Across
all its key activities, JS HAY has in-house expertise available to
assess energy and sustainability requirements. By working closely with clients,
often from the earliest design stage, the company can advise on possible
implications and incorporate any changes straight away, significantly cutting
the need to consult externally.
JS HAY's own energy assessor is an
accredited OCDEA (On Construction Domestic
Energy Assessor) and can therefore issue the EPC (Energy Performance
Certificates) required for sales packs and Building Control.
Level 3 CSH (Code for Sustainable Homes),
has set challenging standards in the house building sector, covering a range of
issues that include both energy and water. There are, of course, a number of
ways of achieving these requirements, and each project needs to be assessed on
its own merits, especially where ‘renewables’ are required.
JS HAY has significant, successful experience in providing renewable
energy sources such as; Ground & air source heat pumps.
- Solar heating.
- PV (photovoltaic) panels.
- Wood pellet burners.
- Wind turbines.
The
company looks continuously at new and more efficient ways to build. For
example, its current preferred MMC (Modern Method of Construction) involves the
use of thin-joint block work, creating numerous benefits in terms of both speed
during the construction phase and thermal performance once buildings are
occupied. Yet JS HAY still works comfortably with timber frame systems,
where block work may be inappropriate and insulation levels need to be
extremely good, to comply with CSH level 4 for example. Here we would consider
using a SIP (Structural Insulated Panel)
system or an open panel system with insulation between the studs, both have
their own advantages in the right circumstances.
As well as taking care to ensure that its buildings reduce their ongoing impact
on the environment once they are in use, JS HAY is also fully committed
to delivering environmentally responsible practices in all its day to day site
operations.
The company's buyers are sensitive to the wider environmental issues
surrounding the sourcing of building materials, such as where the material
originates and how far it needs to be transported. Similarly, JS HAY
takes seriously all its statutory obligations relating to SWMPs, (Site Waste Management Plans),
which typically involve the separation of different types of waste material on
site with safe disposal or pre-determined re-use.