Rockfon turning heads and driving performance

Rockfon® Tropic™ ceilings are installed in Europe’s largest car showroom, Sytner BMW, Sheffield.

Designed by AT Architects, the three-storey, 18,500m² BMW and Mini dealership can display up to 872 cars. Its impressive facilities are arranged to offer the very best service and convenience in luxurious surroundings. There are customer lounges, which include Europe’s first dedicated M lounge which displays all BMW M models, with a barista serving complimentary refreshments in the bar café.

The 42-bay workshop, with drive-in reception, is quick and convenient. The ground floor is home to the complete BMW range, where 7,500m² of Rockfon Tropic ceilings were chosen to provide outstanding acoustic control and contribute to the light, open interior design.

Superior sound
The new building is designed to create a comfortable and welcoming environment. Our ceiling plays a pivotal role here. The large showroom is fitted with floor to ceiling glazing and tiled floors which could make the open-plan area prone to reverberation. The Class A sound absorption of Rockfon Tropic controls the ambient sound level in this space, reducing echo and improving speech intelligibility.

Exceptional light reflectance
It is important for our ceiling to enhance the clean, minimalist interior designed to display BMW cars to best effect. Rockfon Tropic ceilings have a smooth, white surface that offers 86% light reflectance helping create the optimum lighting conditions for the showroom, allowing the cars to shine.

Smooth installation
Tudorharp Contractor, Rob O’Dell, has worked on many projects with us, and installed the showroom ceilings. “We worked closely with Rockfon to ensure we produced the finished result the client wanted. We installed a mix of 600 x 600mm tiles with 1200 x 600mm to avoid cuts and achieve clean, tidy edges. We used Chicago Metallic™ T24 2890 grid to install these lightweight tiles. The job ran smoothly and we met our deadline with ease.”

Minster Insulation and Drylining, Sheffield, supplied the Rockfon Tropic E edge ceiling tiles and Chicago Metallic grids. Minster stock a wide range of our products in branches across the country.

Rockfon Tropic is a robust, easy to clean ceiling. It’s available in a range of standard sizes and installation options including visible and semi-concealed grids, giving architects the freedom to produce open-plan environments that can be configured to any design. The ceiling tiles and grid offer the highest fire safety classification A1, which is a must for all buildings which are open to the public.

Client feedback
Sytner Group, Group Project Manager, Peter Huxley, “I am delighted to welcome visitors to this truly world-class facility. The showroom oozes luxury and prestige. Being able to have private conversations in a large open space is a huge benefit, and one our customers and staff value.”

If you’re working on a large-scale project and would like information on how to achieve a ceiling that can meet and exceed required criteria, contact us by email info@rockfon.co.uk or visit www.rockfon.co.uk