Retro-Expo Review (Oct 30th/31st 2012)
Having regularly visited expo’s such as EcoBuild and Grand Designs, I expected a similar set-up and turn-out of people, although Retro-Expo is a new expo. I had set aside two days to attend several of the (free) seminars, to network and get industry information. I would say that most of my purpose was served, despite a low turn-out of visitors and stands and a lack of variety of exhibitors.
Some great speakers were lined up, many of whom had contributed to the Institute for Sustainability (IfS) Retrofit Guides and who had delivered deep retrofits in practice. Most presentations focused on basic principles, practicalities, costs, active and passive strategies and lessons learned as well as the importance of user behaviour and involvement in the process. There were also several seminars about the Green Deal, but I only attended one delivered by Russell Smith, who is proposing an alternative way of Green Deal delivery. Other sessions focused on initial insights of the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) Retrofit for the Future projects, as reported in another blog.
I was however astonished to see that so few had turned up to Birmingham's NEC to benefit from others’ expertise and such excellent networking opportunities. Many speakers were presenting to half empty rooms, and sometimes worse on day 1. This did mean however that the expo felt less stressful than they often tend to be (no fighting for space) and I managed to get into each single seminar I wanted to, while networking was extremely efficient.
Some highlights for me were, without doubt, the nitty-gritty case-study based presentations by practitioners, with a brief overview of personal highlights below.
Mark Elton & John Willoughby talked about different kinds of insulation materials and which are most suited in retrofits (and where) and which awkward details and junctions to look out for. This was followed by John Willoughby and Bill Gething looking at floor insulation options and risks, which is related to my PhD research. They confirmed my own findings about how surprisingly little research on performance of floor insulation exists. I particularly enjoyed Gething’s presentation of an innovative solution to filling the void of a suspended timber ground floor with a clear understanding and bold acknowledgement that “this may prove to be mad”, but that the purpose was to try and test an innovative, replicable floor retrofit solution. Monitoring the performance may tell us either way, though no data is yet available. (It is intended that for my PhD I will undertake some of this monitoring so it was good to finally meet Bill Gething in person.) Andy Simmonds and Bob Prewett also emphasised issues of moisture movement and risk of interstitial condensation with internal solid wall insulation and (roof/floor) joist ends and how risks can be minimised through intelligent detailing and site co-ordination.
Neil May and Bill Gething also focused on moisture movement in walls; and Neil May presented the main findings of the recently published 'Responsible Retrofit of Traditional Buildings' report, which highlights that there is little evidence of pre-1919 building performance pre- and post-retrofit and that current models are inadequate for pre-1919 buildings. (The full report can be downloaded here: www.stbauk.org). Neil used some memorable catch-phrases, such as "composting buildings = sick buildings" and "the problems of false certainties" which could become "opportunity of uncertainty" to re-assess where we are as an industry and to take more care, with more knowledge and humility about what works.
Caroline Rye & Diane Hubbard gave a talk about in-situ measurements of traditional buildings versus assumed (modelled) U-values. They emphasised that pre-1919 buildings often do not perform as badly as usually assumed; both in terms of measured U-values as well as airtightness. They emphasised the need to think about appropriate retrofit strategies and to think differently when upgrading due to different moisture movement compared to modern constructions. Diane Hubbard compared several in-situ airtightness tests with current building regulations standards of 10m3/m2hr, and found that many pre-1919 buildings often performed as good as this and were not necessarily the worst performers (as also found elsewhere). Though Paul Ruyssevelt remarked that "as good as 10m3/m2hr” is not necessarily a good measure to compare against and that existing buildings could and should be improved on this. I only witnessed the end of Mischa Hewitt's talk where he highlighted VAT issues and that (so far) many retrofit measures can attract a lower VAT rate of 5% but care needs to be taken to make use of this; while Marion Baeli talked about her forthcoming 2013 RIBA retrofit book publication of 20 TSB case studies.
What struck me was the awareness and cautiousness with which upgrading buildings was approached, but also how little research there is yet of how such interventions influence fabric performance and what the best solutions are. This is particularly important as there may be unintended consequences of well-intended interventions. So while there is a lot of effort in trying to resolve these issues, it is too early to tell whether this has been successfully achieved and there was a lot of honest sharing, reflection and discussion going on.
The seminars I chose to attend were obviously in my area of interest and may not reflect the entire seminar series on offer (there were talks about active systems too), but I was nevertheless disappointed at the stark contrast of the commercial stands: the few insulation manufacturers all pretty much offered ‘no fail’ solutions; and most of their sales staff could not help with technical or practical details. There were many stands for (non-) renewable energy systems and delivery methods and smart meters and controls. Despite the focus in several seminars on breathable insulation materials to reduce moisture build-up risks in the fabric, this was starkly contrasted by lack of such thinking or knowledge at the few insulation stands. This may possibly illustrate the point the STBA report makes which highlights that there is “is limited understanding of the specific requirements of traditional buildings within retrofit practices and amongst the construction industry in general.”
Lastly, it was also timely to hear from Geoffrey Stevens (Energy Savings Trust) and Paul Ruyssevelt (TSB/UCL) about initial TSB retrofit project findings and the Embed database of around 300 retrofit projects and monitoring data, which researchers will be able to download directly, as discussed here in more detail.
Some great speakers were lined up, many of whom had contributed to the Institute for Sustainability (IfS) Retrofit Guides and who had delivered deep retrofits in practice. Most presentations focused on basic principles, practicalities, costs, active and passive strategies and lessons learned as well as the importance of user behaviour and involvement in the process. There were also several seminars about the Green Deal, but I only attended one delivered by Russell Smith, who is proposing an alternative way of Green Deal delivery. Other sessions focused on initial insights of the Technology Strategy Board (TSB) Retrofit for the Future projects, as reported in another blog.
I was however astonished to see that so few had turned up to Birmingham's NEC to benefit from others’ expertise and such excellent networking opportunities. Many speakers were presenting to half empty rooms, and sometimes worse on day 1. This did mean however that the expo felt less stressful than they often tend to be (no fighting for space) and I managed to get into each single seminar I wanted to, while networking was extremely efficient.
Some highlights for me were, without doubt, the nitty-gritty case-study based presentations by practitioners, with a brief overview of personal highlights below.
Mark Elton & John Willoughby talked about different kinds of insulation materials and which are most suited in retrofits (and where) and which awkward details and junctions to look out for. This was followed by John Willoughby and Bill Gething looking at floor insulation options and risks, which is related to my PhD research. They confirmed my own findings about how surprisingly little research on performance of floor insulation exists. I particularly enjoyed Gething’s presentation of an innovative solution to filling the void of a suspended timber ground floor with a clear understanding and bold acknowledgement that “this may prove to be mad”, but that the purpose was to try and test an innovative, replicable floor retrofit solution. Monitoring the performance may tell us either way, though no data is yet available. (It is intended that for my PhD I will undertake some of this monitoring so it was good to finally meet Bill Gething in person.) Andy Simmonds and Bob Prewett also emphasised issues of moisture movement and risk of interstitial condensation with internal solid wall insulation and (roof/floor) joist ends and how risks can be minimised through intelligent detailing and site co-ordination.
Neil May and Bill Gething also focused on moisture movement in walls; and Neil May presented the main findings of the recently published 'Responsible Retrofit of Traditional Buildings' report, which highlights that there is little evidence of pre-1919 building performance pre- and post-retrofit and that current models are inadequate for pre-1919 buildings. (The full report can be downloaded here: www.stbauk.org). Neil used some memorable catch-phrases, such as "composting buildings = sick buildings" and "the problems of false certainties" which could become "opportunity of uncertainty" to re-assess where we are as an industry and to take more care, with more knowledge and humility about what works.
Caroline Rye & Diane Hubbard gave a talk about in-situ measurements of traditional buildings versus assumed (modelled) U-values. They emphasised that pre-1919 buildings often do not perform as badly as usually assumed; both in terms of measured U-values as well as airtightness. They emphasised the need to think about appropriate retrofit strategies and to think differently when upgrading due to different moisture movement compared to modern constructions. Diane Hubbard compared several in-situ airtightness tests with current building regulations standards of 10m3/m2hr, and found that many pre-1919 buildings often performed as good as this and were not necessarily the worst performers (as also found elsewhere). Though Paul Ruyssevelt remarked that "as good as 10m3/m2hr” is not necessarily a good measure to compare against and that existing buildings could and should be improved on this. I only witnessed the end of Mischa Hewitt's talk where he highlighted VAT issues and that (so far) many retrofit measures can attract a lower VAT rate of 5% but care needs to be taken to make use of this; while Marion Baeli talked about her forthcoming 2013 RIBA retrofit book publication of 20 TSB case studies.
What struck me was the awareness and cautiousness with which upgrading buildings was approached, but also how little research there is yet of how such interventions influence fabric performance and what the best solutions are. This is particularly important as there may be unintended consequences of well-intended interventions. So while there is a lot of effort in trying to resolve these issues, it is too early to tell whether this has been successfully achieved and there was a lot of honest sharing, reflection and discussion going on.
The seminars I chose to attend were obviously in my area of interest and may not reflect the entire seminar series on offer (there were talks about active systems too), but I was nevertheless disappointed at the stark contrast of the commercial stands: the few insulation manufacturers all pretty much offered ‘no fail’ solutions; and most of their sales staff could not help with technical or practical details. There were many stands for (non-) renewable energy systems and delivery methods and smart meters and controls. Despite the focus in several seminars on breathable insulation materials to reduce moisture build-up risks in the fabric, this was starkly contrasted by lack of such thinking or knowledge at the few insulation stands. This may possibly illustrate the point the STBA report makes which highlights that there is “is limited understanding of the specific requirements of traditional buildings within retrofit practices and amongst the construction industry in general.”
Lastly, it was also timely to hear from Geoffrey Stevens (Energy Savings Trust) and Paul Ruyssevelt (TSB/UCL) about initial TSB retrofit project findings and the Embed database of around 300 retrofit projects and monitoring data, which researchers will be able to download directly, as discussed here in more detail.