External Regeneration of the Flamsteed Estate

The Challenge

Cornerstone was appointed by main contractor United Living to complete insulation works to nine medium rise residential blocks for end client the Royal Borough of Greenwich in 2019.  

Our external wall insulation package was part of a larger programme of refurbishment works including rising and lateral mains, emergency lighting, window replacement, heating renewal and solar PV installation.  The purpose of the works was to refurbish the blocks and improve their energy efficiency.    

The programme of works received funding from the EU’s ‘Sharing Cities’ programme as well as from the council’s capital budget.  

The main challenges of the project were the demanding programme, the complexity of the design and the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Our Solution

Cornerstone worked closely with our manufacturer partners to develop appropriate design details for each block; due to the nature of their construction, a significant amount of detailing was required to meet planning requirements.  

We installed Wetherby Stone Wool Silicone External Wall Insulation System on the masonry substrate.  The 100mm Stone Wool insulation system was completed with either their HECK Silicone ‘K’ 1.5mm product to provide a textured render finish or a 7mm brick slip solution to replicate the original façade.

The works were undertaken with all residents in situ, and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with works temporarily suspended from March 2020.  Despite this interruption and the challenge of coordinating our work with various other subcontractors, the EWI was installed to the highest quality standards.

The Result

Cornerstone completed our element of the works in 2022, having worked on the nine blocks concurrently at the peak of the scheme.  The EWI was applied to walls, balconies, walkways and external staircases across the three and four storeys buildings, with the mixture of textured render and brick-slips achieving a clean and modern refresh of the façade.

Our remit was also extended to include the installation of additional loft insulation in eight of the nine blocks, bringing them up to compliant depth of 300mm.  A number of brickwork repairs and render only applications were also undertaken on the instruction of our client.  

Our client, the council and residents alike were delighted with the visual effect of the new insulation, as well the tangible improvement in the warmth and thermal efficiency of the properties within the blocks.