Engineering and Construction

In order that the revised insulation standards are adhered to, it will be necessary to ensure that the provision of insulation within the fabric itself does not exhibit zones that could compromise the specification. For example, there should be no significant leakage paths between panels; thermal bridges should be minimized; insulation should be continuous, dry and as ‘uncompressed’ as possible.

One method of ascertaining compliance would be by use of infra-red thermo- graphy, where the external fabric of the building is ‘photographed’ using specialist equipment. By this method, areas of the external fabric that are  ‘hot’ – implying poor insulation and heat loss  from the building – will be shown as colours at the red end of the spectrum. Conversely, areas that are ‘cold’ will be shown at the blue end of the spectrum.