New Part L regs – Sheerline has it covered

Adrian Redshaw, product design director for Sheerline Aluminium Windows and Doors discusses how changes to Part L will affect fabricators and installers, and why Sheerline is confident that its products will leave their customers with little cause for concern.

The new approved legislation for Part L will come in to force in June 2022. This will certainly impact on the fenestration industry and complying with the more stringent standards looks set to create difficulties for fabricators and installers, who will need to ensure their products meet these new requirements on time.

The new standards will see tightening of thermal performance for windows and doors. On replacement products, the criterion for windows says they must perform to a minimum U-value rating of 1.4W/m²K or band B WER (Window Energy Rating), a tightening on the current performance requirements of windows from 1.6W/m²K or band C.

Standard replacement doors will also have to meet this new 1.4W/m²K U-value standard. It is essential that the calculation for the U-value takes into consideration the ‘whole fabricated element’ which is the glazed window or door, and not just a part of the construction, (example: glass), so expect to see less reference to centre-pane U-values over the coming months.

Thermal performance has always been at the centre of Sheerline’s design philosophy. As a result, our systems are designed to outperform the recommendations outlined by this new Government standard.

We’ve designed our systems around substantial Thermlock multi-chamber thermal breaks, giving exceptional thermal performance and offering a future-proof range of products.

Take for example the Sheerline Prestige range – not only does it offer truly great aesthetics, but it is also our most versatile and thermally efficient door and window system, offering exceptional low U-values.

Using a 28mm double-glazed unit, Prestige windows, doors and bi-fold doors produce U-values of 1.4W/m²K whilst triple glazing produces U-values as low as 1.0 W/m²K. In fact, our single opener and fixed ‘picture’ windows achieve even more impressive 1.3DG, 0.9TG U-values.

All Sheerline systems incorporate our unique thermal breaks, designed to reduce levels of cold bridging, and provide class-leading thermal performance. This Thermlock technology offers improved performance over polyamide, the material used in most legacy aluminium systems.

Thermlock is used throughout the entire Sheerline range and provides customers with a comprehensive choice of thermally efficient aluminium products such as, casement, tilt & turn, fixed, bay or French windows, as well as single, French, and bifold doors as well as our class-leading thermally efficient S1 roof lantern.

With these latest legislations adding to what is already a difficult time for many manufacturers, it’s comforting to Sheerline customers that we have it covered, with our products performing to the new standards with cost effective double glazing, allowing them to benefit from what is sure to be increased demand for thermally efficient aluminium solutions.

We are providing assistance to our customers for Part L and U-value queries, with a team of technical experts and we have also created a simple reference document that clearly outlines the headline figures for new and replacement window and door U-value requirements, alongside the performance U-values of Sheerline’s Prestige products.

Sheerline’s resource portal is also free to our customers and is a platform for them to access a variety of technical documentation, marketing material, and certifications related to our product lines.

Once the industry becomes familiar with these new standards, it will become clear that many legacy systems designed decades ago aren’t able to meet these new standards without relying on expensive and difficult-to-find glazing options. Some may not meet them at all, and companies will no longer be able to hide behind vague U-value claims.