Norman Davison says: Further thoughts :-

It has been picked up by Rob and by Roger that Education is the Key, I agree 100% , But how do you shift a whole culture ?

The reality is that we are a carbon based Society ! If we go into full reverse, we will simply achieve what the Egyptians achieved when they stopped building pyramids. Total bancruptcy within one generation.

I believe that the first place to look for energy savings is through improved effiency of existing structures .

The second place to look is reducing the cost of the production method.

The third place to look is through the improved efficiency of existing machines

NWD/1

Paul Jacobson says: Interesting. The short pitch makes it difficult to follow what these are used for. The basic premise, as a I understood it, is that you are using less material to fabricate these SIPS and EIFS. So the improvement comes from less usage of raw materials, and maybe some energy savings? You also mention calcified seaweed, are your coatings less environmentally toxic in some way?
Have I correctly understood your sales pitch?

Norman Davison says: NWD/Paul Jacobson.

60 Seconds is impossible to explain anything technical .

To understand the significance of my process, you have to understand the huge impact that the ink-jet had on the printing industry . It took printing from an expensive specialised arcane proces and put DTP in the handsof any one who could afford a basic PC.
(Because of the importance of this proces I do not intend to keep it in house I intend to licence it widely,to interested parties at a low cost.)

The Sand jet does exactly the same . It permitsthe following materials to be placed in a thin film on to any suitable substrate. Cement, reconstituted limestone, gypsum, silicates, PPC.

By acurately placing these materials which are in the range of 500-750 microns, high tensile thin films can be created . (Masive reduction in consumables.

If this is used on XPS substrates , we now combine light weight with high strength.
( Think surfboard and you have got it . think banana plant structure )
Energy consumtion of the sandjet 5 my curent model is 350mili watt.
This is much, much less than conventional (and inaccurate ) projection coating . which leaves more material on the floor and the operator than on the work in hand. ( and Bob the builder has never been good at producing a very accurate liquid composition for guniting or for that mater casting.

The most powerfull argument against SIPS has been that they require additional work at the finishing stage of a building, which negates their 40% cost advantage .
With the advent of my high tensile (Moncoque) finished SIP this is no longer a valid argument

For a more detailed History and advantage of SIPS in terms of energy please go to my website. http://nwdavison.magix.net/website

Hope this answers your questions Paul

Norman Davison

Norman Davison says: NWD/4
Frequently not asked qestions

I dont understand why you want insulation on the exterior of buildings ?

this is a good question and is typical of what Bob the builder is doing wrong.

from a heat transfer ( read heat loss/heatgain to thebuilding ) it is more effective to insulate the exterior . You would not insulate the inside of a pipe, you would insulate the exterior.
Animals including us wear coats on the outside not the inside.

From a heat hold up perspective, The high density materials should form the interior of a building and the low density materials should form the exterior ( again sorry Bob but you are doing it the wrong way.)

From a control perspective for the heating cooling systems of the building .
high heat hold up means fewer cutin's and cut outs per hour .
Every time an electric motor cuts in it takes up to 7 times its normal power, until it reches equilibrium. ( This becomes accumulative. then multiply it by the millions of homes, offices, shops etc. it is a huge amount of power wasted)

I come back to basics the first place to save energy->reduce KW's ->reduce generating emmissions is through improved efficiency , not through exotic solutions, which have huge unseen cost of set up.

Norman Davison

Norman Davison says: Norman Davison Says NWD/4

Frequently not asked questions

I don't understand why you want exterior insulation on buildings, what is wrong with internal insulation ?

this is a realy good question !

From a heat transfer perspective ( read heat loos/heat Gain) it is more effective to have the insulation on the outside of the building.
You do not insulate the inside of a pipe, you would insulate the outside.
All surface animals including humans wear coats on the outside not the inside.
From a heat hold up perspective High density material should be placed on the inside, and low density material on the outside . Again sorry but Bob the builder has got it all wrong.

From a control perspective high heat hold up , means less cut ins and cut outs per hour.
Every time an electric motor starts it uses up to 7 times its normal power till it has come to equilibrium.
This becomes accululative, then multiply it by the billions of homes offices, and shops on the planet..... It becomes a huge amount of wasted power

I come back to basics . THE FIRST PLACE TO SAVE ENERGY->Reduce KWs->reduce generating emmisions IS THROUGH IMPROVED EFFICIENCY not through exotic solutions which have huge hidden costs

Norman Davison

claire williamson says: I like the idea fo SIPS, but have you actually built anything yet using this technology and if so what time frame does it take?

Norman Davison says: Norman Davison says
thank you for your most perceptive question .

Yes I have built 3 small pilot buildings (gratis) to date each time testing a differnt eco material.

The first was an extension to my own garage using timberframe and 25mm thick panel of my 'p-crete formula this was actually a castable .
this was 7 years ago. when I first started getting interested in structural insulated panels. to date there has been no deterioration.

the second building was a workshop for my brother in law, the panels used were again timber frame lime-/ cement polystyrene mix, castable
this was 5 years ago .
to date there has been no signs of cracking spalling or delamination, and strangely has no signs of moss.

My last building was an aviary, part closed build ing part open . This was for my next door neighbours design using one of my latest SIPs and latest coatings. Backplane was plywood, insulation substrate was low density polystyrene. and the coating was2.5 mm thick ,using fiber-glass mesh reinforced. polymer modified cement , and application was by my latest version of the sandjet material coating machine . this was last September.

To dated there have been no surface problems .

Later this year I will do a full scale extension to my Finca in Alcoy Spain in order to validate my latest SIP U-2001 A and 2001B . these use similar technology but are reinforced every 18" using steel chanel . I cant say too much about this one other than the panel dimension of the A is 8 'by 6'6 and weighs an incredible 25 kg.. the panel is currently bing Nascopied by my lawyer .

What time frame does it take to erect a high tensile SIP building, including assembly of the prefabricated base p-base 1801 , 1 day . internal finishing is another mater I am a bit slow on that aspect .

Hope that aswers your question .

If you have more detailed techncal questions, which are not proprietory please contact me privately at nwdavison@hotmail.com.

Norman Davison

Norman Davison says: Structulates reduce CO2.

First lets define what a structulate is ?

A structulate is a highbrid stong material ,made from a weaker insulating material and combines both qualities, strength and insulation.

It is clear fromm the responses that the mechanism of C02 reduction is not clarified for most people .

Heat loss from buildings is a total waste of energy from buildings Heat gain in buildings is a total wast of energy from the airconditioning systems which cool the building .

This heat loss/Gain has to be paid for in kw's of electrical power.
the power generation produces combustion - this increases CO2 in the atmosphere.

The only way to break this wasteful loop is for insulation to become the defining parammeter for our homes, our offices and our factories . Insulation must move to the top of the list where buildings are concerned .

Historically insulation has b een added to buildings as an afterthought, this must stop. But how ?

I passionatley believe that the answer is in Structulates , Insulation is not sexy, it is not nice to handle, it goes soggy in the wet. it looses its refractory qualities. it has no mechanical strength.

We must stop this kind of thinking right now, we must turn insulation into a prper building material which can be applied in any conditions in any place on the planet.

We must turn insulation into granitics, we must turn insulation into lime stones, we must turn insulation into stucco, tyrolean, other decorative cement finished surfaces Then we must put them on our buildings.

This is the only way we can make insulation sexy in the publics mind. That is why from now on I will no longer be reffering to SIPS or EIFS, since the man in the street hasn't a clue what these things are.

I believe that Structulates are the right way forward !




PS we must also start to define what constitutes an eco structulate and what dosn't

Peter Allington says:
Are your prefabricated building panels suitable for extreme conditions ?

From your website, what exactly do you mean by ' I have kept automation to a minimum '
My own experience, with my clients, is that they expect a PLC as a minimum for control purposes .

I have some doubt regarding your business model , of licensing the technology to 3rd parties .
Direct licensing of engineering, before productuion, is really not easy

Norman Davison says: I will answer the technical questions first and then the financial question .



Most building materials including bricks are subject to micro-cracking, and surface spalling due to the day night swing, and absorption of water.

To date I have some structulate panels, which have been in service for 7 years, that means 2500 day/ night cycles . ( our lowest UK temperature has been -10 our highest UK temperature would be approximately 30 C.)
There has been no signs of cracking, spalling or delamination of the surface coating..
For higher temperature regimes like Oman or Saudi, I would change the composition of the coating to increase reflection and reduce the solar pick-up . For countries like Russia -27C in winter no change required to the standard composition.

I strongly believe that for small business start ups, the human/machine interface should be kept high .and that simple relay logic works best . adding extra layers of automation is cost prohibitive to the one or two man business. With high levels of automation, you need a systems engineer just to start a pump or a blower .
Also in developing countries the law of diminishing returns kicks in very quickly where automation is concerned. For the moment old friend relay logic, next series of coating machine sand-jet No 6 .......yes definitely PLC .

Your question regarding business model is a little harder to explain, I had better do it when I am fresher in the morning.

Norman Davison says: The business model, i now turn to this very important point.

There are two main methods for achieving rapid buiness growth, to produce a broadly distributed company.

The first is the' freeco' system. Start up a business, own the premisses you are in, then mortgage the premises. Then rent back the premises from the mortgagee. Cash flow greater than debt coverage = happiness.

The cash bundle is then used to buy /build another business outlet. When the new business is generating sufficient cash flow, The process is repeated. This system is welll tried and tested, and is generally favoured by the supermarkets and home retail companies.

The second system for rapid, broad based growth is the franchising system . Where a proven business model, that has demonstrated 'Repeatability', is offered as a complete package to people who wish to escape the employee/security trap in life.
This model is particularly attractive because of the very low failure rate, Plus the all important cash flow is more predictable.

I now come to licensing, the process is very similar to franchising. It is attractive to the person who wants passionately to work for himself, but dosn't want to flip burgers for 16 hours per day in order to get rich., but wants a business that can be grown organically, with a stream of 'new bolt on products' as and when required.

I am preparing a separate article for the discussion forum, on the correct value of licensing, and its positioning in business.

Norman Davison says: Latest Structulate, this is a very exciting monocoque design panel, has just been added to the website - It is the U-2001 A .

Main features Size 8' x 6'6" , substrate LD polystrene/HD XPS polysyrene . Coating polmer modified Cement, reconstituded limestone, reinforced with fiberglass mesh . Total weight including the CS reinforcement chanells 25 Kg . Yes ! That right an unbeleivable 25KG !

Unique selling point - you can errect the skin of the building, ( when used in conjunction with corner panels u-2001B and Prefabricated p-Base.)
before you build the internal skeleton of the building .
This is so useful in certain climates !

Check our new website www.structulates.com

Norman Davison says: 1200hr/28/07/09- I have decided to go back and reserch one of our discarded processes g-crete 101 . which used recycled glass agrgegates as part of the composition .
the cost of aggregates is horrendous plus, particularly the finer aggregates .
So anything which can reduce the input cost has to be good.
Also I am a cheapskate by nature the idea of using a scrap material which other see no use for is very appealing .
The problem i experienced with the recycled glass was that it increased the tensile strength of my coating too much .
I think I see a way round this now, weaken the polymer modification of the mix. .

Norman Davison says: Breakthrough with new handJet material coating machine.

1800hrs/28/07/09 - Testing of the Sandjets baby brother, the handjet a much cheaper version of the material coating machine, progressed well today.

Initial results look very favourable for the more easily affordable handjet, which would be suitable for production in Developing countries specifically Arica.

See Details in the new products section of www.structulates.com

Norman Davison says: Recycle material suitablity - I have been receiving a lot of e-Mails on this point so I will answer generally .

No I had not considered mill-slag from blast furnaces as posible as source of material for bulk material for coatings. Yes it has some refractory qualities. It has excellent thermal shock qualities, and the density is not bad . However I would have to check its crush ability, normally I prefere to buy material in granular form . ( If you send me a 2.5kg sample, marked for customs 'of no Commercial Value -For analysis only ' to my home address' Then I wil test it on a structulate panel.

Turning now to the question of activation and distribution of particles into the adsorbate, Sorry Boris but that is propritory Information.
I come from a Oil/Gas/liquids background ( Newtonian Fluids). It took me a long time to get my head around Non-Newtonian Fluids ( Mayonaise, Custard, Concrete, and powders.) These things are whole different ball game they don't behave rationally.

Norman Davison says:

Structulates reduce energy loss from buildings by 80%.

sorry about that, I forgot to quantify the amount of energy saved. I guess that is kind of important !

Norman Davison says: The question why do we have to switch from liquid hydrocarbons is again surfacing,and it is again clear that people are not clarified as to the reasons.

The so here is the short version, We are running out of the liquid hydrocarbon that has fueled our growth for the last 100 years.

Almost every major oil producing country has peaked . No major oil field has been found in the last 15 years.

We cnnot switch to LNG as an alternative LNG/ to gasoline . Why not ? Because 20% of the worlds population are fed using LNG . ( LNG -> NPK fertilisers -> Huge increase in crops.)
So if we use LNG we will push up the prices of all foods and starve the poor not acceptable..

So that is the crux of the problem.

My mantra is reduce our wasted energy before it is too late .

www.structulates reduce home energy use by 80% .

It would be a start. before to look for the complex solutions, Pick up the ones on the ground first. before to climb up to pick the exotic fruits

Norman Davison says: How do structulates compare with conventional building panels in terms of the energy used in their production ?

Sructulate production is about 95% green in terms of energy cost of production . The application of the bond coat and reinforcement mesh is manual, the build coat is by 8 passes of the sandjet machine at 40 seconds per pass .
The power conmsumption for the sand jet is 350mili watts.

Curing is by natural air current, with a minimum requirement of 8 C for the reaction to go to completion. solar radiant curing can speed up the process to a few hours.

The set up is perfect for low cost start up . And perfect for developing countries.
Contrast this with the conventional method of stream curing concrete . and gas fired heating curing processes

Norman Davison says: Are you using nano-technology to coat your eco panels ?

Not a bad question, we are using micron technology, which is still high tech, but is one scale higher .

Our thin film application technology allows us to , use one material for the initial bond to the substrate, then a second material for the fill coating and then change materials again for the surface coating .

This is achieved using our revolutionary sand jet machine .

to change materials you simply change the cartridges