The pro clima ‘INTELLO’ airtight system supplied in the UK by Ecological Building Systems has been certified as a Passivhaus component to the highest phA component standard following the best airtightness test results ever achieved by any airtightness membrane system.
Accredited in the air tightness/surface air sealing category, the INTELLO airtight membrane has been certified in combination with pro clima self-adhesive sealing tapes, ‘Tescon Vana’ and Contega Solido SL’ as a complete air tightness system suitable for use as a component in any Passivhaus project.
Joints formed using the INTELLO membrane and tapes were tested under standard boundary conditions by the Passive House Institute and the installed system’s air permeability per unit area was recorded. The baseline requirement for phA - the highest level of certification – is ≤0.10 @50 Pa [m3/(hm2)] and the pro clima INTELLO air tightness system exceeded this significantly with a test result that demonstrated air permeability of just 0.01m3/(hm2).
Comments Niall Crosson from Ecological Building Systems: “The pro clima INTELLO system has already been used on a wide variety of Passivhaus projects around the world that have exceeded Passivhaus standards. However, certification as a phA Passivhaus component gives specifiers an extra level of assurance that the system will provide their project with the very highest standards of air tightness performance.
“INTELLO is one of a wide range of proven high performance, environmentally-focused building technologies within our product range at Ecological Building Systems, all of which have been hand-picked to enable our customers to design and build more functional and thermally efficient buildings. We’re delighted that INTELLO has achieved such outstanding test results as part of the Passivhaus certification process, demonstrating its value as part of a fabric first approach to energy efficient specification.”
The Passivhaus certification for the INTELLO system follows BBA accreditation in January 2015 and the system also has NSAI (National Standards Authority Ireland) certification in Ireland and is the only DIBt (Deutsches Institut für Bautechnik) accredited intelligent airtight membrane in Germany. It is also the only airtightness system with tapes that are proven to have a life expectancy of at least 100 years, as verified by the University of Kassel in Germany.
As an independent authority, the Passive House Institute tests and certifies products for their suitability for use in Passive Houses and certified products are comparable in terms of their specific values. This aids the designer in specifying Passive House projects with excellent functionality.
