Refurb and maintenance

If our water usage patterns don’t change, the UK will have an ongoing water deficit of 4,000 Megalitres per day by 2050.  Some water companies are introducing a new strategy to manage the ever-growing demand caused by increasing population and new developments - ‘water neutrality’.

The continued growth in population and housebuilding means that reductions in leakage and domestic consumption have not been enough to offset the increasing demand.  In all regions, even in our traditionally wetter regions water companies in response to OFWAT guidance, will be introducing Environmental Incentive Schemes in the near future.

The use of pre-formed boxings and casings for concealing pipework on social housing refurbishment projects has gradually overtaken the time intensive procedure of fabricating individual boxing on site to become the preferred solution for most social landlords and contractors.

Traditional methods of covering surface mounted heating system and boiler pipework typically involved the fabrication of boxing from wood or MDF. To create the required shape, the raw materials need to be cut to length then fixed to the wall, as well as sanding, sealing, priming, and painting sealing, all of which are extremely time consuming and costly, especially in terms of labour.

While the most obvious and persuasive advantages of using ready-made plywood boxing are the significant reductions in time and costs that can be achieved, aesthetics also play an increasingly large role in the decision to adopt ‘pre-made’ over ‘site-made’.

The UK has some of the oldest housing in Europe, with approximately 20% of current dwellings built before 1919 – that equates to about 5.8 million homes in the UK that are over 100 years old. And, using data1 to 2017, 17% of the current housing stock has been built since 1990. That means that roughly 23.6 million homes across the country were built over 30 years ago.

If our water usage patterns don’t change, the UK will have an ongoing water deficit of 4,000 Megalitres per day by 2050.  Reductions in leakage and domestic consumption are the two primary strands of water conservation targeted by Defra and the water companies.  

Some areas of England are already restricting future development unless ‘water neutrality’ can be demonstrated. This requires both existing and new properties to reduce per capita consumption (PCC) to the extent that overall water usage levels do not increase. 

When concealing external pipework, building services and other utilities associated with low carbon district heating schemes or air-source and ground-source heat pumps, Pendock metal pipe boxing range provides protection against accidental damage or tampering, while helping improve the project’s aesthetics.

Functional yet stylish, our range of energy efficient windows and doors are the perfect choice for regeneration, refurbishment and new build projects in the social housing arena. Enhanced security features and performance makes our windows and doors stand out from the rest.
With PAS 24 and Secured by Design accreditations, along with A-ratings and low U-values, our window & door range ensures full compliance with building regulations and meets environmental guidelines, including the Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH).

There is a real need to ensure we have a retrofit program that provides a sustainable solution for the existing UK building stock.

Buildings contribute 39% of global energy related carbon emissions, with the majority (28%) coming from operational emissions. This means that over a quarter of total carbon emissions are from the need to heat and power our homes.