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At its national headquarters in Chorley, Lancashire, Shackerley has demonstrated to great effect the transformative benefits of its Queen's Award winning Sureclad ceramic granite ventilated facade system. The company has given its main offices and customer showroom a dramatic makeover and the 100-year old, two-storey building is now unrecognisable in its new 'overcoat' of highly polished large format black ceramic granite cladding.
To refurbish the elevations, some 350m2 of Shackerley's most highly reflective ceramic granite facade panels were used, in a 1m2 format carefully specified to complement the design and proportions of the building. Given the constraints involved in working with an existing building and the need to accommodate features such as the windows and entrances, the majority of the panels need to be cut to bespoke sizes. This specialised cutting was carried out using heavy duty, computer controlled multi-directional bridgesaws, under IS0 9001 certified quality controlled conditions, just a hundred metres away in the company's main production facility.
Once the panels were cut to the exact size required a fibreglass mesh was applied to the back face: a precautionary measure to prevent loose chippings in the unlikely event of damage. The panels were then prefabricated for use in conjunction with Shackerley's Sureclad Hang On carrier system which is specifically designed to cater for the heaviest ceramic granite panels in the range.
Four undercut holes were made in the back of each panel using Shackerley's specially designed, computer controlled, drilling machines and drill heads. Then four metal brackets were attached using a patented undercut anchor system to achieve a safe secure and stress free mechanical fix. These brackets allowed the panels to be 'invisibly' fixed to a carrier system of vertical and horizontal rails to deliver a sleek monolithic appearance.
Retro-fitting ceramic granite ventilated cladding to Shackerley's HQ has not just transformed the building aesthetically: it has also enabled the company to upgrade the thermal efficiency of the building in a highly effective manner, without disturbing the interior workspaces in any way. The Sureclad Hang On system creates a space behind the ceramic granite facade which will accommodate a substantial layer of thermal insulation. In this case Shackerley installed Kingspan's rigid phenolic insulation panels in the cavity to deliver a significant improvement in the U-value for the building.
Shackerley Group CEO Brian Newell said: "We have supplied Sureclad ceramic granite ventilated cladding for all sorts of buildings across the UK, and the vast majority of our projects have been new build developments. However, as we have very clearly demonstrated on our own building, this versatile system can be used to great effect in refurbishment projects and can dramatically improve the appearance and thermal performance of a building.
"Seeing our HQ for the first time, no-one would guess that behind these impressive, contemporary facades stands a 100-year old building. Now that we have enveloped and protected it in ceramic granite, a material which is totally impervious to the elements, there's no reason why it shouldn't still be here in another hundred years' time."
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