Materials Focus: Metal Ceilings

Malcolm Stamper of SAS International discusses how interior architectural design can be realized with metal.

It can be a tough balancing act satisfying client demands with design-led finishes that will also perform and provide sustainable benefits. Bespoke architectural design can be realized with the use of metal, as architects, engineers, designers and manufacturers work together to combine aesthetics with key performance criteria in creating a sustainable interior environment.

Project demands

Though voluntary, credit-rated environmental assessment methods have dramatically changed the way that interiors are designed and constructed. The Green Building Council of Australia’s Green Star scheme is just one example of a number of third-party organizations that can assess the environmental impact of a project.

Product choice no longer relies on the initial purchase price difference between materials; it’s factors such as life cycle costs and flexibility of product to meet the demands of occupants over a fifty- to sixty-year building life cycle.

These days, projects demand long-term value of any product balanced with environmental credentials and greater design flexibility to meet occupant comfort demands. Metal offers an inert and inherently hard-wearing surface, resulting in a hygienic and low-maintenance option. The long-term environmental benefits further meet current sustainability requirements. With a twenty-five-year product life cycle and low ongoing maintenance, metal provides the durability that clients demand.

Plans for new builds can certainly set the tone, but refurbishment of the existing fabric can sometimes be harder than an ambitious new build. In either case, the objective is for elegant but efficient design solutions. A refurbishment can mean old meets new to create stunning combinations using materials such as aluminium, brushed stainless steel, cast iron columns and wrought iron girders.

Aluminium can be used in a wide range of applications such as cladding, soffits and ceilings as well as ventilation systems such as chilled beams and ceilings. Its high strength-to-weight ratio is one property that makes it particularly suitable for cladding applications. Steel, as with aluminium, can continuously be recycled without any loss of value or properties.

Acoustic waveform ceiling with integrated bespoke lighting providing uplight and downlight.

Acoustic waveform ceiling with integrated bespoke lighting providing uplight and downlight.

Finish and design considerations

Interior designers look to create environments in keeping with corporate branding or perhaps to answer a particular brief. Yet one thing that all design demands is an attractive aesthetic finish, enhanced by outstanding acoustic properties, integration of services, durability and ease of product installation.

Architectural metalwork can encompass a range of design-led products that includes bespoke ceilings, chilled beams rafts, acoustic baffles, bulkheads, column casings and wall panelling that meet demands for high-performance products.

Metal can be manufactured in a number of ways to create a functional, design-led finish. Aluminium or steel architectural metalwork can be finished with a durable polyester powdercoat or a clear lacquer. In commercial environments, metal solutions are normally finished in white, however there are over two hundred RAL colours available, as well as textured paint, natural metal and wood effect finishes that can be specified. The result is a modern, sophisticated yet practical finish.

The design flexibility of metal is gaining attention throughout the world. One such example at a casino in the UK shows a stunning waveform structure running through the entrance of the building, which flows up between the escalators and curves right over on itself in a C-shape within a three-storey atrium. Metal wave panels were suspended from the ceilings and finished with a bonded printed wood-effect laminate. The wood-effect finish was able to offer the interior designers a more cost-effective solution than traditional real timber – to create this install-ation out of natural timber would have come at a much larger expense. With no delamination issues, wood-effect ceilings offer the aesthetic of a natural wood product on a lighter and more durable material.

There are many ways to meet performance criteria without compromising aesthetics. Bespoke micro-perforations in ceiling panels can enable natural air movement and climate control from active metal chilled ceiling beams. Designs such as company logos can be incorporated. Bespoke ceiling tiles, for instance, can be designed to specific shapes that slot together like a jigsaw for a unique finish.

Integrated Service Modules / Active Chilled Beam rafts with MPO lighting.

Integrated Service Modules / Active Chilled Beam rafts with MPO lighting.

Integration with services

Some projects also demand M&E services to be integrated into the product design while still providing functional accessibility. Architectural metalwork can provide integration while meeting design and durability requirements.

Bespoke metal design can be integrated with lighting to stunning effect. These architecturally designed modules have a chilled beam at their heart, installed in a metal casing. A recent award-winning project by Amanda Levete Architects features bespoke integrated service modules (ISMs) combined active chilled beams and micro prism optic (MPO) luminaires. The futuristic design of the metal ISMs matched the design of the building while maximizing headroom and areas of the soffit, leading to an increased sense of space. In addition, the building facade was fabricated using curved aluminium profiles assembled on site. The fine faceting of the aluminium strips creates beautiful and complex reflections of sky and street, making the building highly visible from Oxford Street.

Another project in London comprised of a striking waveform ceiling that provided acoustic performance with a lighting source to provide both uplight and downlight, resulting in an illuminated ceiling. The appearance of the ceiling is that of a series of illuminated vaulted waves flowing into the interior, with the volume of the space perceptually expanded by the uplit waveform surfaces. The vaulted ceiling, with its flowing contours, provides a stunning focal point as well as a practical solution to the acoustic requirements of the interior of the building.

However this project could only be realized with the various parties – architect, manufacturer and lighting consultant – working closely from an early stage to ensure a total understanding of the design criteria.

Communication

Aluminium was used extensively in a major refurbishment at Waterloo Station in London. Bespoke metal ceiling tiles, concave coffered tiles with light apertures, bulkhead panels and column casings were specified for the main concourse ticket gate refurbishment program at Europe’s largest ticket line and one of London’s main railway destinations.

Both Waterloo’s station concourse and underground, demanded an adaptable and bespoke project approach. The program for completion at Waterloo Station was extremely challenging and,with limited “as built” information, the architect had to investigate the existing fabric, propose a solution and start fabrication almost simultaneously – and all this had to be accomplished with minimum disruption.

Careful coordination is required to ensure architectural metalwork does not clash with existing or new services. Communication between design teams and regular progress meetings ensure all parties are aware of any recent design developments. Metal cladding systems can conceal all services while still allowing easy access for maintenance purposes, resulting in a clutter-free application.

A manufacturer who can offer design services from the outset can help substantially with evolving design plans and the potential challenges on site of such major refurbishments.

Linear strip metal waveform ceiling installed with acoustic soffit.

Linear strip metal waveform ceiling installed with acoustic soffit.

Acoustics

Using metal allows designs to become a reality while retaining key performance qualities. For example, a feature ceiling in metal can retain acoustic properties, especially important for environments such as conference centres.

At one such centre, a striking linear strip waveform ceiling was created from metal where a bespoke ceiling system complements a fully functioning acoustic soffit. The ceiling in the lecture theatre needed to balance the required audio-visual, video conferencing and TV technical performance requirements without compromising on aesthetics. The outcome combines a black painted void and acoustically treated soffit and a suspended ceiling system which undulates, adding an exciting visual dimension to the ceiling plane.

Off-site construction

Traditional methods of construction involve the installation of plaster-board to fitout the interior, from ceilings, partitioning and bulk-heads through to wall cladding. Plasterboard can require considerable time and resource on site.

Metal allows the advantage of modular off-site construction, reducing installation time, which is crucial for contemporary projects. Bulkheads and column casings manufactured from metal can reduce on-site waste by one third compared to traditional wet trades. This method of construction can save time and cost, as well as achieving smooth construction in the build element of a project.

In some environments there are limited engineering hours to maintain services or replace products. With a traditional build, such as plasterboard, an area would have to be cordoned off for works to be completed. Metal panels can be demounted and services maintained in night time hours, with areas available for access and usage the next day.

Double-sided wood-effect metal ceiling.

Double-sided wood-effect metal ceiling.

Function and aesthetics

Balancing function and aesthetics is one of the most demanding specification elements when considering materials for an interior. Construction projects demand long-term value, including environmental credentials and design flexibility.

Metal offers durable qualities, allowing designs to be realized, manufactured and installed. Elegant, bespoke metal solutions can provide strength to support services and can meet environmental assessment demands yet still provide a design-led finish.

sasint.com.au

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Published online: 1 Dec 2010

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Artichoke, December 2010

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