Technical information for rooflight specifiers, installers and building occupiers
The BBC’s recent Horizon program ‘Body Clock: What Makes Us Tick, gives a fascinating insight into the role that exposure to the rhythm of natural daylight plays in our health & wellbeing. The program features an experiment on subject Aldo Kane, in which he is deprived of daylight in a bunker, with only controlled artificial…
As recently as the turn of the millenium, there was still a prevailing perception amongst architectural specifiers and other interested parties, that rooflights had a negative effect on the energy efficiency of buildings. This view was borne out of the fact that even the best insulating rooflights of the time generally offered lower thermal performance…
Did you see our article on how small differences in rooflight area can have a significant impact on light levels and energy usage? https://lnkd.in/d5qmRH2
Reflecting the continual developments in materials and the design and specification of glass rooflights, we have updated our guidance page on the specification of glass rooflights. Glass is used throughout buildings for its optical clarity, longevity and structural properties; it can offer unobstructed views out of a building, or if specified so, can provide natural…
The Building Research Establishment (BRE) released the results of analysing more than 70 research studies and documents in its paper, Health and Productivity Benefits of Sustainable Schools. Here are examples of just three conclusive research findings: In tests, cognitive function was 15% worse with CO2 at around 945ppm than it was in fresh outdoor-fed air,…
NARM, The National Association of Rooflight Manufacturers, has played an important role representing the UK’s rooflight industry in consultation with the Government and its subcontractors, CIBSE, AECOM and the BRE, on issues relating to Part L of The Building Regulations. The following article by NARM’s Technical Committee, explains how small differences in rooflight area can…
In retail environments and offices, the concentration and performance of workers has been proven to be superior to those where only artificial light is present. There is compelling evidence that shoppers in retail environments generally stay longer and spend more where there are high levels of natural daylight – and the performance of retail workers…
GUEST BLOG by John Godley, Technical Manager for Hambleside Danelaw. Before the HSE introduced the CDM Regulations, they had already done some preliminary work on roof fragility. A simple ‘drop’ test onto a roof assembly was proposed, and if the impactor was retained, then the roof was deemed to be non-fragile. This testing, defined in…
It’s now widely accepted that natural daylight not only provides the best environment for people to work in: it saves energy and reduces CO2 emissions by reducing the need for electric lighting. However, the major concern with saving energy is not that the artificial lights get switched on; it is that they do not get…
This graph shows how roof light areas will affect illumination levels. In this example for a single storey building located in London, between the hours of 6am and 6pm daily, with roof lights providing 50% light transmission. You can see that as the roof light area along the bottom of the graph increases, the length…