Salamander Street, Edinburgh

Salamander Street is a mid-market rent initiative that provides high quality affordable homes in the heart of Leith, Edinburgh. It comprises 199 flats and maisonettes across six storeys of accommodation, constructed over a basement car park.

It was designed by 7N Architects, which specified Knauf Insulation’s 50mm Rocksilk® RainScreen Slab to insulate the ventilated façade. They chose this product because it met the brief’s two critical performance factors: thermal performance and fire safety.

It is a Rock Mineral Wool insulation slab with a thermal conductivity of 0.034W/mK, so it delivers the required U-value of 0.16 W/m2K. It is non-combustible with the best possible Euroclass A1 reaction to fire classification and is BBA certified for use in a wide range of build-ups in high rise buildings. This means it complies with Building Regulations in Scotland that restrict the use of combustible materials on most buildings over 11m.

The Salamander Street development was overseen by main contractor Cruden Building East with sub-contractor Soundtex responsible for installing the insulation.

It was constructed using an Ancon Brick Restraint System. Ancon has undertaken independent third-party tests to demonstrate that its restraint system does not require a compression sleeve when used in conjunction with Rocksilk® RainScreen Slab under 180mm thick. This provided a huge saving in labour costs for Soundtex as fasteners are usually inserted into compression sleeves by hand.

Throughout the build, Knauf Insulation’s Specification Team attended regular project meetings and conducted site visits to check the quality and progress of installation. Rocksilk® RainScreen Slab is optimised for ease of installation and improved robustness, making it easy to manoeuvre into position. At Salamander Street, the Specification Team noted the uniformity of installation and perfectly staggered joints. This is important because it ensures there are no gaps, which could reduce thermal and acoustic performance – a common issue with rigid foam board insulation.

Rocksilk® RainScreen Slab is manufactured with ECOSE® Technology, Knauf Insulation's unique bio-based binder that contains no added formaldehyde or phenol. It is made from natural raw materials that are rapidly renewable and is 70% less energy-intensive to manufacture than traditional binders, so it is more environmentally friendly.

Products made with ECOSE® Technology are soft to touch and easy to handle. They generate low levels of dust and VOCs and have been awarded the Eurofins Gold Certificate for Indoor Air Comfort.

The Rocksilk® RainScreen Slab insulation was installed in conjunction with Knauf Windliner sheathing board for maximum performance.

Thanks to Knauf Insulation, the residents of Salamander Street will enjoy warm, cosy homes that meet the highest standards of fire safety.