Building products manufacturer REHAU has taken its commitment to the Building Centre and National Retrofit Hub to the next level by becoming a principal partner of the Retrofit 25 exhibition.
The exhibition, which is running until 19 September this year from The Building Centre in London, is titled ‘What’s Stopping Us?’. It aims to demonstrate how innovative retrofitting tools, technologies and approaches can help transform the built environment to tackle pressing challenges including climate breakdown, social inequity and economic instability.
The aim of mobilising communities, industries and policymakers to make these changes a reality mirrors REHAU’s own efforts to inspire change in the construction industry. Specifically, the polymer specialist is highlighting the role medium retrofits – fitting high-spec glazing frames on existing properties – can play in markedly improving the thermal performance of buildings in cost-effective fashion.
“Many property owners are under pressure to upgrade their buildings to meet modern net zero and thermal performance standards,” explains Martin Hitchin, Chief Executive at REHAU UK. “As Retrofit 25 points out, what’s stopping us from taking action? We wholly agree that the wider construction and building services supply chain has a key role to play highlighting the retrofit tools and solutions currently available for upgrading works right now.
“Window and door systems are a good example of this approach in action. As prominent sources of building heat loss, attention should be paid to how upgrading these components can improve the thermal performance and energy efficiency in housing. The technology to make these improvements already exists, and in collaboration with Retrofit 25 as a principal partner, we look forward to demonstrating these solutions to those visiting the exhibition.”
Improving the thermal performance of homes is a major theme of REHAU’s latest whitepaper, Retrofit Right – Making Social Housing More Energy-Efficient. Launched earlier this year, it advises how local authorities and housing associations can meet stringent energy efficiency and net zero requirements for existing building stock through the informed specification of windows and doors.
“It is important all property stakeholders, including local authorities, establish, bolster and maintain existing supply chains to ensure the specification of high-quality components when carrying out retrofitting works,” Martin concludes. “This is the reasoning behind our latest whitepaper, Retrofit Right. It emphasises how this third-party support is crucial for bridging knowledge gaps on retrofitting and easing workloads in the social housing sector, which must upgrade to exacting standing on an extremely large scale.
“This messaging is being echoed at Retrofit 25, which demonstrates how the wider supply chain can drive action through existing solutions, helping property stakeholders take the necessary steps to transform their buildings. We’re very proud to be principal partners of the exhibition, and we are confident we will play our part in demonstrating how to navigate barriers and realise opportunities in the retrofitting space.”
For more information on Retrofit 25, click here.
Click the link to find out more about REHAU’s latest whitepaper, Retrofit Right – Making Social Housing More Energy-Efficient.
