A GLOUCESTERSHIRE-BASED supplier of highly sustainable, PassivHaus standard timber frame buildings has been making extensive use of high performance panel products from the range of West Fraser since it was established almost a decade ago; while it continues to grow a reputation for delivering on client ambitions, whatever the technical challenge or location.
Passiframe operates from premises on the Lydney Harbour Estate in the Forest of Dean, mainly delivering bespoke residential properties ranging in size from off-grid cabins to large, detached homes, but also undertakes projects such as community centres and smaller commercial premises. The unifying theme, however, is creating very low energy structures which also attain excellent environmental standards. Ambitions with which West Fraser ’s CaberDek and SterlingOSB Zero are fully in step.
Scott Adams director of Passiframe, explained: “We panelise offsite and generally fill the 300 mm thick panels with Warmcel insulation in the factory. We have employed the CaberDek panels for flooring from very early on and then also started buying SterlingOSB Zero which we fix on the inside face of the exterior walls for airtightness.
“We are aiming for a figure of 0.4, but actually average 0.2 by taping all the joints and applying an external membrane. Then we offer a wide selection of external finishes, including stone or timber cladding.
“We are currently nearing completion on a five-bedroom 200-square metre property which is typical of the homes we build where CaberDek is secured across the Posi-joists using the manufacturer’s CaberFix D4 adhesive and self-tapping screws, creating a working platform which can withstand wet weather quite easily during the two to three days it normally takes to install — and then the peel-clean finish can be simply stripped off when the following trades like plasterers have finished.”
While SterlingOSB Zero‘s burgeoning popularity can be attributed to an array of technical benefits, in these days of heightened environmental awareness and the push to achieve Net Zero, SterlingOSB Zero can also assist the construction industry to cut carbon emissions. The board is primarily manufactured from a natural product which in itself locks in CO2 from the atmosphere, with the myriad of mainly softwood strands sourced as sawmill residues and co-products in the form of peeled chips, along with a small percentage of round wood. The traditional alternative, plywood, requires the peeling of much larger tree trunks which take longer to grow.
After leaving the factory gates, because it is precision-made, there is less waste on building sites or in MMC fabrication, and the associated costs of disposal to landfill are significantly mitigated.
Contractors also report lower waste in handling because SterlingOSB Zero is more resilient to damage than rival products and is much easier to align when used for tasks like sheathing or laying floors. The accuracy of manufacture is especially good for producing SIPs panels, with no need to “size” boards in the factory or suffer misalignment during installation.
Summing up, Scott reflected on how the West Fraser products complement Passiframe’s ethos on sustainability: “The OSB3 is really good quality, offering structural stability as well as dimensional accuracy — all helping achieve the comfort standard of PassivHaus, which includes noise reduction.
“The feedback we get from clients often includes their reporting enjoying the peace and tranquillity of living in one of our homes. Furthermore, FSC chain of custody helps clients fulfil their ambition on being kind to the environment.”
All West Fraser panel products produced in the UK are net carbon negative and manufactured in mills that have obtained the coveted environmental ISO 14001 accreditation. Responsibly sourced, the panels are FSC® certified (C012533) and created from locally grown timber, cutting embodied carbon from transportation.
West Fraser: 01786 812921: https://uk.westfraser.com/
