11% of HomeViews reviews mention issues around overheating – a percentage likely to increase given the regularity of severe heatwaves in the UK. Meanwhile, energy saving measures were the second most-valued sustainable building feature among UK residents, according to the new 2022 HomeViews report Sustainability: The Resident Perspective. Build to Rent operator Vertus turned to InterLace Blinds for a passive cooling solution to solar heat gains at its luxurious Newfoundland community in Canary Wharf. The high-quality blinds and curtains installed would reduce the load on air conditioning systems, generating significant savings in cost and energy use while maintaining the stellar reputation of the Vertus brand.
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THE CHALLENGE
Newfoundland is a luxury BTR development of 636 apartments in the heart of London’s Canary Wharf business district. With floor-to-ceiling glazing throughout, the building required an efficient solution to thermal heat gain that could reduce the load on the building’s air conditioning.
With a strong brand reputation for luxury, attentive service and high quality design, operator Vertus needed an attractive solution in harmony with the building’s ethos.
Products specified also needed to have a long lifespan, be sustainably sourced and be easy to repair or reorder.
THE SOLUTION
InterLace Blinds installed two parallel curtain tracks that followed the perimeter of the building. These covered all external glazing despite the complex shapes and angles – one carrying the inner curtain, which is either dimout or blackout, and the other carrying the sheer curtain closer to the glazing.
Sheer curtains provided the white, heat-reflecting element next to the glazing. Residents are more likely to keep the sheers drawn on sunny days, as interiors remain bright but heat gains are reduced. Daytime privacy is also enhanced, along with acoustic comfort thanks to reduced reverberation and exterior noise transfer.
Blackout lined curtains were specified for the bedrooms. These provide zero light penetration, while dimout lined curtains offer an alternative ambiance for living areas.
The luxury heavyweight fabric from weavers Création Baumann carries an eight-year guarantee against fading and breaking down in sunlight. Meanwhile, high quality metal curtain tracks carry a 15-year warranty and ensure a lasting, premium experience for residents.
InterLace also manufactured and installed high performance automated electric roller blinds in the lower resident amenity floors, to enable the building to meet Part L regulations for the management of solar gain. These blinds allow a view through the fabric giving a connection to outside while reflecting 70-80% of heat and light, and are at the cutting edge of window blind performance.
When repairs or replacements are eventually needed for fixtures or fabrics, InterLace provides Lifetime Care to ensure identical products can be instantly reordered long into the future.
THE IMPACT
The installation of sheers and curtains is calculated to contribute a 12-13% reduction in cooling load for the building’s air conditioning system. This amounts to a saving of up to 16% on HVAC operation and up to 14% on energy use.
With record high temperatures recorded in the summer of 2022, Newfoundland’s blinds and curtains are playing an increasingly crucial role in boosting resident comfort.
On average, 10% of all reviews on HomeViews mention overheating. However, there are no reviews referring to this at Newfoundland. Instead, resident reviews focus on the building’s quality design, attractive interiors and efficient management.
Reviewing Newfoundland, E14
“A perfect place to live in London in a brand new building.”
“At Vertus we have used InterLace across many of our BTR buildings. InterLace produce great quality products and their installation specialists and aftercare team are outstanding. On the rare occasion we have had a fault, InterLace are always very reactive and responsive and endeavour to get the fault rectified with very little disruption to the resident and business and for this reason I would strongly recommend using InterLace for window shading, curtain and blind system requirements.”
Alastair Mullens, Managing Director, Vertus
Find out more
Head to the InterLace site to find out more about Newfoundland and other case studies, or contact Matt Watney:
matt@interlaceblinds.com
Tel: 01223 897 766
Mob: 07848 455 752
HomeViews provides verified resident reviews of the UK’s housing developments. We’re working with developers, house builders, operators, housing associations and the Government to recognise high performers and help improve standards in the built environment.
Click the image to download your FREE copy of the new 2022 report Sustainability: The Resident Perspective – published in partnership with EE.
