BLOG | Rapid Evolution of Modern Masonry Techniques Improves Building Sustainability

A building product’s environmental credentials do not necessarily stand and fall on the amount of carbon it emits during use or in situ. Some solutions, such as brick slip lintels, and brick on soffit systems have evolved to speed up and simplify traditional construction techniques, an outcome that delivers significant sustainable benefits by reducing onsite labour times and cost. Kyle Alexander, Project and Engineering Manager at IG Masonry Support, highlights the additional ways in which its high-performance masonry support range helps projects meet environmental targets whilst facilitating evermore imaginative, attractive building designs.

Masonry is a classic and timeless building material that achieves superior, maintenance-free results. Utilising masonry in prominent areas can be essential to delivering an architect’s overall vision, or fulfilling a client’s brief to ensure a project remains in keeping with the local surroundings. Thanks to the evolution of brick slip lintel systems, for example, such design intentions can be achieved more effectively, rapidly and sustainably than ever before.

Time and energy saver

Brick slip systems are adaptable to suit any masonry-based application. They are particularly ideal for small openings over window heads and delivering effortless results spanning an entrance of a commercial building.

Creating intricate masonry details with prefabricated brick-slip solutions such as those supplied by IG Masonry Support results in an estimated 90%-time reduction in comparison to traditional on-site methods. As well as the time-saving factor, there are many other benefits associated with a brick slip system’s offsite production, from improved construction efficiencies and reduced on-site waste, through to minimal site impacts due to the fit-and-forget design.

Environmentally conscious approach

According to the Climate Change Council, the built environment contributes around 38% of the UK’s total carbon footprint. The construction industry needs to reduce emissions by 60% by 2030 and a further 10% by 2040 to meet the government’s Net Zero target. Hence, the building sector is taking an increasingly conscious approach when it comes to supplier and material selection.

Reliable and compliant with building regulations, IG Masonry Support’s brick on soffit system B.O.S.S A1 provides a perfect illustration of how sustainability and performance synergise in high-quality products. The prefabricated B.O.S.S A1 is supported by carbon neutral classification, which along with its A1 fire-rated finish, provides an ideal complement to its ability to create safe, spectacular brick soffits through fast, efficient installation. The unit’s lightweight composition is key to its easy handling; its composite material manufacture makes it 70% lighter than equivalent concrete units. This eliminates the need for mechanical lifting, thus a useful aid to ensuring building projects meet environmental targets.

Case study: The Canal Turn, Nottingham

The Island Quarter, a £650m mixed-use development in Nottingham, offers an ideal example of how the prefabricated nature of brick-on-soffit units is crucial to achieving complex design configurations safely, effectively, and sustainably. IG Masonry Support was selected to design and manufacture 19 Brick Slip Arches for the Canal Turn, the first of three building phases to be delivered for the Island Quarter project.

The greatest challenge in respect of the arches’ delivery was coordinating the brickwork design of two deep-soffit arches, which were required to meet at a 90-degree angle at the structure’s ground-level corner. To achieve this, a half-arch solution combined with a B.O.S.S A1 deep-soffit system, facilitated the return of brickwork on the arches’ soffit whilst completing obscuring unsightly steelwork. The prefabricated B.O.S.S A1 system ensured the Canal Turn corner arches were an identical fit, resulting in a finish that earned a praiseworthy testimonial from installing contractor Gareth Williamson, former Project Manager at Lee Marley Brickwork.

Speaking of the project, Lee said: “IG Masonry Support’s method of using stainless steel in the arches proved ideal in getting them to site and installed using safe working methods. The B.O.S.S A1 deep soffit units are so much lighter than other products on the market, making it a lot easier for the arches to be lifted into position. The arches look great and when the Canal Turn building’s lit up, it looks amazing.”

As the Island Quarter development demonstrates, the evolution of masonry support elements such as brick slip lintels and brick on soffit systems have become essential to expanding the use of one of the world’s oldest, most reliable building materials in evermore exciting – and less impactful – ways.

BLOG | Prefabricated masonry techniques elevate brick’s status as a sustainable building material

Brick is one of the world’s most sustainable building materials. Reliable, durable, and recyclable, bricks’ evolution as a low-impact product has been hastened by the introduction of increasingly innovative masonry support systems. As Jemma Ison (Keystone Group Sustainability Manager and IG Masonry Support Specification Executive) highlights, these prefabricated techniques have not only expanded the architect’s palette in terms of brickwork design, they have advanced and simplified the build process to give bricks a sustainable advantage over other established materials.

Masonry is a classic and timeless building material that achieves superior, maintenance-free results. Utilising masonry in prominent areas can be essential to delivering an architect’s overall vision, or fulfilling a client’s brief to ensure a project remains in keeping with the local surroundings. Brick Slip Systems are adaptable to suit any application. Ideal for small openings over window heads but also deliver effortless results spanning an entrance of a commercial building. Whatever the desired finish, IG Masonry Support‘s prefabricated units provide high-quality results at low environmental impact.

Time and energy saver

The average time it takes to create intricate masonry details with prefabricated brick slip solutions is estimated to reduce time by 90% in comparison to traditional onsite methods. As well as the time-saving factor there are many other benefits associated with offsite production, from improved construction efficiencies and reduced onsite waste to minimal site impacts due to the fit-and-forget design. Furthermore, a prefabricated unit is produced in line with manual handling guidelines. Therefore, designed to be easily managed and handled onsite. This eliminates the consumption of any fuel or electricity needed to aid the installation process.

Skills shortage

Whilst highlighting the direct and indirect sustainable benefits of these prefabricated methods, it is also a recognised challenge that traditional techniques require the services of a highly-skilled bricklayer. In the current climate, this might not be an appointment that is easy to secure. The bricklaying sector, as with the construction industry as a whole, is in the midst of a well-publicised skills shortage. Indeed, the Construction Skills Network (CSN) has forecast a need for 1,450 more bricklayers per year over the next five years to help fulfil UK building projects. Therefore, it could mean an appropriately-qualified bricklayer travelling many miles to work on a particular project, a journey that would incur additional fuel consumption and environmental impacts.

Natural hindrances to efficient brick detailing 

When it comes to achieving intricate brick details, a building site is far from the ideal environment. Poor weather can hamper high-quality workmanship and build consistency. This can lead to reworks and additional project time, cost, and material waste. Whereas offsite manufacture takes place in a controlled environment, enabling products such as brick slip systems to be produced with greater skill and accuracy.

Safe and adaptable solution  

Due to their A1 fire-rated finish, IG Masonry Support’s prefabricated brick slip products provide peace of mind to specifiers due to their reliability and compliance with building regulations. The product range includes the company’s ultra-lightweight brick on soffit system, B.O.S.S A1. A component building part, the product’s superb performance is supplemented by its sustainable credentials, which are supported by its carbon neutral classification. In addition, IG Masonry Support’s Brick Slip Arches have increased design options for architects looking to use masonry in evermore striking and imaginative ways. Manufactured offsite, the Brick Slip Arches are bespoke designed to order, and delivered to site replete with brick slips adhesively bonded to a stainless-steel unit. These lightweight units facilitate fast and efficient installation and integrate seamlessly with brickwork constructed onsite.

The Canal Turn_Summary Image_IG Masonry Support Web

Environmental Product Declarations

IG Masonry Support is committed to becoming a net-zero carbon business in line with the Science Based Targets. Its adoption of Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) is further evidence of its sustainable ambition. The company is the UK’s first masonry support supplier to issue EPDs on its products, thus providing full transparency of their environmental impact. The declarations are in accordance with GreenBook Live EPD system.

A Type III environmental label, an EPD is generated using data obtained through Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). This is performed via a peer reviewed Product Category Rules document (PCR) in line with EN 15804 (the European Standard for the generation of EPD for construction products), ISO 14025, and other related international standards.

Dual benefit

In terms of their installation, IG Masonry Support is the only UK manufacturer to offer a solution that has dual security using an A1 fire-rated adhesive as well as a secondary stainless steel mechanical fix, providing safety and added aesthetic consistency.

In short, prefabricated brick slip systems are ideal for wherever an intricate brick detail is required. Their specification and installation are made all the easier and more effective through engagement with a prefabricated brick slip specialist such as IG Masonry Support. The company’s single point of contact controls the design, pricing, and manufacturing process, providing tentative support and expert communication throughout a project.

Quality, consistency, and greater sustainability are the ultimate outcomes of the correct specification of prefabricated brick slip solutions, which are gaining in popularity as developers and architects look to expand the use of one of the world’s oldest, most reliable building materials.

OneSilkStreet_IGMasonrySupport_ListingImages

BLOG | Evolution of masonry support solutions helps put a stylish new face on public buildings

Reliable, weather-resistant, and age-proof brick remains an ideal building material. Innovation, in terms of masonry techniques, means brick can be used in evermore inventive ways, allowing a solid, stylish finish to homes and a range of buildings. Here, Scott Denham, Sales Director at IG Masonry Support, looks at how manufacturing expertise and design technology are bringing a new look to traditional brickwork.

Due mainly to its consistent shape, compressive strength and ability to absorb water, many generations of architects have selected brick as their go-to building material. Its popularity hasn’t gone

unchallenged, however, with the past decade or so seeing the emergence of solutions such as cladding. But in keeping with the well-known phrase, ‘form is temporary, class is permanent’, brick is back in vogue as an inspiration to property owners and designers looking to emulate modern interpretations of classic architecture.

Architecturally, the intricate detailing that brickwork enables is without compare. Brick detail in the form of brick soffits, brick feature arches, deep reveals and flying beams continually make for stunning exteriors, enabling architects to create truly unique facades. Brick’s popularity in the UK and Ireland as a tried-and-trusted building source was unrivalled until modern composite cladding systems containing materials such as steel, concrete and aluminium offered a quicker, cheaper route to creating bright, contemporary-looking buildings. Such convenience comes at a cost, however. Aesthetically, modern cladding systems can begin to look tired and dated over time, thus regular and potentially costly maintenance can be needed to upkeep or upgrade them. This brings into question their long-term cost efficiency, but not-so-brick-built facades, which will retain their impressive look many years after their initial construction.

A bespoke solution

At IG Masonry Support, not only do we understand that architects need to be given creative authority over prefabricated brick features, we realise the importance of regulatory compliance and quality.

Achieving deep brick soffits and intricate brick bonds around window heads and openings is quick, easy and cost-efficient to achieve with our Brick On Soffit Systems (B.O.S.S. and B.O.S.S.+). These tailor-made bespoke solutions are designed and manufactured to meet the client’s specification. The systems are highly adjustable, enabling architects to design various shapes and depths of brick soffits whilst accommodating a wide range of bond patterns.

To meet changes to Building Regulations, IG Masonry Support engineered B.O.S.S.+, an A2 fire-rated system suitable for use on projects that require Building Regulations Document B compliance. The second generation of its original B.O.S.S. system, B.O.S.S.+ comprises a stainless-steel framework with a cement particle board backing element to which the brick slips are adhesively bonded and mechanically fixed. In short, this BBA-certified solution ticked the boxes in all of the required areas and was available to the market in 2019.

Not resting on its laurels, IG Masonry Support’s next step was to create a fully non-combustible and carbon-neutral product. The BBA-certified B.O.S.S. A1 system is ‘A1’ fire rated and has been subjected to hygrothermal testing. The product passed the rigorous examination with ease. As well as meeting current fire regulations regardless of the building’s height or purpose, the manufacturing process and environmental impacts will be significantly reduced.

Marlborough Primary School

IG Masonry Support’s B.O.S.S. system was selected as the ideal solution to create a stunning brick detail around large, circular windows, which form part of a major redevelopment at Marlborough Primary School in west London. The window feature, designed in conjunction with the project’s lead architect Dixon Jones, required IG Masonry Support to prefabricate a series of imposing circular-form B.O.S.S. deep soffit systems containing green-glazed slip bricks. The soffits’ shape and colour acknowledge the polychromy of a nearby 1911 Michelin building. In situ, this magnificent brick detailing brings an exciting, creative energy to the refurbished school’s vibrant new learning environment.

marlborough-primary-school

Alison Gingell Building, Coventry University

A new health and science building at Coventry University offers a fine example of how innovative masonry techniques have revolutionised brick’s use as a design accessory. The Alison Gingell Building was created to provide students with ‘world-class facilities’, enabling them to learn in situations that mirror real-life scenarios. Following consultations with architect Broadway Malyan, IG Masonry Support supplied the building’s standout architectural feature: 23 large-scale brick slip fins, which appear throughout the health and science block’s south elevation. The prefabricated fins were designed and manufactured by IG Masonry Support using slip bricks within a brick panel system, which the company developed to allow designers and specifiers to achieve a deeper soffit that blended seamlessly with surrounding brickwork.

Coventry University

Time and cost savings

No matter how ambitious the design, IG Masonry Support’s easy-to-install solutions deliver significant reductions in installation time by up to 90%. Any higher initial costs can be offset by saving time and money in terms of labour. A quality finish that meets the required aesthetics and blends seamlessly with the surrounding brickwork can also be achieved.

As with a beloved work of art, brick is a design classic that will continue to be rediscovered by future generations. It will ensure brick’s relevance to private homes and public buildings that will gain in style but lose nothing in terms of stature and safety by the additional design possibilities it now allows. This is due in part to companies such as IG Masonry Support and their commitment to developing solutions that enable brick, a staple construction material, to be used in ways that fire the imagination of architects and builders alike.

NEWS | International Women’s Day 2023

Today, on International Women’s Day 2023, we celebrate all of our women at IG Masonry Support and we continue to create a culture where women thrive.

We caught up with Faye Mondesir, our People and Culture Partner, who plays an integral role in the expansion of IG Masonry Support’s workforce and their development and wellbeing.


 

What advice would you give to females looking at a career in construction?
The idea that construction jobs are just for men is a complete myth! There is so many opportunities for women within construction whether it be engineering, bricklaying, welding, designing or practical work on live sites. The possibilities are endless.

What are we already doing as a business to ensure career success for women?
Our workforce is made up of 19% of females compared to 12% when I joined the business three years ago. There is no common role for females in the business and it stretches as far as technical detailers, estimating engineers, project engineers, specification and business support functions eg. marketing and finance.

For a number of years we have put a huge focus on partnerships with local schools to engage with students from a young age and showcase the wide range of roles that are available within our business. We also offer work experience and apprenticeships/trainee programmes where students are welcomed and encouraged to take time in each area of our business to see which roles interest them most.

I believe the industry still has a long way to go but it is important that we lead by example to create an inclusive and diverse workplace for our employees and future generations. We absolutely pride ourselves on the opportunities we have available.

Tell us more about why you enjoy working within IG Masonry Support?
As we celebrate International Women’s Day, it’s great to reflect on being part of a business that recognises people have lives outside of work and allows me to balance work and family.

I am both a mother and a carer, but working in a forward-thinking business means that I can coexist and succeed on a professional and personal level.

Happy International Women’s Day!

BLOG | Physical test data removes guesswork from masonry support specification

Masonry support systems have been crucial to improvements in both brick building design and safety. However, until IG Masonry Support drove the development of a new and reliable testing regime, assumption played a large part in the specification of ancillary masonry products for UK projects. So, how does IG Masonry Support’s testing system work, and why is there no uniform regulation regarding masonry support products? Emanuele Scarabino, IG Masonry Support’s R&D Manager explains. 

It’s very difficult to create a design code for masonry support products that can be shared, acknowledged and absorbed by other countries. In Italy and Spain, for example, masonry soffit systems and the like are not widely used due to brick not featuring as prominently within the architecture. Whilst in Britain and Ireland, where brick facades have been prevalent throughout the built environment for many decades, there has been no compelling reason to introduce regulatory testing guidelines because there have been no major issues with masonry support products in buildings.

Consistency is very important when it comes to the testing and design of building products. Without it, assessment methods and maintenance statements are a thing of individual responsibility. Whilst this approach might satisfy the requirements of one structural engineer, it might not be appropriate for another. Without uniform testing data in place, it leads to assumptions being made on a building product’s projected performance. The absence of such detail could lead to incorrect product specification dramatically increasing the risk of failure.

At IG Masonry Support, we developed a physical testing method to ensure the assumptions we made on our products’ performance were correct. In the five years since we devised the process, we’ve carried out more than 1,000 tests. It means if a consultancy engineer enquires as to why a particular masonry support system needs to allow for a specific deflection, we have the data to support our decision.

Test process

Our physical testing method was developed over several months. It’s carried out using a masonry support testing rig, a 2m x 3m steel structure that simulates the strength and response of a 10-storey building. Assessments take place at Queen’s University Belfast Laboratory using UKAS-accredited machinery. Such facilities are ideal for fulfilling IG Masonry Support’s philosophy: ‘test as much as possible in order to prove the assumptions you make’.

In terms of how we apply loads to assess the masonry support’s ‘real-life’ impact via our testing rig, we undertook finite element analysis (FEA) using three different software, the main two being SolidWorks and ANSYS. Through FEA, we identified how to replicate bricks’ weight and density and the optimum way to load them to the testing rig’s top shelf.

The process became the blueprint for hundreds of assessments, the results of which were included in a paper published in conjunction with Queen’s University, Belfast: “Experimental Study of Vertical Deflection on Bracket-Angle Stainless Steel Masonry Support Systems”. To our knowledge it is the first testing-based paper in relation to masonry support. Data and testing images included within the paper have since been shared at conferences hosted by Queen’s University Belfast and the Institution of Structural Engineers.

Software development

The need to develop products and processes that help improve building standards continues to drive us. Hence, we developed bespoke software which stores all of our test results on a single database. We designed the software to be capable of creating the ideal masonry support solution based on a set of key values including wall cavity, concrete slab height and brick density. As well as giving an accurate prediction of our masonry support system deflection, the software is capable of designing all of the other system values around it – the support’s stainless-steel thickness, for example. Will a 5mm or 4mm angle provide enough capacity? Our software will answer that question too, based on a list of stress checks that also include brackets and a range of general fixings.

The software provides a printout of the design specification of each IG Masonry Support product. From deflection estimation to fixing design, clients are provided with an accurate, reassuring summary of the system’s performance backed by test data. Industry reaction has been very positive about our innovation in masonry support test methodology, with associate engineering consultants telling us the system has instilled an additional layer of trust in IG Masonry Support products, compared to our competitors. But our innovation continues. Since we originated the software in 2018, we have carried out more than 50 updates in order to adapt and refine its performance.

IG Masonry Support’s software package benefits our engineers by bringing uniformity to the masonry support design process. It also helps our clients, as it not only selects the best system from a design perspective, it chooses the most cost-effective solution from all the available structurally-safe masonry support designs. Furthermore, the software package is very good news for the construction industry. It proves that our masonry support products are not assigned on assumptions but they have been physically tested setting the foundation for a process that can only improve building standards in terms of safety and design.

BLOG | A holistic approach is key to the construction sector fulfilling carbon zero targets

The delivery of sustainable buildings has been a focus for many years, writes Andy Neal, Managing Director of IG Masonry Support, but with the UK government requiring the country to be net zero by 2050, the need for the construction industry to improve its emissions output has become more acute.

Whilst buildings that offer low energy in-use are critical, the environmental impact of materials and their production is just as important. If manufacturers are to fully take ownership of their sustainable responsibilities, it will require making a holistic assessment of their overall environmental impact. This includes focusing on their day-to-day production processes, which will play a large part in delivering low carbon buildings of the future. Therefore, committing to a companywide approach, rather than focusing solely on the environmental credentials of its products, is integral to a successful carbon zero strategy.

Taking the initiative for product innovation

IG Masonry Support’s carbon zero programme was set up because we as a company wanted to be recognised as a sustainable organisation in our own right, regardless of what other businesses were doing. But it also dawned on us that manufacturers such as ourselves had a big responsibility to innovate the low carbon products the construction industry needed to increase the carbon efficiency of the UK’s future building stock.

Providing a wider range of sustainable products will give builders greater influence when it comes to the reducing environmental impacts of the properties they are creating. This is far from the case, currently. It’s estimated that even major housebuilders have only 1% control over the building process, because everything they build with is supplied by a host of different sources which vary in sustainable composition and performance. Therefore, to build with greater efficiency and consistency, construction companies need to engage with responsible sustainable manufacturers, who in-turn need to innovate products that result in less environmental impact.  Improving building sustainability isn’t a standalone exercise. Individual companies have the capability to control the eco-friendly aspect of their business and products. Ultimately, however, it’s the responsibility of the building supply chain to innovate solutions that provide end users with the best possible chance of creating sustainable buildings.

Sustainable steps

The first major steps in our sustainability journey were taken when we switched to 85% recycled stainless steel and reduced our landfill waste to 0% in 2018. We have continued to take leaps towards achieving our ambitions and more recently became a carbon neutral organisation. This was achieved by enlisting the services of an external body (Carbon Footprint) whose initial task was to clarify how far short we were from our target. Following this assessment, we embarked on an offsetting programme to reduce the business’s CO2 emissions. We further reduced our emissions footprint by changing to a ‘green’ utility supplier and swapping our diesel trucks for an electric fleet. Furthermore, our purchase of less energy intensive fibre laser cutting machinery has also reduced our material waste.

The introduction of our carbon neutral programme coincided with the launch of our B.O.S.S A1. an ultra-lightweight brick on soffit system. As a component building part, its carbon neutral status was important to us. Its certification soon led to the company’s carbon neutral classification in June 2021. Achieving this required us to do our homework to fully establish what carbon neutrality actually consisted of, as well as understand the legislation behind it. For this we recruited a Sustainability Manager from within the company. Having a staff member being trained by external bodies to ensure companies within our group were fully-versed in carbon neutral legislation was an important step for us. Our Sustainability Manager now heads-up a team of volunteer staff who meet weekly to discuss ways in which we can progress our net zero ambition.

In terms of our offsetting initiative, rather than simply plant trees, we’ve invested in long-term sustainability energy programmes. Hence, our commitment to wind and solar schemes. Through our acquisition of a gap analysis template, we hope to demonstrate how such schemes are significantly reducing our offsetting requirement less and less each year.

Following the science

Our actions do not stop there, however. We are following Science-Based Targets Methodology, which has achievement parameters of between five and 15 years into the future. This process is being carried out alongside our collaborative workshops with the British Standards Institution, which have helped sculpt a sustainable culture into IG Masonry Support. It’s helped formed an approach to sustainability that focuses on optimising our social, financial and intellectual capital, as well as our environmental wealth. These key elements ensure our strategy is inclusive, reflects our company values and importantly, will be successful. It is our mid-term aim to reduce our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 76% which covers direct emissions from owned or controlled sources, and indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling consumed by the reporting company, respectively.

I believe we attained carbon neutral status sooner than anticipated because of the company’s inherent desire to do the right thing, rather than wait to have measures forced upon us. Whether it’s achieving ISO 9001 certification or matters related to any form of industry compliance, our approach is always the same. We don’t carry out these processes as a box ticking exercise by rushing to get all the paperwork the day before the auditor comes in. We have a dedicated sustainability team set up who are passionate about driving this forward. We do it properly because we want to advance our business’s carbon zero status, the quality of our product and help facilitate a sustainably-built environment for future generations to enjoy.

Check out IG Masonry Support’s Sustainability Journey>>

IGMasonrySupport_CarbonNeutralStatus
Photo caption: IG Masonry Support achieve Carbon Neutral Status (Left to right) Jemma Ison (Keystone Group Sustainability Manager), Kyle Alexander (Project & Engineering Manager), Andy Sharlot (Chief Designer), Andy Neal (Managing Director), Oliver Ball (Operations Manager) and Stephen Jennings (Financial Controller).

NEWS | Awards Success for IGMS

IG Masonry Support are delighted to have produced bespoke brickwork solutions to a number of the winners from the Brick Development Association (BDA) Brick Awards 2021.

The Awards, which took place on Wednesday 10th November 2021, celebrate the very best examples of clay in the UK’s built environment.

A total of 14 projects shortlisted at the annual awards contained IGMS products and four of these projects won their category or were highly commended including:

  • Lambeth Brick Palace Library – Supreme Winner and Public Category Winner
  • Pump House – Small Housing Development Category Winner
  • Catherine Hughes – Education Category Winner
  • St Leonard’s Court – Commended in Urban Regeneration Category

This success signifies the quality of IG Masonry Support products and services and the impact that we have on modern construction and architecture.