From:
Martin Dickie,
Managing Director,
Residence Collection

Is this the year of the flush sash? Most systems companies have launched one, or added one or two profiles to create a flush sash look. In the main, they’re the same window with a new face rather than a new flush system, so there are compromises.

Some systems companies imply planners will permit their windows in conservation areas. But many installers will be disappointed when their windows are rejected at the planning stage.

For decades, PVC casements were excluded from conservation areas because the windows didn’t match the look, dimensions or detailing of the windows they were intended to replace. Those that sneaked in usually had to come out, which hit installers’ costs and reputations.

Planners aren’t anti-PVC or pro-timber as such, but they do insist on the look, and the dimensions and detailing.

To find out what planners are looking for we need to look at the Article 4 direction. It contains detailed drawings of the dimensions required by the planner.

We researched these Article 4 directions when we designed R9. Although they vary by area, Article 4 directions do demand similar things, and we designed our flush sash system to please planners across Britain. Its 100mm frame depth and mechanical joints were taken from these drawings. They also create a strong, long-lasting, attractive window that’s being regularly installed in conservation areas and listed buildings around Britain.

There’s a big difference between a 70mm casement window with a flush look and a 100mm flush sash system. Many people talk about flush sashes as shorthand for timber-alternative, but – designed for strength and looks – you can design a flush sash system as an aluminium-alternative, e.g. R2. Again, it isn’t just the looks. An aluminium-alternative has to be able to make big windows and tall doors too.

Not all flush sashes are the same, and we have to start looking at flush sashes in a different way. Flush isn’t just the icing on the PVC cake, it’s another cake, and another market entirely.