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Swan eyes steel alternative after CLT caught by post-Grenfell ban
A housing association with its own offsite factory has revealed it will look to use a steel-framed system on buildings over 18m after cross-laminated timber (CLT) fell foul of a government ban.
Essex-based Swan, which opened its factory in Basildon in 2017, has been forced to move away from CLT after admitting to Inside Housing a year ago that it would change its approach due to the post-Grenfell ban on combustible materials.
As CLT is combustible, it is banned for use in the external walls of buildings 18m or higher due to regulations introduced in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster.
Swan, which operates around 11,000 homes across the South East of England, has a “significant pipeline” of projects featuring buildings over 18 metres, a spokesperson said, including in Purfleet and Southend-on-Sea.
“We are exploring a steel-framed alternative approach to ensure we can continue to benefit from offsite construction to improve quality, decrease construction times and create sustainable homes,” the spokesperson added.
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However, the group said it will continue to use CLT on buildings below 18 metres as it believes it is “one of the best products to utilise in residential construction”.
The spokesperson added: “The reasons we chose to use CLT initially – design flexibility, environmental sustainability, energy efficiency, fire and acoustic performance – still apply.”
Swan has 700 homes planned where it said it intends to use CLT.
Other modular housing manufacturers which use CLT have also been forced to change their plans. Last month, Legal & General confirmed to Inside Housing that it is working on a hybrid of concrete and steel frame as an alternative to CLT on tall buildings.
Last year, Lendlease said it would adhere to the ban, but said it planned to continue using CLT in developments around the world as it offered a “range of benefits”.
CLT was used on Australia’s tallest and largest engineered timber office, 25 King in Brisbane, and at International House in Sydney, the company said. It has also been used on building new military housing in the US.
