Don’t make the expensive mistake of including thermal insulation and fire stopping measures in your project's tender documents without first seeking expert advice on materials, installation costings, and meeting current standards.
Specifying and costing the level of thermal insulation required during a building project is no simple matter. And mechanical engineers that get it wrong can find their financial calculations totally thrown out. All too often mechanical engineers detail insulation & fire stopping specifications in a tender document, without first talking to a thermal insulation expert. With no firm idea of the required materials, any possible installation issues and standards compliance, that can prove a costly mistake when it comes to taking on the final project.
Thermal insulation specialists understand the issues –
It’s not just mechanical engineers that face a danger in not costing before any tender process, but also heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) specialists such as air con firms and heating contractors.Contacting a thermal insulation contractor like Ashdon Insulations would give their project access to a highly-skilled team with a wealth of industry experience - contractors with a track record of projects across the residential and commercial sectors, as well as hospitality, medical, retail and education premises.
Having the input of a dedicated team delivering high-quality workmanship in thermal and acoustic insulation, trace heating, fire protection and fire stopping will ensure the specification meets current standards, with an accurate budget as a result.
Pre-tender Support -
Ashdon's pre-tender service is designed just for that purpose - to provide expert advice to ensure mechanical engineers and HVAC specialists have complete clarity on the cost of their thermal insulation specification before their budget is submitted as part of a tender process.It highlights hidden costs in the specification, and ensures they don’t over lag, or under lag when it comes to both ductwork insulation and pipework insulation, and trace heating.
Jim Robertson of Ashdon Insulations says
“The benefits of speaking with us first are not only in helping to cost a job correctly at the initial stage, but also help the with the planning of pipework to ensure that the insulation can be fitted.”
The pitfalls of getting specifications wrong
When examining supplied drawings, sometimes the Ashdon team will notice discrepancies, for example that the insulation thickness specified would not fit between the pipework proposed to be installed, or the material specified is not the most efficient or cost effective.
There can also be two or three different specs for the same project from the main consultant, mechanical/electrical engineers, or the utility company who would be looking after the energy for the buildings. They can sometimes differ, so the benefits of talking to Ashdon Insulations before consultants provide their whole package quotation to the main builder can be multiple:
- Ashdon will read the spec if something is flagged up, such as not enough space between the pipes for the insulation specified;
- Ashdon will advise the consultant of this so it could be either re-planned or a thinner insulation specified;
- This would have a cost-saving as the thinner insulation would be less expensive, or it would save them having to re run pipework after it had be installed.Obviously, it would have to be approved by the consultant.
As a recent example, a client sent Ashdon Insulations a drawing which asked for insulation to be installed to stainless steel. Insulation cannot be installed directly onto stainless steel, it has to be wrapped with foil first to make a barrier between the two surfaces.
The client was unaware of that, so if they had quoted before speaking to Ashdon, he would have under-quoted the work, pricing for just fitting insulation, whereas they needed to quote for the foil and installation of that as well as the insulation. Although the works end up costing more and a more expensive quotation has to be submitted to the end client, it saved Ashdon’s client from under-quoting the project and actually running the job at a loss.
Standards compliance is all important
Having conversations with a thermal insulation expert early in your tender specification process is vital, to make sure you have the right specs in your final documentation. And experts like Ashdon Insulations will consider the drawings and specifications against current standards to make sure everything complies.
Everything that Ashdon itself does complies to these current standards, including:
- BS 5422:2009 - which covers the method for specifying thermal insulating materials for pipes, tanks, vessels, ductwork and equipment operating within the temperature range -40°C to +700°C
- Building Regulation Part L 2012 - which covers the conservation of fuel and power in buildings
- Guidance from the Thermal Insulation Manufacturers and Suppliers Association (TIMSA), which has played a major role in the revision of BS 5422 as well as producing the TIMSA Guidance for achieving compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations
Ensuring compliance with BS 5422
An experienced thermal insulation contractor knows their way around BS 5422, the most important industry-wide standard for determining and specifying the requirements for thermal insulation used on pipe-work and equipment.
Updated in January 2009, the new version of the standard is relevant to heating and ventilation and process work undertaken on sites in England.
One of the most significant changes made to BS 5422 in the most recent update was in the thicknesses of insulation required for pipework, ducts, plant and equipment now being based on ‘practical limits’ for all applications.
That’s where a mechanical engineer, air conditioning firm or heating contractor needs expert advice from thermal insulation specialists like Ashdon Insulations, who will look at their project’s drawings and specs to see that insulation thicknesses are in line with those published by TIMSA, as part of its guidance for achieving compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations.
Understanding Building Regulation part L 2012
The Building Regulations Part L cover the‘'Conservation of Fuel and Power in Buildings’ and sets standards for the energy performance of new and existing buildings.
If you want to achieve compliance with Part L in your project’s tender documents, the standard approach is to follow the guidance set out in the government’s 2018 Approved Documents.
As you’d expect, all the documentation is readily available on a government website but is very lengthy and detailed. It’s an area where the advice of thermal insulation experts like Ashdon Insulations will prove invaluable as part of their pre-tender service.
Why the TIMSA guidance is important
TIMSA is the industry association covering the whole of the thermal and acoustic insulation industry. It includes manufacturers of relevant materials and also suppliers of ancillary products.
TIMSA has representation on the British Standards Institution (BSI), the national standards body of the United Kingdom, and European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) - both of which are responsible for drafting standards relating to the thermal and acoustic insulation industry.
TIMSA publishes a number of documents on various aspects of insulation, including HVAC Guidance for achieving compliance with Part L of the Building Regulations. This outlines the minimum provisions for insulating pipes and ducts serving space heating, hot water and cooling and ventilation systems, both in new and existing buildings.
About Ashdon Insulations:
Ashdon Insulations is a responsible thermal insulation contractor, fully industry accredited and health and safety compliant, ensuring engineering projects are installed to specification and in line with all British safety standards.