Did you Know that windows can affect how long your home furnishings- sofas and interior get old? Nina Petroniva from Alumil Kenya shares her insights on this.
Windows are a vital component of every construction that perhaps isn’t getting enough emphasis as it should towards the cost savings or losses that it will have over the course of a building’s life-cycle.
Almost every home owner makes this as an after thought as with paints and tiles that go at the finishing stage- this has been my experience as a professional in the construction industry over the last 6 years. It is very common for clients to start shopping around for window solutions two weeks before the window installation should be done and let me say that we are not short of Woe stories coming off such rushed plans.
Adoption of energy saving windows
Fortunately, for the building industry in Kenya, there have been good strides made towards the adoption of energy saving windows such as what Alumil Kenya is providing in the market place.
The influx of foreign investors as well as the entry of foreign architects have led to an increase in the appetite for innovative designs and cost savings. Shrewd investors are looking at the options of big upfront investments and then sinking back to relax as they
await the return of investments 7-10 years later unlike people who paid 3 times the
cost of windows by rushing to China to import windows that failed even before the move in.
Aluminium is a definite choice of window material to be used commercially and even for
individual homes. Many big investments carried out in Nairobi have used premium
Aluminium offerings of Alumil Kenya such as the recently expanded Ole Sereni Hotel at the
Southern bypass interchange and the Sarit Centre which is growing to be the commercial hub in Westlands. Without further ado, let us sink our teeth into the delicate meat of this article: the cost savings aspects of using aluminium windows.
By recent statistics of the world, buildings are the biggest consumers of energy; more than
industries and cars. With the rising cost of living index in our cities and the warming up of
the ozone layer- climate change and the sporadic change of weather patterns, even the
tropics will soon experience winters, but are we ready? How resilient are our buildings for
this decade?
Aluminium is first of all a recyclable material. 95% energy savings can be achieved to make
new profiles out of extruded material. In the case of extreme and adverse weather or
catastrophes, Aluminium frames can be salvaged and remade at just about 5% the initial
cost.
It is a light material compared to steel frames. An outstanding strength to weight ration. Its density is 2/3 that of steel at the same strength. Most of the brick and mortar buildings in our country are made of blocks and packs of cement and steel framing, rendering a tall building really unstable. Building designers are careful to include a light solution for windows. Not to say that it would break in strong winds but it will carry heavier glass and still be light and not weigh down the building on its axis.
Aluminium and solar e-glass
Speaking of heavier glass- Glass solutions are complementary to aluminium windows.
Different types and designs of glass can be accommodated into aluminium frames to offer
better comfort and experience in the homes.
Because of this reason; A combination of aluminium and solar e-glass leads to minimal heat transfer to and from the building. This therefore reduces the need to use fans to cool down a warm room during the scorching January heat in areas like Kisumu and neither do you have to warm up a room in the scathing cold months of July in places like Limuru/Nanyuki.
Aluminium windows provide you with the perfect heat like a mom’s hug. That’s it. An Alumil case study of this is Google’s new headquarters in New York City. Google having acquired an old New York port authority with old HVAC system, they bypassed the need to redo the HVAC system at once by installing 5 layers of panes of glass into Alumil aluminium frames and completely ignoring any HVAC system- A definite cost saving.
New York weather is obviously a beast compared to this but the solution to this problem sent the engineers on a worldwide search and they have been happy with the solution since 2008.
Benefits of Aluminium windows
With Solar glass, radiation into a room is reduced, therefore minimizing the aging process of home furnishings like window treatments and furniture through radiation. An aspect that
hospitality establishments have banked on since. Of course aluminium windows offer a
luxurious feel to hotels, they also make up for the cost by maintaining the furnishings as new especially on the North facing sides of the window.
Another benefit of Aluminium windows is reduced sound levels. Living in the city centre, we have to contend with neighbours and their weirdness as well as general congestion and
astounding noise pollution. The trade-off we humans have made instead of waking to the
chirping of birds.
Given the rise of all digital forms of noise in the home, sometimes it is best to chill only to your kind of noise and shut out the world. With a sound reduction of up to 35dB, you can netflix and chill with your people in peace. In another article, we’ll share on the sound pollution case studies.
Have you ever wanted to use aluminium windows but were not sold on it, please comment
below and I will tackle each per case. if you have used aluminium and love the experience
please share with us.
For over 30 years, ALUMIL have designed and developed solutions on a global scale and provide products tailored to the local needs of each market. The accumulated experience of ALUMIL through its engagement in international markets leads to solutions that incorporate state-of-the-art technology and products that are one-of-a-kind.
The extensive network of our subsidiaries around the world, the large number of our privately owned factories and our multiple distribution centers ensure efficient service internationally.
