By Dean Bradley, Glazpart sales director.

With legislative changes in June 2022, to Approved Document F (means of ventilation) of the Building Regulations, companies in the glazing supply chain faced the challenge of ensuring they complied with the new ventilation requirements when replacing windows and doors.   

The proposed new regulations allowed for background (passive) and natural ventilation as well as mechanical fans and air conditioning units. In effect, this meant any company fitting replacement windows and doors had to install a window or door and ensure the room was habitable and had proper means of ventilation.

The measure for ventilation had to happen in the same period as the replacement installation – making mechanical ventilation systems impractical for the installer and expensive for the homeowner. The solution had to be simpler for the installer and more affordable for the homeowner.

Armed with the knowledge of imminent changes and the challenges the industry would face, Glazpart set about creating a solution. The senior management team at Glazpart consulted with industry bodies, technical experts and customers across the sector (including systems houses, fabricators and installers) and from those discussions identified a new requirement for ventilation was needed for windows and doors of smaller habitable rooms such as kitchens and bathrooms.

Though we had designed and tested the prototype Link Vent 4000 we had to wait for the Government’s official publication for confirmation of the changes. The key issue was whether the regulations on ventilation would change from 5000 EQA to 8000 EQA and 4000 EQA. By changing to the latter, would require a new size of vent to make compliance much easier.

On 15 December 2012, confirmation of the changes to the legislation was published and the new requirement confirmed as 8000 EQA and 4000 EQA. This was the green light for Glazpart to press the button for the tooling and full manufacture of the Link Vent 4000.

In June 2022, in time for the regulatory change, Glazpart launched the Link Vent 4000, an addition to their Link Vent range of 2500 and 5000, respectively.

With the new product effectively completing the range, fabricators quickly saw the advantages. The Link Vent’s clever design, easy control mechanism (to direct air flow away from occupants) and its availability in a vast range of colours and finishes, it quickly became the go to solution for fabricators supplying installers aiming to comply with Building Regulations.

The Link Vent’s wide colour spectrum allows it to blend in with any window and door profile. In essence, it is camouflaged, and this feature has great appeal to homeowners as it means the inclusion of a vent does not spoil the overall aesthetic of the windows and doors.

In anticipation of the demand from fabricators from June 2022, Glazpart set out a clear schedule for development and production that included further investment in machinery that would increase production capacity. Our continuous investment in manufacturing plant ensures the product is manufactured to the highest standards and allows us to maintain healthy stock levels making it readily available to the market.

Since launch, the Link Vent 4000 has garnered wide recognition across the supply chain as the most practical and affordable ventilation solution when replacing windows and doors. The product has also won and been shortlisted several times at numerous different industry awards.

The Link Vent ticks all the boxes for fabricators. Whether it’s PVC-U, aluminium or timber profiles or frames, the Link Vent is simple to fit, easy to control, meets the regulatory requirements and thanks to our vast range colour and finishes, it is very well received by homeowners.

It has been a great journey so far for Glazpart and the Link Vent range and one that looks likely to continue for the foreseeable future as the Future Homes Standard is set to be implemented in 2025.