#1 Allen Edwards School - Middlesex Facades with Wienerberger
This is a new build school project, where the scope was to design and build the rainscreen cladding. There is corium brickslip cladding on the ground floor and recessed areas. Fibre cement cladding panels to the first floor and above. Aluminium pressing in various colours around the glazing interfaces. The corium brickslip tiles were chosen due to the nature of the project, in being a school where there will be a high level of foot traffic. The robustness of the material was a perfect fit for use on the lower levels of the playgrounds.
The installation team installed stainless steel horizontal trays across the lower portion below DPC as this would form part of the water line of the building and standard magnellis rails above this point. The rails then allowed out team to clip in the brickslip tiles into the rails. These tiles were spaced out evenly to allow a mortar joint which is seen on traditional brick builds.
This is a new build school project, where the scope was to design and build the rainscreen cladding. There is corium brickslip cladding on the ground floor and recessed areas. Fibre cement cladding panels to the first floor and above. Aluminium pressing in various colours around the glazing interfaces. The corium brickslip tiles were chosen due to the nature of the project, in being a school where there will be a high level of foot traffic. The robustness of the material was a perfect fit for use on the lower levels of the playgrounds.
The installation team installed stainless steel horizontal trays across the lower portion below DPC as this would form part of the water line of the building and standard magnellis rails above this point. The rails then allowed out team to clip in the brickslip tiles into the rails. These tiles were spaced out evenly to allow a mortar joint which is seen on traditional brick builds.
#2 Box Makers Yard - Caxton Builders Midlands with Stofix
Box Makers Yard was a challenging project due to its city centre location , proximity to the Bristol Channel and dealing with the effects of a Pandemic.
As Stofix Cladding Panels are manufactured off site and arrive pre-pointed ready to install ensured quality and product consistency in this challenging environment. This in turn produced 2 quality buildings in the heart of a city.
Box Makers Yard was a challenging project due to its city centre location , proximity to the Bristol Channel and dealing with the effects of a Pandemic.
As Stofix Cladding Panels are manufactured off site and arrive pre-pointed ready to install ensured quality and product consistency in this challenging environment. This in turn produced 2 quality buildings in the heart of a city.
#3 Gloucestershire Digital Skills Centre - EG Carter & Co with Ash & Lacy
Cirencester College has officially opened the doors to its newest building on campus, the Gloucestershire Digital Skills Centre.
The new development is set to transform digital education at the College with the most modern techniques and technology.
College Principal Jim Grant said, “We are extremely proud of this new facility, this is a really important building for us as a College. It is part of the challenge to reintroduce digital skills post 16 after many drop IT related studies in schools. Today, digital skills are a major part of all of our lives, at home and in work, and it is our plan to develop these skills in all of our learners not just those who study IT related courses.
Sam Carter, Managing Director at E G Carter & Co Ltd said ‘We were thrilled to be appointed on the Cirencester College Digital Building project and since our appointment have thoroughly enjoyed working with the project team to deliver the scheme. It has been a brilliant project to be involved with and the collaborative approach taken by all has ensured the best possible building has been constructed for the College. The building looks fantastic, and we hope this new facility will add a new dynamic to the College'.
John Mooney, a senior Architect at Roberts Limbrick said “We are excited to see the Digital Skills Centre open, a major asset for the county. It’s a brilliant resource for students, providing them with cutting-edge digital technology in a flexible, collaborative environment. Gloucestershire is the cyber capital of the UK and these skills are more valuable than ever".
Cirencester College has officially opened the doors to its newest building on campus, the Gloucestershire Digital Skills Centre.
The new development is set to transform digital education at the College with the most modern techniques and technology.
College Principal Jim Grant said, “We are extremely proud of this new facility, this is a really important building for us as a College. It is part of the challenge to reintroduce digital skills post 16 after many drop IT related studies in schools. Today, digital skills are a major part of all of our lives, at home and in work, and it is our plan to develop these skills in all of our learners not just those who study IT related courses.
Sam Carter, Managing Director at E G Carter & Co Ltd said ‘We were thrilled to be appointed on the Cirencester College Digital Building project and since our appointment have thoroughly enjoyed working with the project team to deliver the scheme. It has been a brilliant project to be involved with and the collaborative approach taken by all has ensured the best possible building has been constructed for the College. The building looks fantastic, and we hope this new facility will add a new dynamic to the College'.
John Mooney, a senior Architect at Roberts Limbrick said “We are excited to see the Digital Skills Centre open, a major asset for the county. It’s a brilliant resource for students, providing them with cutting-edge digital technology in a flexible, collaborative environment. Gloucestershire is the cyber capital of the UK and these skills are more valuable than ever".
#4 Lewisham Exchange - Century Facades with Ash & Lacy
The Lewisham Exchange development does not concede on design or aesthetics; embracing offsite technologies, it enhances both, contrary to what might have been expected from a development of this type.
Comprised of 2 landmark towers, standing at 100 metres in height at its highest peak, it is the tallest modular student accommodation building in Europe. Built from 3D volumetric structural modules, this is one of only a small number of UK construction projects built in this manner and the most advanced application of the Mechslip brick cladding system to date.
The Lewisham Exchange development does not concede on design or aesthetics; embracing offsite technologies, it enhances both, contrary to what might have been expected from a development of this type.
Comprised of 2 landmark towers, standing at 100 metres in height at its highest peak, it is the tallest modular student accommodation building in Europe. Built from 3D volumetric structural modules, this is one of only a small number of UK construction projects built in this manner and the most advanced application of the Mechslip brick cladding system to date.
#5 Quayside House – Kier Group with RGB Facades
Quayside house was an outdated, vacant 1960s asbestos-ridden, lightweight building, with cellular offices and two courtyards. Gloucestershire County Council appointed Kier to manage and run the development of the existing building into a site suitable for GP practices Severnside and GHAC (Gloucester Health Access Centre). Kier worked with all parites to understand their requirements, the conformities of GP standards and strategies to achieve BREEAM excellent.
To avoid archaeological implications on the existing footprint the new building was constructed with a light-weight brick cladding system, Natural X, supplied by RGB Facades.
Natural X is a cost effective mechanically fixed brick cladding system that allows for rapid installation. Clay brick slips are fixed to aluminium support rails. The system dramatically reduces the structural load whilst also providing a durable, non-combustible, CWCT Tested facade.
Kier & RGB Facades worked with the design team and planners to come up with a suitable proposal which reflected the historical industrial background of Gloucester docks. The Planners wanted a contemporary ‘blue’ brick and irregular roof ‘Sawtooth’ scheme and Kier worked with them to understand optimum solutions for design and buildability.
Quayside house was an outdated, vacant 1960s asbestos-ridden, lightweight building, with cellular offices and two courtyards. Gloucestershire County Council appointed Kier to manage and run the development of the existing building into a site suitable for GP practices Severnside and GHAC (Gloucester Health Access Centre). Kier worked with all parites to understand their requirements, the conformities of GP standards and strategies to achieve BREEAM excellent.
To avoid archaeological implications on the existing footprint the new building was constructed with a light-weight brick cladding system, Natural X, supplied by RGB Facades.
Natural X is a cost effective mechanically fixed brick cladding system that allows for rapid installation. Clay brick slips are fixed to aluminium support rails. The system dramatically reduces the structural load whilst also providing a durable, non-combustible, CWCT Tested facade.
Kier & RGB Facades worked with the design team and planners to come up with a suitable proposal which reflected the historical industrial background of Gloucester docks. The Planners wanted a contemporary ‘blue’ brick and irregular roof ‘Sawtooth’ scheme and Kier worked with them to understand optimum solutions for design and buildability.
#6 Thurrock Civic Centre, Essex – A2O with Aquarian Cladding Systems
A2O and Aquarian Cladding Systems are delighted with the successful completion of the Thurrock Civic Centre. We are proud to have been part of the team, alongside Kier Construction (Eastern), Thurrock Council, LSI Architects and many other supply chain partners on this landmark first step in the Council’s regeneration strategy for the town of Grays.
Thurrock Civic Centre is a focal point for the regeneration of Grays town centre and is intended as a catalyst for change, bringing the old town into the 21st century and setting the tone for future development. The use of the innovative brick cladding solution MechSlip is therefore a perfect demonstration to the construction industry of the changes that can be made to clad buildings of the future, authentically and without compromise.
The variety of brick detailing achievable, including stretcher bond in both horizontal and vertical orientation, a textured chequerboard, large, chamfered window jambs and cills, and chamfered portico columns provided the architect with design choices similar to a child at a pick n mix sweetshop.
Without doubt, it would be impossible to achieve brick facades with this range of details, of this quality, and within this budget and programme using conventional brickwork or indeed any other brick cladding system. The use of MechSlip on Thurrock Civic Centre is a unique example of what can be achieved with a mixture of product development, imagination and innovation, a lot of careful planning and management, and an abundance of teamwork within the supply chain.
Facades of this quality demonstrate that investing in brick slip technology is essential to meet the increasing demand for a solution that is typically quicker, often more cost-effective, usually more attractive, and certainly more sustainable to produce than conventional brickwork (which uses 20% of the raw materials and embodied energy).
A2O and Aquarian Cladding Systems are delighted with the successful completion of the Thurrock Civic Centre. We are proud to have been part of the team, alongside Kier Construction (Eastern), Thurrock Council, LSI Architects and many other supply chain partners on this landmark first step in the Council’s regeneration strategy for the town of Grays.
Thurrock Civic Centre is a focal point for the regeneration of Grays town centre and is intended as a catalyst for change, bringing the old town into the 21st century and setting the tone for future development. The use of the innovative brick cladding solution MechSlip is therefore a perfect demonstration to the construction industry of the changes that can be made to clad buildings of the future, authentically and without compromise.
The variety of brick detailing achievable, including stretcher bond in both horizontal and vertical orientation, a textured chequerboard, large, chamfered window jambs and cills, and chamfered portico columns provided the architect with design choices similar to a child at a pick n mix sweetshop.
Without doubt, it would be impossible to achieve brick facades with this range of details, of this quality, and within this budget and programme using conventional brickwork or indeed any other brick cladding system. The use of MechSlip on Thurrock Civic Centre is a unique example of what can be achieved with a mixture of product development, imagination and innovation, a lot of careful planning and management, and an abundance of teamwork within the supply chain.
Facades of this quality demonstrate that investing in brick slip technology is essential to meet the increasing demand for a solution that is typically quicker, often more cost-effective, usually more attractive, and certainly more sustainable to produce than conventional brickwork (which uses 20% of the raw materials and embodied energy).