Delivering affordable housing in collaboration with Flagship Homes
Situated in Great Ellingham, Norfolk, Crown View is the latest project in the portfolio of Flagship Homes, the development subsidiary of Flagship Group. The 60-home development will consist of 30 affordable rent homes, to help people secure stable accommodation, and 30 shared ownership homes, which allows prospective buyers to take their first steps up the property ladder. These homes will be built by Lovell Partnerships, who we have previously worked with.
As part of the new development, Roofspace Solutions were selected to provide the i-House full housing shell to all 60 plots, alongside Posi-Joist floor cassettes and roof trusses from our sister company Pasquill.
The development features one, two and three bedroom homes, and consists of a mix of 51 detached and semi-detached houses and nine bungalows.
Building from the ground up
i-House is a housing solution, which provides a full, watertight shell ready to receive roof coverings in just five days. Working with H+H, who provide the Celcon Vertical Wall panels which form the walls of the i-House, we can reduce build time by transporting the panels to site ready-made and crane them into place.
H+H Vertical Wall Panels are lightweight, durable and airtight, while offering exceptional thermal and sound insulation.
i-House consists of inner leaves of external cavity walls, separating walls, floors, lintels, cavity closures and insulation, making it the perfect solution for housebuilders and developers who are looking to deliver new homes quickly and in volume.
A sustainable build
With the introduction of the Future Homes Standard coming in 2025, it’s important that new heating technology is integrated into each home to futureproof the development. The new regulations state that all new homes must produce between 75% to 80% less carbon emissions.
To conform to this, all 60 plots within Crown View will be fitted with air source heat pumps, paving the way to a gas-free development. Air source heat pumps take heat from the air around us and transfer it into the home, keeping occupants warm and comfortable without negatively affecting the environment with harmful emissions.
Homes will also be fitted with water tanks, to help transition away from a reliance on gas.
Elsewhere, solar panels will be fitted to each roof to further reduce emissions, providing a more environmentally friendly electricity source.
i-House design process
Once the project had been agreed, a ‘design freeze’ was placed onto the Working Drawings. The design freeze is placed to ensure that all parties are working to the same information.
The project was then then handed over to Senior Designer Jack Sillitoe, who pieced together the drawings for the development using the architectural drawings supplied by Duncan Stewart from Ingleton Wood.
Amending to the client’s needs
As each site and client have different requirements, the i-House system is often adapted to ensure that the customer is receiving a high-quality i-House, which conforms to the most recent standards.
At Crown View, underfloor heating was installed in some of the plots, and due to on-site sequencing reasons, this was completed prior to the installation of i-House. This meant the way the props were fixed, which are used to hold the H+H Celcon Vertical Wall Panels in place until the whole structure is built, had to be changed. Usually, the props would be fixed into the ground, but with the underfloor heating pipes already installed within the screed, there was a risk of the fixings used to hold the props in place puncturing the pipework.
To ensure the build could run smoothly and without damage to existing pipework, Jack drew up individual fixing details and layouts for each house type, which consisted of overlapping timbers to be attached to threaded bars, which had already been laid in the floor between the pipes. This simple addition meant the i-House props could be bolted directly into the floor, minimising the risk of puncturing the underfloor heating pipes.
New requirements state that all developments should be designed to accommodate for disabled people who may move into one of the plots in the future. Using design software MiTek Pamir, our design team were able to calculate hoist loads, which are in place to ensure any future tenant or homeowner can fit transfer hoists should they require them to move around.
The bottom chord of the roof structure was strengthened using a thicker timber member to ensure it can accommodate the additional weight of a fixed hoist. Extra timbers also needed to be specified within the floor joists to give extra support to the water tanks that are being installed.
The architect’s drawings specified a glazing screen to the gable side of some of the properties. To allow this screen to be secured safely, Jack liaised with the team of structural engineers and amended the design of i-House to accommodate this.
Remaining in constant contact between the client and their architect, it was agreed that the screen could be fitted to the gable wall, with some tweaks to the existing roof design and steel lintels to support the screens.
Working together to feel the off-site benefits
Once the final designs had been ironed out between the Roofspace Solutions design team, the Lovell Partnerships team and Duncan, site packs were issued to the on-site team.
These site packs contained the flat plan drawings for each plot and component schedules, as well as all necessary details for the installation. All timber engineered products also include interactive 3D models via a QR Code, which can be used to help the on-site team with the installation process.
When the build moved from design stage to site, the real benefits of off-site manufacturing became apparent.
By selecting i-House, homes can be delivered quickly, safely and in volume, thanks to the off-site manufacturing process involved. On-site, the safety of the workers is increased due to the reduced need to work at height using cranes, with each i-House panel carefully craned into place by a fully qualified operator.
The amount of waste produced on-site is much lower compared to using traditional methods of construction and once the i-House installation is completed, follow on trades can come in and complete their work while taking advantage of the time savings generated by using i-House.
Crown View is due to complete in spring next year, and we look forward to showcasing the completed development soon.
Testimonials
Jack Sillitoe, Roofspace Solutions Senior Designer, commented on working on the project: “It’s been a great project to be involved in. Like all projects, there have been challenges but by working closely with the client, our supply team and our supplies, we’ve navigated these challenges to produce an end result that both us and the client are happy with.
I’ve enjoyed working with Lovell to support Flagship Homes’ new development, and it’s always great to help major housebuilders deliver these large plots using off-site manufacturing, to help them see the benefits of building in this way.”
Oleg Barsoukov, Senior Delivery Project Manager from Flagship, said: “Solving the housing crisis is at the centre of what we do, and having high-quality homes built that much more quickly thanks to i-House means we can address that need. The quality and speed of Roofspace Solutions’ work has been an instrumental part of bringing Crown View to life and we can’t wait to see this community grow and develop.
We’ve really seen the benefits of the off-site construction, and it’s fantastic knowing that the homes are future-proofed and constructed with sustainability in mind. Crown View is a great development and we couldn’t be happier with how it’s come together.”
Trevor Haystead, Regional Operations Director from Lovell Homes, said: “We have worked with Roofspace Solutions team on multiple projects now, and have always been impressed by the quality of their product, and the speed in which they are able to deliver it.
The Flagship Homes development in Great Ellingham will offer 60 affordable rent and shared ownership homes, and it was important to Lovell to ensure that every one of these new homes were delivered to a high quality and standard. Roofspace Solutions’ i-House was a natural fit for the development, and is allowing us to build these much needed homes in less time through the use of Modern Methods of Construction.
We’re very pleased with the progress we are making at Crown View in Great Ellingham and we’re very much looking forward to seeing the finished development in full.”
If you’d like more information on how your next project can benefit from i-House, please contact the team to start your enquiry.
