In the heart of South West London, 150m2 of Carea cladding has helped to provide the finishing touches to a new-build, ultra-modern 19 apartment complex located just yards from Wimbledon Park tube station.
Designed by Husband & Carpenter architects and built by Mizen Developments, the new ‘Ibex House’ – a block of state-of-the-art one, two and three-bedroom apartments – was successfully completed in the summer of 2013. With the building’s aesthetics of vital importance and the exterior designed to complement the adjacent buildings, the cost-effective Carea Aquila cladding system proved ideal to complete the facade.
Located on Arthur Road in the popular Wimbledon Park residential suburb, Ibex House replaced a demolished 1920s hall which had been disused since 2003. Installed by specialist contractor KTD Facades, the red-brown of the ‘Terra’ colour Aquila cladding provided an attractive external façade to the three floors of apartments, whilst the lighter, subtle ‘Sepia’ coloured cladding panels created the perfect finish for the building’s top floor balconies.
Developed by Carea to improve visual appearance and thermal performance, Aquila can be quickly, efficiently and cost effectively installed with a simple mechanical fixing process. Incredibly lightweight at just 7kg per square metre, it can be fitted in virtually any weather conditions onto all types of walls – including concrete, timber or metal.
As well as a quick installation process which minimises labour costs, Carea cladding is also exceptionally low maintenance. Highly resistant to the climate, they can be easily cleaned to extend their life cycle even further. Their non-porous composition also ensures that they are unaffected by graffiti, again making them ideal for buildings in urban area.
“Husband & Carpenter liaised closely with Carea in the early stages of the design and they were extremely helpful in giving advice on the type of cladding used, in particular in relation to overall costs and more technical matters, including fixing methods,” commented Stephen Carpenter of Husband & Carpenter. ““The information provided by Carea was very clear and concise and time spent at these early stages resulted in the excellent finished product. No doubt we will use this product again particularly as it was so cost-effective and provided the appearance the client was looking for.”
Whilst providing improved aesthetics and excellent resistance to damage, the sustainable system is also manufactured using around 95% natural minerals for superior environmental performance. Carea cladding can help buildings to optimise their thermal efficiency to achieve the high standards of modern building regulations.
In the popular suburb of Wimbledon Park, Ibex House was designed and built to represent the very best in modern, high quality design. Striking a visual impression to complement the contemporary glazed balconies, Carea’s Aquila cladding system created a stunning aesthetic that will continue to perform and look great for years to come.