Ben Parker, Major Projects Manager at IKO, talks about how the company’s DfE Building and construction Structure Guide can help designers navigate CF25 roofing requirements, decrease specification danger and deliver certified, high-performance education buildings.
In association with
Silverwood SEND School in Wiltshire(image: Horizon Imaging). As the Department for Education’s Construction Structure (CF25)reshapes how school structures are obtained and provided, greater emphasis is being placed on standardisation, compliance and long-term efficiency. For architects, this brings both clarity and intricacy, especially when it comes to interpreting technical requirements and translating them into robust, buildable requirements.
IKO’s DfE Construction Structure Guide has been established to support this procedure, offering a clear, practical route through the framework’s roofing requirements. Ben Parker, Major Projects Supervisor at IKO, in conversation with Architecture Today’s Technical Editor John Ramshaw, discusses how the guide assists task teams align with CF25, reduce risk and ensure that roof perform as planned from style through to shipment.
IKO DfE CF25 Compliance Pack. What is IKO’s DfE Construction Structure Guide, and what are you aiming to assist architects and project teams accomplish through it? IKO’s DfE CF25 Compliance Guide is a practical style phase tool that brings together the roofing requirements of the framework into a clear, functional format for architects, specifiers and project groups. The goal is to support early choice making and assist groups establish roof designs that are certified, coordinated and robust from the start. It concentrates on minimizing obscurity around performance, compliance and combination, particularly in locations such as thermal effectiveness, wetness control, fire and environmental performance, so projects can be provided right very first time. Notably, it likewise helps groups understand how roofing adds to broader structure targets, consisting of whole-life efficiency and carbon-related outcomes, which are ending up being significantly central to style decisions.
How does the guide analyze the requirements of CF25, particularly Section 2.3 (Roofing Systems), in a manner that is useful at design stage?Section 2.3 defines the efficiency requirements for roofs, but it is not structured as a style tool. The guide translates these requirements into a more functional format by organising them into essential style considerations such as drain, thermal continuity, fire efficiency, condensation risk, sturdiness, and combination with PV and green roofings. It also presents a compliance matrix and system mapping method, enabling groups to rapidly understand how various roof types line up with specific stipulations. This is especially important at RIBA Stages 2 to 4, where early choices have the best influence on compliance, expense and programme. IKO Elements bio-solar roofing system.
What are the essential concepts the guide promotes when defining roof for education buildings?The guide promotes 3 essential principles: Performance-led design
- , ensuring the roofing fulfills all practical requirements, consisting of thermal, fire, acoustic and moisture efficiency.
- Long-term durability, prioritising systems that align with the design life of the building and decrease lifecycle intervention.
- Early factor to consider of whole-life and ecological efficiency, including embodied carbon, biodiversity, and combination with eco-friendly innovations from the outset.
In education jobs, where buildings are expected to carry out dependably over decades, this method reduces danger while supporting the DfE’s sustainability and carbon targets.
How does the guide assistance a ‘right first time’ approach to design, specification and delivery?
The guide supports a best first-time approach by dealing with key roof considerations at the earliest phases of style, where spec risk is often highest. It provides a clear compliance structure, aligns choices with RIBA phases and Structure Security Act entrances, and makes sure that key performance requirements are addressed before technical design is fixed. This is enhanced through defined QA procedures, consisting of approved specialist setup, inspection stop points, and electronic leakage detection, so the installed system reflects the initial design intent.
IKO Permatec LI Anti-Root hot melt system. Can you explain the function of the compliance matrix, and how it helps teams navigate CF25 requirements?
The compliance matrix is designed to streamline what is otherwise a complex set of technical requirements. It maps each clause within Section 2.3 against system efficiency, providing groups a clear, at a glance understanding of compliance across areas, such as life span, thermal efficiency, airtightness, fire classification, and environmental criteria. This lowers the requirement to translate several files in seclusion and offers confidence that the proposed spec aligns with the structure from the start.
How does the guide address important areas, such as fire security, thermal and acoustic efficiency, toughness and environmental requirements?
These locations are dealt with through a collaborated performance-led approach, consisting of:
- Fire security systems designed to accomplish compliance with Approved File B requirements.
- Thermal efficiency designs attaining U-values of 0.12 W/m TWO K and airtightness targets in line with CF25.
- Acoustic performance lined up with BB93, with additional benefits from green roofing and bio solar systems.
- Durable systems developed for long life span, supported by BBA accreditation and robust QA processes.
- Environmental performance, including low-embodied carbon systems, biodiversity improvements, and renewable combination.
A crucial part of this is how roof contributes to the DfE’s embodied carbon targets. Under CF25, the total embodied carbon cap is 550 kgCO2e/m TWO, alongside a requirement to report and achieve a minimum level of biogenic carbon sequestration of a minimum of 20 kgCO2e/m ². IKO Permatec LI, in addition to IKO’s other roof, can be examined as part of that wider estimation, with product-specific data readily available to support project evaluations Utilizing third-party accredited EPD’s.
As laid out in the guide, IKO Permatec LI provides extremely low embodied carbon of around 1.06 kgCO2e/m two and confirmed biogenic carbon sequestration of around 0.99 kgCO2e/m TWO. While small in isolation, this contribution is considerable at a system level and shows how even waterproofing layers can play a role in supporting overall building carbon efficiency, which is frequently neglected at style phase.
IKO Roofgarden enhanced bituminous membrane system. In what methods does the guide support compliance with the Building Safety Act and the ‘golden thread’of info throughout RIBA phases? It is structured to line up directly with RIBA phases and Structure Security Act gateways, guaranteeing that compliance is both achieved and evidenced throughout the project lifecycle. It supports the golden thread by supplying clear, traceable info from early spec through to setup, evaluation, and handover, including efficiency data, site setup records, and maintenance assistance. This supports the golden thread concept by encouraging a more constant record of design intent, performance requirements, technical decisions, assessment activity and maintenance info.
Where do you most commonly see danger or unpredictability emerge in DfE roof specs, and how does the guide assistance alleviate this?
Danger most typically occurs at early design phases, particularly where roofing system build-ups are not fully solved or where performance requirements are thought about in isolation. Normal locations consist of fire performance of total system build-ups, combination of PV and green roofings, and misalignment between style intent and installation. Modular construction needs to be evaluated far more carefully if the modules are being constructed off-site. There is likewise increasing uncertainty around how various components add to embodied carbon targets, particularly where components like waterproofing are often presumed to have a minimal impact. The guide addresses this by supplying clear, system-based options and by highlighting where even small contributions, such as biogenic carbon within waterproofing, can support wider compliance with DfE carbon targets.
IKO technical engineer on site.
How do IKO’s roof and waterproofing systems line up with the efficiency requirements set out in CF25?IKO’s systems are designed to fulfill or surpass the efficiency requirements set out in Area 2.3, subject to project-specific design, specification and application. Across enhanced bituminous membranes, hot used liquid, and single ply systems, this includes style life compliance, thermal efficiency, achieving required U-values, airtightness targets, external fire performance, and acoustic and environmental compliance. In addition, systems such as IKO Permatec LI add to both embodied carbon decrease and biogenic sequestration targets, supporting compliance with the DfE’s wider environmental structure.
What technical assistance, tools or project-specific assistance can architects anticipate from IKO when dealing with education tasks within the framework?IKO can supply
a completely incorporated technical and project support deal across all project phases. This includes early-stage design and spec support; system choice and technical detailing; condensation danger analysis and wind uplift estimations; embodied carbon and biogenic carbon data where needed; and on-site evaluations and compliance documentation. Each task is supported by a dedicated account supervisor who collaborates technical, industrial and website support, guaranteeing a consistent and joined-up approach from concept through to completion.
Contact Details
For more information, please call 01257 255771, e-mail or check out the IKO website.Click here to download the IKO CF25 Compliance Guide via the IKO Frameworks Portal.