Types of Insulation - a Guide
Outlining some of the different insulation types, and highlighting suitability for your application
Knowledge Article5 min read
Situated just a stone’s throw from Lambeth Palace in a deconsecrated church, the Garden Museum is the only museum in Britain dedicated to the art, design and history of gardens. In 2008, Dow Jones Architects won an architectural competition to redesign the internal layout of the building, creating an innovative cross-laminated timber structure which required no foundation and provided space to house temporary and permanent exhibitions.
LOCATIONLambeth, UK
ArchitectDow Jones Architects
ProductsOPTIM-R Roofing System
Much of the Museum’s collection still had to be kept in storage and so a second phase of redevelopment was therefore planned for a striking bronze clad extension. The OPTIM-R Roofing System was specified to help meet a number of design challenges.
The extension is located above a significant architectural site. To protect this, and the surrounding tree roots, the building has been constructed on a reinforced concrete raft. Consequently, considerable care was taken to minimise weight in all areas of the construction. The project team, which included main contractors Rooff, also adopted a passive-led energy strategy designed to fall within the Church of England’s 2050 sustainability plan and surpass the requirements of the London Plan.
"We had to achieve a 40% improvement on the standard carbon emission targets within Part L. That was a big ask for an extension on a listed building and we knew the insulation specification would play a key role in reaching this. We normally use Kingspan Insulation and we were particularly interested in the super thin OPTIM-R vacuum insulation panels (VIPs) as they would allow us to keep the overall thickness and weight of the roof as low as possible without having to reduce the thermal performance of the layer".
Alun Jones, Partner from Dow Jones Architects
With an aged thermal conductivity of 0.007 W/mK, OPTIM-R VIPs are ideal for constructions with a lack of depth or space. The OPTIM-R Roofing System combines OPTIM-R VIPs with infill panels of the same thickness which can be cut to fill awkward spaces and to allow penetrations through the layer including rooflights and ventilator kerbs.
All OPTIM-R applications come with a supporting design service which ensures the best possible ratio of OPTIM-R VIPs to infill panels, allowing the desired thermal performance to be met with a minimal system thickness — just 50 mm for the Garden Museum.
The passive performance of the extension has been further enhanced through the buildings layout which wraps around the old church, using the thermal mass from the stonework within the new structure.
Photography by Anthony Coleman
Page updated: 21/01/2026
