Almost half (48%) of specifiers said they expect sustainability measures they are introducing on current newbuilds to be out of date within 15 years, according to a new report from Cedral UK. The report also found architects’ and specifiers’ eagerness to embrace more sustainable building materials for home exteriors is being hampered by a complex regime of safety regulations and poor communication across the supply chain.
Cedral surveyed 250 industry professionals for the Building the Future report, which examines the construction industry’s attitudes towards emerging design trends, sustainability and meeting the UK’s housing needs.
The study highlights some of the key trends within the facade sector, which is working hard to balance the need for creativity, while adhering to new legislation from the Building Safety Regulator.
Cost of materials (65%) and overall cost of construction (62%) were seen as external obstacles to building innovation, as well as a lack of product standardisation (35%) and poor training on sustainable construction principles (34%).
Most respondents (96%) said climate change was changing facade design and specification choices, with 59% saying this affected material choice, 56% placing greater importance on insulation and 41% using surrounding planting. More than one-third of architects now give more consideration to a project’s orientation, given the impact of wind, rain and sun on the building’s performance.
Some 40% of respondents agreed that ‘living facades’ (made from plants and vegetation) was becoming a major trend in urban design. Smart facades (39%), minimalisation (32%) and industrial cladding (29%) were also cited as important developments that would become more popular over the next three years. Nearly one-third (32%) of architects also predicted a return to natural materials such as brick, stone or other low-carbon materials such as fibre cement cladding.
Newbuilds is a major area of expansion identified by the report, which confirms that more than three quarters (77%) of architects expect to see an increase in the number of newbuild projects in the next two years.
However, this rush to new developments should be tempered by the expected rise in refurbishment and retrofit projects. Although just 30% of respondents have noticed an increase in this type of project over the last five years, the trend towards improving the aesthetics and performance of existing buildings is gathering pace.
Around 31% of architects also expect to see more cladding retrofit projects due to the UK government’s ongoing commitment to facade remediation projects among high-rise residential buildings.
Half of respondents said their practices had seen an increased focus on modern methods of construction (MC) over the last five years.