Grimsby Institute’s higher education students can now study in world class surroundings at a new £10 million University Centre, a monolithic 7,300m² five-storey building housing state-of-the-art facilities. Externally the University Centre is equally impressive thanks to Ryder Architecture’s specification of white polished ceramic granite ventilated facades from Shackerley’s Sureclad Collection.
Ryder Architect Mark Clasper said, “Our client wanted us to create a very clear distinction between the new University Centre and the existing Further Education buildings. We were to create a flagship building.... somewhere aspirational that students could progress towards.”
“We chose Shackerley’s white polished ceramic granite cladding primarily for its aesthetics. We wanted a premium material that would help to add a ‘sense of grandeur’ to the University Centre within its surroundings. The building is set amongst dense mature trees, and the reflectivity of the material was an important factor. Depending on the time of day the elevations appear to have a mirrored finish, allowing them to take on the colours of the surrounding trees, landscape and sky.”
Appearances were not the only reason why Shackerley’s Sureclad ceramic granite ventilated façades were installed, as Mark Clasper explained: “As the primary envelope cladding for the University Centre, it was important that the material we selected was sustainable. The ceramic granite scored an A rating in the BRE Green Guide to material specification, contributing to the credits we achieved under MAT1.” The building subsequently attained a BREEAM rating of Very Good.
Over 3000m2 of Shackerley’s Sureclad ceramic granite cladding was installed by total building envelope contractor Norking Aluminium Ltd. All panels were prefabricated at Shackerley’s ISO 9001 accredited production facilities in Lancashire and supplied to the Grimsby campus ‘installation ready’ - predrilled and bracketed using a patented undercut anchorage system. An optimal 1200 x 600mm panel format was specified to minimise cutting and waste, and Shackerley also supplied panels in bespoke sizes for corner detailing.
Because of the project’s scale and tight deadlines, Norking and Shackerley’s technical experts worked very closely together to ensure smooth running at every stage. This was the installation team’s second experience of working with the Sureclad system, which they completed on schedule, successfully creating interfaces with the external glass balustrading and Shueco glazed windows, delivering sleek streamlined elevations interrupted only by the deeply grooved and brightly coloured window reveals.
Commenting on the project Mark Clasper said: ““The new University Centre is the third major development where Ryder has specified the Sureclad ventilated facade system and once again we have achieved excellent results. We had assistance from Shackerley’s sales and technical teams at every stage and the installation team from Norking completed the cladding to a very high standard. We are currently working on two further major projects that also incorporate the Sureclad system, where we look forward to having similar success for our clients.”
