New construction projects looking to boost efficiency in building practices can reference Morrison Hershfield’s Building Envelope Thermal Bridging Guide. As described in the guide, “thermal bridges are localized areas of high heat flow through walls, roofs and other insulated building envelope components. Thermal bridging is caused by highly conductive elements that penetrate the thermal insulation and/or misaligned planes of thermal insulation. These paths allow heat flow to bypass the insulating layer, and reduce the effectiveness of the insulation.” Reducing thermal bridging not only improves the building envelope performance, but it also mitigates the risk of condensation within the envelope and improves overall resident comfort. The Building Envelope Thermal Bridging Guide offers many solutions to reduce thermal bridging.
New construction projects in the design phase can work with their design team, including architects, installers, and general contractors, to leverage this guide and use best practices to reduce thermal bridging in their building envelope design.
This guide includes scenarios and details about assemblies and insight into how to reduce thermal bridging while keeping up with codes and standards. Readers can expect to learn about the following:
- Window-wall, curtain wall, steel-framed, precast-concrete, wood-framed, mass timber, steel balconies assemblies, and roofing systems
- Information for mitigating thermal bridges at interface details
- Insulation scenarios for walls and roofs
- Examples of new assemblies that align with net-zero building standards