA, Alice Buckeridge,<br />
explains how it works:<br />
“CASS® will check the suitability of properties<br />
submitted by Property Assessors for<br />
cavity wall insulation at the beginning<br />
of the process, and provide independent<br />
third party validation of suitability.<br />
This results in procedures that ensure all<br />
BBA approved installers obtain the<br />
necessary guarantees that determine the<br />
best possible outcome for insulation<br />
retrofits, considerably reducing the problems<br />
associated with inadequate evaluations at the outset.”<br />
Technical experts at the BBA are highly experienced in<br />
the certification of products and services in the building<br />
and construction industry.<br />
The CASS® scheme has been put in place to harmonise<br />
with the BBA’s traditional practice of raising and maintaining<br />
industry standards, while helping to address<br />
inconsistencies that have become increasingly worrying<br />
for those operating in the property and housing sector,<br />
Local Authorities and Housing Associations, the<br />
industry as a whole and of course to house dwellers<br />
everywhere who are making difficult decisions about<br />
improving their homes.<br />
...consumer confidence is being undermined<br />
by the fact that insulation is being installed<br />
into properties which are unsuitable.<br />
14 www.insulatenetwork.com<br />
www.insulatenetwork.com<br />
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