Bellway Wins Innovation Award From Isover

The engraved glass trophy was presented to Iain Skeoch, group product development manager for Bellway, at the company’s headquarters by Isover’s innovations manager Gerry Mitchell and regional sales director Martin Panes as well as Dave Baker, chief executive of Robust Details.



Bellway helped to pilot the sustainable RD35 system before it was launched to the housebuilding industry in general 18 months ago and is now nearing roll out to all of the company’s sites throughout the UK.



Iain Skeoch said: “Bellway has always embraced innovation but we have never experienced such an innovative period in housebuilding as we are currently and Isover have been at the forefront on the insulation side.



“At the same time as they first started talking to us about RD35, some of our regional managing directors were requesting an alternative to parging and that goes to show just how badly the system was required and how forward-thinking Isover was.”



Isover launched RD35 as a response to the requirements of the new Part E Building Regulations which required a Robust Detail–approved system to avoid pre-completion testing.



By comparison, all seven previous Robust Detail masonry party wall constructions forced housebuilders to revert to a wet trade internal wall lining, generally involving sand and cement, from the plasterboard-on-dabs method which had been their preferred one for years.



Isover RD35 high-performance acoustic insulation slabs are manufactured from sustainable mineral glass wool and are positioned in the party wall cavity in conjunction with plasterboard-on-dabs drylining, allowing housebuilders to revert to their preferred method of construction.



It is the only Robust Detail-approved alternative to cement-based solutions and as such, it has attracted tens of thousands of plot registrations to date.