Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1506758
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 3 | 23 Building Envelope P H OTO G R A P H Y CO U RT E S Y B U I L D I N G P RO DU C T S C A N A DA ; S O U N D S O LU T I O N S P H OTO G R A P H Y BY L I SA LO GA N /CO U RT E S Y S O U N D S O LU T I O N S P H OTO G R A P H Y BY S I D TA BA K /A RC H I T EC T S: A R K I N C . Additionally, thanks to Secure Bond Technology, both RubberGard EPDM SA and UltraPly TPO SA can be installed in temperatures as low as minus seven degrees celcius. Deol adds, "Our work in Canada, focusing on end of life roof recycling and landfill diversion, continues in collaboration with Geocycle Canada where we co-process roofing products in the production of cement. While that has proven successful, we continue to explore other landfill diversion opportunities as well." Brian Hall, managing director at the Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (CPCI), reports that in collaboration with RDH Building Science, CPCI has completed a comprehensive report on the air permeance testing of full- scale precast concrete wall assemblies following ASTM E2357. "The test results showed that single-wythe precast and double-wythe insulated precast concrete wall assemblies with properly installed two-stage joints meet and exceed the air barrier system requirements of the National Building Code of Canada," he says. "The second phase of this testing program that focused on testing the precast wall assemblies for moisture leakage, following ASTM E331, has also been recently completed." Hall also credits Malcolm Hachborn, president of M. E. Hachborn Engineering, for recently introducing a new lighter, more energy-efficient and higher-performing cladding precast concrete system called DreamWall. "DreamWall panels are engineered and configured for use in exterior and interior façades," he says. "If a client desires a high-performance prefabricated wall panel system that is remarkably lightweight, thermally efficient, versatile, durable, and aesthetically pleasing, DreamWall is an outstanding choice." Matthieu Danis, product manager, wood fibre at Building Products Canada, says, "Energy efficiency is certainly getting more attention than ever. Although this is more easily said than done, one thing that is certain is that most people understand the importance and value of continuous insulation in the increased performance and energy efficiency of a house. There is also pressure to use higher R-value continuous insulation in the very near future, as building codes are being reviewed and renewed." BP offers a complete line of wood fibre-based insulation panels under the Insul-Sheathing brand. All the panels offered in this category use a soft wood fibre panel that is either 7⁄16 inch or 1⁄2-inch thick. BP's manufacturing process is unique because it manufactures a high resistance panel with an insulation value of R-3 per inch. Using wood fibre panels that are laminated to synthetic insulation panels results in a panel that is both structural, suitable for most buildings that fall under Part 9 of the National Building Code, and has a much lower upfront embodied carbon due to the use of recycled wood fibres. All Insul-Sheathing panels provide superior protection of the exterior shell by offering continuous insulation and reducing thermal bridging at framing members. Sound Solutions provides architects and contractors with an extensive line of product options for both interior and exterior applications from the best North American and European manufacturers. The company also provides extensive design, drafting and modelling capabilities, including comprehensive custom manufacturing when required. Andrew Rogers, principal at Sound Solutions, reports that he has witnessed "an exponential increase in the use of extruded terracotta for rainscreen cladding, which is very encouraging because in Europe there are no end of roofs made of terracotta that are hundreds of years old. It's a particularly sustainable material." Rogers is also heartened that the increase of terracotta usage is happening at a time when developers are more cost conscious than ever. "They obviously realise that with this material you can create expensive systems, but you can also develop affordable solutions," he says. "About four years ago we clad the entire Etobicoke General Hospital in terracotta, and the tiles were under $10 per square foot. "Typically, we've done several projects a year using terracotta, but this year we're supplying the material on about seven projects, and next year we'll double that figure. In Canada overall there have been 40 completed projects over the past 15 years, and this number will double in the next two years." Joe Baz, product manager for Flynn Canada Ltd. (part of The Flynn Group), says, "With the need for more energy efficient and airtight buildings, Flynn set out to develop a high performing modular wall system. We wanted to utilize the fram- ing of our unitized curtain wall as it is very airtight and watertight but thought of an innovative approach to insulate the outside of the aluminum framing with an insulated metal panel to minimize thermal bridging and maximize performance. This drastically improves the performance to a degree that an effective R value of greater than 40 can be achieved, which is unheard of in this industry." Speedwall is a factory-assembled modular exterior wall system that delivers quality and performance levels far beyond what is possible with on-site con- struction. Built on an aluminum chassis based on Flynn's 6450 unitized curtain wall system, Speedwall modules are completely self-framed, sealed, and insu- lated in Flynn's manufacturing facility, with all windows, doors, and exterior cladding pre-installed. Larger modules mean fewer interfaces between elements, which combined with factory QA and QC equals superior air tightness. Baz calls the usage of Speedwall "future proofing" because where previous energy codes evaluated the system efficiency of building envelope components in isolation, emerging requirements take more comprehensive thermal bridg- ing calculations into account. The sheer number of interfaces between window and wall components in traditional building envelope construction, coupled with their installation and quality control in the construction site environment – often by multiple trades – renders the final product challenged to meet the incoming codes. But Speedwall delivers the performance required for net-zero energy performance standards. Etobicoke General Hospital, Etobicoke, ON Extruded terracotta cladding, Seneca College, North York, ON. Insul-Sheathing wood fibre-based insulation panels.