Janisol Arte, a highly insulated steel renovation window system launched by steel specialist Schueco Jansen in 2011, was awarded a Gold Medal for Innovation in the Joinery & Fenestration category at France's leading international construction exhibition, Batimat 2011. It also won a Bronze Medal for Design, both awards underlining its popularity with both architects and fabricators.

The window's major benefit is that it enables an architect to satisfy the concerns of local authority planners and building conservation officers while still ensuring that the refurbished building meets the strict energy-saving requirements of Part L of the Building Regulations. With a narrow face-width of just 25mm or 40mm, Janisol Arte looks similar to the slender Bauhaus-type glazing to be found in many old buildings and is therefore likely to be acceptable as a replacement window even if a building has been given listed status.

Importantly, Janisol Arte combines structural elegance with impressive 'U' values of 1.6 W/m2K using standard Low 'E' double-glazed units. These values are the result of advanced technology which successfully combines high-grade steel with a unique thermal break material.

The Janisol Arte window system includes outward- and inward-opening vents, hung on butt hinges, together with fixed glazing. Optionally for outward-opening top- or side-hung vents, heavy duty friction hinges may be fitted. There is also a double-vent version, and additional structural profiles can be added to the mullions to allow the fabrication of large-scale and rigid combinations of fixed and opening lights all presenting the same narrow face widths.

Janisol Arte can be seen for the first time in the UK on Schueco's stand (S310) at this year's Ecobuild, which is being staged at ExCeL, London, 20-22 March. For further information about Janisol Arte and steel façade, window and door systems from Schueco Jansen, go to www.schueco.com