five years, from 7% in 2019 to 12% in 2024. [1] Since June 2022, Approved Document O of the Building Regulations has required new residential buildings in England to limit unwanted solar gain and provide adequate means of removing excess heat, sitting alongside Approved Document L, with guidance on energy efficiency including glazed elements. Together, the two place demands on the modern home that can appear to pull in opposite directions. For REHAU, the answer lies in considering these factors together rather than in isolation. Larger areas of glazing bring in the daylight that makes a home feel spacious and supports wellbeing but can also increase solar gain. Sealing a building tightly for improved energy efficiency raises thermal performance, yet without adequate ventilation, it can often trap heat. At the King Street West project in Stockport, a £14.5 million contract for 73 apartments, REHAU’s technical team was consulted to address the results of an overheating report. The report revealed the need for multiple different windows within a single apartment to balance solar gain and heat loss. This challenge highlights the importance of consulting system providers early in the design phase. “When working with the system designer and fabricator at specification stage, you can address all of these requirements within one product, rather than adding in compromises later,” Mark continued. “The point is that these are not separate problems to be traded off against one another. Working together at design stage means the window system can be curated for a specific location, project, building orientation or site requirements, ensuring compliance to the correct Building Regulation in terms of both solar and thermal target values together with other onsite requirements such as safety, excess noise levels and ventilation.” As the climate continues to shift, REHAU believes that this integrated approach will become the norm rather than the exception, and that getting windows right means starting the conversation with the people who make them. Find out more about REHAU Window Solutions.
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