Accoya, the world-leading modified wood, has been used in the refurbishment of Netley Primary School and Campus in London.
Architects Pollard Thomas Edwards were hired to deliver the project and to achieve this they designed a completely self-funding scheme for the transformation of the Netley Campus, which is near Euston.
The original Netley Campus was a sprawling complex with a miss-mash of architectural styles consisting of a mainstream Victorian primary school, a separate 1970s Foundation Unit, an Autistic Spectrum Disorder unit, a Community Learning Centre and a Primary Referral Unit. The fragmented development of the site had resulted in a disorientating layout and some of the building was no longer fit for purpose.
The architects set about to deliver a more coherent layout and have achieved this whilst retaining many of the original Victorian features. They’ve created a single reception for the whole campus and delivered a multi-purpose assembly hall. As a result the finished project has scooped two awards - Education Estates Award and it was Highly Commended by the Camden Design Awards.
To give the building a strong presence within the local setting, the architect team elected to finish the building with Accoya cladding. Over 23m3 of the modified wood was supplied by Irish, distributor, Abbey Woods, who delivered the finished product, which benefited from a dark translucent Sikkens coating system.
The finish not only adds significantly to the townscape, but the Accoya cladding is also durable and stable, providing a long lasting, low maintenance finish to the building. Able to cope with the harshest weather conditions, Accoya is proven to be a sustainable, durable, and stable material.
Created using Accsys Technologies’ propriety wood acetylation technology, Accoya delivers outstanding levels of performance, including dimensional stability, class 1 durability and sustainability. Accoya is an attractive wood product which is Cradle to Cradle Gold certified and is guaranteed for 50 years above ground and 25 years in ground.
Phil Roche, managing director, Abbey Woods, said; “The Netley Campus is a real hub for the local community providing several services within one complex. However after years of make-shift upgrades the building no longer met the needs of the students and services users. As a result the purpose of this project was to deliver a state of the art facility, which would meet the needs of the community. Given the self-funding nature of the project the architects were keen to use long lasting materials which would require little maintenance and we immediately recommended Accoya for the project. The finished building is impressive and the architects have been impressed with the performance of Accoya throughout the process.”
Laura Ladd, head of marketing for Accsys Technologies added: “With its impressive durability and low maintenance requirements, Accoya makes the ideal construction material for applications such as this. We are delighted with the finished result and we hope the local community with enjoy using this varied space for generations to come."
Made from FSC certified wood from legal, manageable and sustainable forests, Accoya is an attractive wood product which is perfect for a variety of uses from windows and doors to external cladding, structural projects and decking.
Accoya is available to purchase throughout Ireland, the United Kingdom and the rest of the world.