A multi-million pound apartment at one of London’s most exclusive developments, One Hyde Park in Knightsbridge, now has improved acoustics and sophisticated cable management with the installation of FHB acoustic partial access flooring developed by Knauf, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of lightweight building materials and systems.
As part of a £500,000 refurbishment, contractors Management Construction Technology (MCT) installed the flooring throughout the 630m2 apartment so as to maintain the maximum possible floor-to-ceiling height, while still being able to run all the services beneath the flooring.
The substrate was uneven yet Knauf’s FHB system flooring was chosen because it could achieve a level floor, while requiring no drying time, and was suitable for high quality hardwood, carpet and marble finishes.
Acoustic performance was crucial to the success of the installation, and this was achieved by installing circular acoustic pads on top of the adjustable pedestals that support the FHB25 panels of gypsum fibre board. In acoustic tests on site these achieved a performance of over 5dB above Part E requirements, ensuring high acoustic insulation.
In common with the rest of the Knauf GIFAfloor range, FHB25 consists of gypsum fibre panels that are engineered with a tongue and groove edge profile to ensure a strong bond when laid, creating a monolithic floor that is the ideal substrate for natural stone or porcelain finishes. Floor finishes can be bonded directly onto the panels without any need for de-bonding layers as they require only priming before the finished coating is applied.
As part of a partial access floor, GIFAfloor panels are designed to span over pedestals at a maximum of 600mm centres over voids up to 1.2m high. Frames and panels can be incorporated to provide access to the void below the floor, so that cabling is easily installed and updated if necessary. But the panels can also be used to span joisted and battened floors, where they feel like a solid floor underfoot if acoustic battens are used.
In either case the floor panels’ excellent thermal conductivity of 0.44 W/mK makes them excellent components of any underfloor heating system and, with no screed to dry, the heating can be installed and commissioned swiftly so that that the floor finishes can be laid within hours.
Knauf GIFAfloor panels avoid all the issues associated with wet screed and moisture: there are no drying times, no additional moisture and none of the trip hazards of bulky batten and chipboard systems.
These floor systems are also sustainable in terms of its manufacture and in the construction process. The panels are manufactured using fibres from wholly recycled paper that are blended with a mix of natural and flue gas desulphurised gypsum. In construction, the panels score two water management points in Code for Sustainable Homes, reduce the cement content of the building and cut the load on tower blocks, so reducing foundation and steelwork requirements.
