Adding insultation (rockwool) thickness in walls from 150mm to 250mm of rockwool would increase carbon by 3.6 kgCO2/m2.
They can be messy, congested, dirty and chaotic places.But they don’t have to be.
If the construction process can be transformed into the streamlined and predictable assembly of pre-manufactured parts, combined with on-site construction processes that are carefully managed to add the maximum value, much greater productivity can result.. To give a slightly left-field example, consider a circus tent.Typically, these large structures are put up overnight by a small team of trained operatives.In a budget-conscious industry, every hour counts, so assembly is planned to be as quick as possible, and disassembly is just as quick.
It would be even quicker if the tent was pre-erected, of course, but this doesn’t make sense from a transportation and logistics perspective.Instead, they use a component kit-of-parts that is easily handled and takes up very little space during transportation.
A permanent building may have different drivers, but lessons can still be learned from highly efficient on-site works such as the circus tent.. One aim of a fully considered DfMA strategy is to enable smooth running of the construction site.
To create a well-orchestrated assembly line with productive workers carrying out pre-determined, standardised and well-understood tasks in predictable timeframes..The compact shape is predicted to reduce the absolute quantity of materials whilst timber is a material with low embodied carbon which can be ultra-low depending on its end-of-life treatment..
Timber shows its maximum potential if it can be continuously reused at the end of a buildings’ lifecycle.If it is burnt or sent to landfill it will release CO2 and methane to the atmosphere, losing its properties as a heat sink.
In order to enable timber to be continuously reused, the building should be designed for deconstruction.Most Passivhaus buildings have not been designed for deconstruction in part due the complexity of junctions and the need to achieve the required overlapping and airtightness.