Rooflight replacement brings new light into factory

Carried out by Hi Tec Roof Systems Ltd, the project included a flat roof refurbishment and replacement of the original northlight rooflights on an operational factory in Bournemouth.

The client’s Facilities Manager contacted Hambleside Danelaw directly after the company was recommended to replace a large area of rooflights. The existing structure was a flat roof with 32 runs of double sided northlight glazing with a flat mansard roof. The existing Georgian wire glazing was in a poor condition causing issues with water ingress and creating a hazard with potential for panels to fall into the building. It was also causing issues with glare at certain times of the day and this was intensified due to the many reflective surfaces of the internal machinery.

The Facilities Manager considered a number of material options including replacement glazing and polycarbonate but needed advice on the performance and impact the material would have on the internal illuminance of the building.

Amanda Davis, Hambleside Danelaw’s Southern Area Sales Manager, explained the benefits of diffused light from translucent materials like GRP and Zenon rooflights were specified to make the most efficient use of available daylight.

GRP is a thermoset material reinforced with transparent glass fibres. When natural light passes through the material, refraction occurs which scatters or ‘diffuses’ the available light and spreads it over a far greater area. This diffusion minimises the creation of shadows, glare and hot spots that other rooflight materials can cause and creates a more consistent and uniformly lit space. Samples were provided to put the proposal to the factory business’ Board of Directors and GRP was chosen as the most cost-effective and appropriate solution for the application. The project went to tender and Hi Tec Roof Systems won the contract for the full roof refurbishment. The product supplied was a factory-assembled insulated rooflight panel with the highly impact resistant Zenon Evolution as an outer sheet and a 4mm polycarbonate insulation layer. The panels were delivered over 5 phases to suit the time scale of the installation of the rooflights and the application of the flat roof. Delighted with the improved and more effective daylight and thermal performance, the client decided to proceed, ahead of schedule, with a further building on the same site to the same specification.

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