Insulate Magazine Issue 11

The Perfect Storm
each building, based on its own individual merits.
This should eradicate condemning buildings unnecessarily,
because of knee-jerk reactions and
poorly informed opinions.
No Complacency
We must not be complacent, but fortunately
Grenfell is a very rare event and is likely to have
been a combination of mistakes from many
quarters coming together to create a perfect
storm. Although we must of course wait for the
Inquiry to establish what those mistakes and
errors of judgement were for Grenfell, we will
continue to build new buildings and refurbish
existing buildings, including those earmarked
because of Grenfell. Construction has got to
meet the needs of society together with hitting
targets for energy efficiency and energy performance
of buildings that the country must
achieve. The construction industry still has work
to do and it will continue to do it.
Full-Scale Fire Tests
As we know a series of full-scale fire tests on
cladding systems were commissioned by DCLG
because of Grenfell. Although these were not
generic tests and the information ascertained is
only relevant to each specific combination of material
tested, useful information was still gained.
Therefore, anyone responsible in specifying
and installing external cladding systems can be
confident that, when used with an approved
mixture of materials, PIR insulation can remain
as the first choice of insulation material on our
buildings. PIR passed a full BS8414 fire test, but
it also provides several other beneficial characteristics,
including high thermal efficiency to help
buildings meet energy efficiency levels that enhance
people’s living conditions and reduce their
energy consumption.
Media in Overdrive
It is not surprising that the media went into overdrive
following Grenfell, that is their job, even
though a great deal of what was written was pure
speculation, inaccurate and wayward. What is
far more distasteful, is the mercenary activities of
those who saw this tragedy as a means of
commercial advantage and were quick to use
selective and questionable data to pedal
half-truths and erroneous claims.
Avoiding False Assumptions
The lessons from Grenfell will be crucially
important, but so is the need to ensure we make
the changes and improvements where they are
needed and that these are not based on false
assumptions or supposition. Only then will our
buildings be fit for purpose and meet all the
necessary criteria for future generations
For more information visit:
www.brufma.co.uk
KNOWLEDGE IN INSULATION
insulatenetwork
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