A two-stage window installation with installation frame offers many advantages.
Two-stage installation means driving to the construction site twice. At first, this sounds like extra work, but it's not - on the contrary. Here in this article, you will learn 12 advantages for the two-stage installation process with an efficient pre-frame.
What if we installed windows just as smartly as electricians and plumbers have been showing us for years with light switches and washbasins? In the wet construction phase, only a flush-mounted element is set - the window itself follows only after the dirty work is completed.
In the current RAL installation guide, the ift Rosenheim writes "Preliminary frames offer [...] considerable advantages for all parties involved in the construction." The VFF also says: „This saves costs and certainly also nerves". What sounds exotic in Germany has long been the standard in many regions of Europe. We asked the pan-European window manufacturer Finstral to summarise its experience with two-stage installation.
Joachim Oberrauch says to the question of why windows in South Tyrol are installed in two stages with a frame: "At Finstral we have been offering this method for over 50 years. In our homeland, it has simply always been customary."
Two-stage installation has not only proven itself, but is also the better method in every respect. We can only encourage everyone to try it out for themselves!
Finstral
How we build in Europe differs by region
Finstral has expanded into other countries over many years and has thus become acquainted with, further developed and perfected countless installation variants for windows. In the meantime, the library of building connection details comprises over 700 variants - about 300 of which have been independently tested by ift Rosenheim. "This experience from all over Europe has taught us: two-stage installation variants with frames are always cheaper and better in the end," says the president of the board of directors at Finstral.
He continues, "When we introduce our Fin-Fix installation frame system in Germany, we usually hear from window companies, planners and architects the sentence ' we've never done it that way before."
Yet there are so many decisive advantages from the two-stage installation from a window company's point of view:
Finstral
In the wet construction phase, only a flush-mounted element is set...
Finstral
The analogy in window construction: First, the precise installation of the preliminary frames takes place.
1. Planning of the building integration becomes easier
With frames, the integration into the building is planned independently of the material (wood, aluminium, PVC) and equipment (e.g. mountings for guide rails) of a window. A uniform interface is created for all window systems. On the one hand, this simplifies the preparations for installation. On the other hand, the window salesman can already define the construction connection of each frame (namely that for frame installation) and calculate directly with binding prices.
2. The frame has short delivery time and creates air for window production
"How quickly can you deliver?" is one of the most frequent questions before making a purchase decision. Frames are produced and delivered to the building site and assembled in 2 - 3 weeks. This means time pressure in production, but after all it is only about flush-mounted material and not about finished surfaces in a high variety of shapes and colours, as is the case with windows. In two-stage installation, the window manufacturer has time for their production until the end of the wet construction phase - i.e. much longer than usual. By the way: frames and windows are usually ordered together at Finstral, but only the frame production is triggered by the order. Window production is put on halt. If it is particularly urgent, however, just the frames can be ordered first and the decision on the window configuration can be made later.
Finstral
The plastering and other dirty work can be done without damaging the sanitary fittings.
Finstral
All plastering and dry construction work can be done.
3. Expensive measurement errors do not occur with frames
It is rare for windows to be produced according to incorrect measurements, but when it happens, the damage quickly adds up to many thousands of euros and the time pressure for subsequent delivery becomes great. With two-stage installation, on the other hand, measurement errors are already noticed during frame installation and can still be corrected during the subsequent window production process.
4. Frames help to react to the shortage of skilled workers
Finding well-trained fitters is generally becoming more and more difficult. The fact that particularly heavy elements have to be handled on the construction site during window installation makes the work even less attractive, especially for older colleagues. Here, too, the two-stage installation has clear advantages: The best and most experienced colleagues can take care of the professional installation of the lighter frames, because here it is all about precision. The installation of the heavy windows in the prepared frame, on the other hand, can be done by semi-skilled or inexperienced staff. Only the window elements are heavy; their installation is easy because the interface is prepared reliably by means of the frame.
Finstral
The window is then installed just before the furniture van arrives at the door.
Finstral
Only at the very end is the installation of the high-quality bathroom fittings carried out.
5. frames guide the other trades on the building site
Whether plastering edges or pre-drilled electrical feeds: With the frame, the connections are precisely clarified for all subsequent trades and time dependencies between the trades are equalised. The window trade takes the lead and thus significantly reduces the annoyance of misunderstandings and the time needed for agreements.
6. Closing the building envelope is possible, but not necessary
In Germany, it is customary to close the building envelope with windows before starting the interior work. This is not necessary, as some markets, e.g. South Tyrol or Austria, show. Despite weather conditions comparable to most of the rest of central Europe, the construction is deliberately not closed there in order to allow the building to dry. However, by using foil closures or construction doors, the building can still be temporarily closed even when it is fitted with frames.
7. What about theft protection on the building site?
Even frames can do little against criminal energy. The only question is whether windows really protect building sites more reliably? Anyone who wants to steal copper will not be stopped by construction doors or windows. And in markets with a frame-first tradition, burglary protection never comes up as an argument. There, it is customary to lock away one's tools in a (basement) room. And if there is a need for better deterrence after all, the frame openings on the ground floor are closed with rough chipboard.
8. Fewer disputes thanks to less structural damage
It is difficult to quote numbers, but experience has shown that there is actually a high likelihood for a window is to be damaged during the wet construction phase. Whether the spruce frame swells, the oak tarnishes, black spots from flying sparks burn into the glass pane or the frame is smeared with plaster. Two-stage installation gets rid of this issue once and for all. Because when the finished windows arrive on the building site in two-stage installation, the vast majority of those potentially responsible for structural damage are long finished.
9. After frame installation, the second bill is due
Anyone who sells and installs windows often has to pre-finance considerable amounts. That is why it is so important for an installation company to keep an eye on its liquidity. Two-stage installation makes this easier. Since one outlay has already been made with the installation of the frame, the invoice for the second part can be issued. In this way, the window manufacturer has already invoiced a significant part of the order even before the windows go into production.
10. Modern frames reduce tinkering on the building site
Anyone who has ever installed a window with sun protection, motorised ventilation and glass balustrades can tell you about the countless manual operations that are necessary on the building site to properly install all the components from different manufacturers.
Modern solutions, such as the Fin-Fix system from Finstral, are manufactured with all these functions integrated in the frame. From roller shutter boxes and guide rails to pre-drilled holes for the electrical connection and the window sill and glass railing connection, everything is already there and only needs to be installed. This not only saves valuable construction time, but also eliminates a large number of potential sources of error.
11. For higher-quality windows, you need the frame
If you want to grow in our industry, you either have to install more windows or higher quality windows. The latter also means that the risk of damage during the construction phase increases - after all, these are more expensive elements. The two-stage installation avoids this risk, as the windows only arrive on site after all the dirty work has been done. Joachim Oberrauch: "We are convinced that frames play a key role in making high-quality fitted windows popular on a large scale. In the electrical and sanitary industry, too, it was the flush-mounted elements that helped classy light switches and elegant taps to break through on a broad scale."
12. Lastly, installation with a frame is always cheaper
Two-stage installation means going to the construction site twice. Compared to single-stage installation directly into the shell, this initially sounds like extra work. "However, our experience shows that it is the soft factors, which are difficult to measure, that easily compensate for this: The effort involved in coordination, planning, protection of the output, deployment of experienced fitters, complaints and customer service is much more reliably calculable with two-stage installation and thus unbeatably efficient. And if you include the first window replacement after about 30 years in the total cost calculation, the frame is actually always by far the more cost-effective solution."
Throughout Europe, windows have many regional differences. "They are an expression of our building culture, which has grown over centuries and which we at Finstral are very concerned to preserve and respect. But when it comes to the installation of windows in new buildings, we are very firm: Two-stage installation has not only proven itself, but is also the better method in every respect. We can only encourage everyone to try it out for themselves," Oberrauch sums up.
