Photo kindly supplied by APL Architectural Profiles Ltd
Clare Fenton, Chair of the MCRMA (Metal Cladding & Roofing Manufacturers Association) explains why refurbishing or replacing a metal building envelope is a significant step towards giving a building a sustainable future.
One of the ways the UK construction industry can be more sustainable is to ensure buildings that are fundamentally sound are refurbished rather than demolished and replaced. Significant building elements, in particular an external envelope created using metal cladding and roofing systems or panels, may be ideally-suited to renovation or upgrading. In many cases, this has the potential to give a building a whole new lease of life that is both economically and environmentally sustainable.
This extended lifespan enables building owners to leverage greater value from the property. For example, if the building’s design life has been reached but its condition is generally sound, a project to renovate or replace the building envelope could be part of a project that enables a further 30-40 years of use. During this time continued rental income would be generated in the case of many commercial properties and it would delay the need to embark on a more costly rebuilding or relocation exercise.
One of the most attractive advantages of upgrading the building envelope is to improve the energy efficiency and thermal performance of the building. The latest generation of metal cladding and roofing systems can transform the envelope’s thermal insulation properties to enable heating requirements to be reduced. And replacing rooflights with today’s more advanced products is an ideal way to increase the amount of natural light entering a building, reducing the amount of artificial lighting needed and saving electricity.
Envelope refurbishment or replacement?
The process for determining whether the renovation of a metal building envelope is viable and cost-effective starts with a survey to establish its condition. Providing this report is satisfactory, decisions can then be made with regard to the best approach for the renovation, which will largely depend on what is possible to apply to the existing products in-situ, aesthetic goals, what the new building performance objectives are and – of course – budget.
One of the ways an existing roof system can be left in-situ, thus eliminating the cost and time for removing the panels, sheets and associated components, is to overlay it. This can be done for a variety of reasons such as to resolve long-term issues with water ingress, external sheet failure or to improve the thermal and acoustic performance of the building.
Overlaying a roof must be carried out in the correct way, however, so it is important to get it right at the outset. Here, the MCRMA assists clients, specifiers and contractors to achieve the desired outcome through our technical guidance document GD38, along with our network of members and technical specialists who can advise on the best course of action.
Where renovation of the metal roofing or cladding is not viable, it will be necessary to design and install a whole new system known as strip and resheet. If well planned and managed, a strip and resheet project may enable the internal operation to continue within the building.
The investment needed here may be more significant than renovation, but this kind of upgrade will deliver a significant return on investment and allow superior performance standards to be achieved. In the case of commercial buildings, this more extensive transformation could also enable higher rental values to be realised and be powerful at attracting new tenants.
Access expert support via the MCRMA
The MCRMA’s membership, which includes metal building envelope designers, technical consultants, manufacturers, installers and inspectors, is ideally placed to support you if this is your chosen route for the building upgrade. These companies are specialists in their respective fields with a wealth of experience to help deliver everything from major roofing and cladding upgrades on industrial, commercial or warehouse buildings to smaller scale or technically complex replacement projects in schools, retail units and local authority buildings such as leisure centres.
They all subscribe to the highest levels of professionalism and competence, which feeds into the MCRMA’s industry-renowned technical guidance documents, CPDs and training courses. Our advice, therefore, is that if you are thinking about a building envelope upgrade, ensure you access expert advice at the earliest stage and consider how your proposed design will maximise the value and sustainability of the building in its next era.
To find out more about the MCRMA and how our members can help visit www.mcrma.co.uk.
