Siniat has supplied its latest innovation, GTEC Weather Defence, as the sheathing material for the construction of an £11.5 million school in South Wales.
Abercynon Community Primary School, in the Rhondda Valley, became the first of a number of major projects to use the innovative new gypsum-based board, which was a key component of the building’s external envelope.
GTEC Weather Defence was launched at Ecobuild in March this year, and is ideal for frame-based construction. It is water, weather and mould resistant, and is 30% lighter and safer to install than cement board alternatives, allowing for faster build times and improved site safety.
It has now been used for a number of large-scale projects across sectors including education, residential, leisure and other major builds using frame-based construction. The project at Abercynon Primary School is set for completion in Autumn 2013, and achieved major time and cost savings by using GTEC Weather Defence, as Lee Davis, site manager for sub-contractors Manorcraft who installed the board, explains:
“GTEC Weather Defence’s reduced weight compared with traditional cement boards made it much easier to handle and install.
“It reduced our plant hire costs, as we did not need to hire scissor lifts for as long as we normally would. When cutting the board we did not need to take it to designated areas on site, nor did we need to use face masks as there wasn’t a problem with dust. As a result the job was completed much faster, more safely and we saved money.”
Unlike traditional sheathing boards, there is no need for mechanical cutting with power tools. Instead, the board can be cut using a ‘score and snap’ technique that is faster and needs no special tools. Nor does it produce harmful dust meaning it can be cut in-situ, further reducing installation time.
The board represents a major upgrade to traditional sheathing materials, and also delivers a number of crucial technical benefits. For example, GTEC Weather Defence is highly dimensionally stable, which means gaps between boards are tight and reliable, providing excellent airtightness to help increase the overall thermal efficiency of the building – an important consideration as architects and developers strive to create ever-more efficient buildings.
The board has impressive credentials for technical performance, including acoustic insulation and fire resistance, and is fully non-combustible (Eurolclass A1) for use in projects, such as high rise construction, which have more stringent fire risk demands.
Abercynon Community Primary was delivered under the Welsh government’s South East Wales Schools Capital Working Group and will be completed for the current academic year. It’s the first school to be delivered under the framework, which emphasises early contractor involvement and efficiency of build. The school is being built on the site of a former educational building and will accommodate 400 pupils – replacing outdated facilities at two nearby schools.