Bourne Steel Products for the residential market
The residential market There are strong positive trends in the UK market for residential construction and the number of new households continues to grow rapidly.
Being prefabricated off site, steel frames provide accurate and reliable solutions to meet this demand. The solutions are also well suited to the incorporation of the latest thinking in terms of modular construction. To meet this demand Bourne Steel has developed two new products specifically for use in this sector.
The BourneBeam®
Design solutions for multi-storey accommodation need to meet four key criteria – structure, fire, vibration and acoustics. It is a fact that steel frames offer economic and fast solutions for multi-storey office construction, and this is also true for multi-storey residential units. There are differences, and whilst residential units do not demand such large spans, limiting the width or depth of the construction zones is crucial.
Over the last six years, Bourne Steel has undertaken 27 projects for residential housing frames with the largest having a value of £1.6 million. Using this experience, we have developed a new range of products and design solutions.
To meet the requirement for a limited depth floor zone, Bourne Steel has developed the BourneBeam® which is a plated asymmetric section specifically tailored for such situations. The steel section is buried within the floor, which comprises precast units, with an in situ topping if required. We offer a design service to specifiers for the BourneBeam® design and this service also extends to edge beams, which are often critically loaded in torsion.
To meet the requirements for robustness, the BourneBeam® design offers the ability to bury the horizontal ties within the nominal 200 mm zone of the structural floor. The ties can be cambered to suit any camber in the precast units.
FireBy burying the steel frame within the other elements of construction, the requirements for fire resistance are largely catered for without the need for any applied fire protection materials. If necessary, the exposed face of the BourneBeam® can be coated with intumescent paint.
Vibration
Relatively small spans are typical of residential units (6 to 7.5 m between division walls with rooms generally 3 to 3.5 m wide up to 4.5 m maximum). With such spans, and using the BourneBeam®, meeting floor vibration criteria is not a problem.
Acoustics
The popular myth is that steel frames require special attention in terms of acoustic transmission, whereas in-situ concrete frames do not. The fact is that both choices of framing material require that the acoustic transmission characteristics be formally addressed to demonstrate compliance with the regulatory requirements in Part ‘E’.
Bourne Steel is participating in the tests being undertaken on structures built using their steelwork, and these show that economic steel-framed solutions readily demonstrate compliance with the regulations
Part ‘E’ Test Results from No.60 Vauxhall Bridge Road, August 2004 show compliant Airborne and Impact performance to the latest Building Regulations
The dynamic nature of the construction market means that every project demands new thinking. Our pedigree in developing successful, innovative construction solutions is renowned. And our experience in using them, gives our customers’ confidence in selecting the Bourne products for their projects.
BourneBeam® is yet another winning product from the Bourne Group.
For more details and your enquiries, please contact either Alan Pillinger or Keith Coles by clicking on their name.