What is over 6.0m high, nearly 10.0m in diameter and looks like a
pineapple?
Well, you certainly don’t expect to find a 21st Century shading product, sitting in the middle of a National Trust
managed 18th Century walled garden, especially, in the shape of a
20’ high pineapple.
Designed and constructed by Studio Morisonfor the National Trust’s Berrington Hall in Herefordshire, this sculptural
external temporary pavilion, is now on display in the Capability Brown designed
walled gardens.
At almost 10 meters in diameter and over 6 meters in
height, it used 9 rolls, over 500 m2 of Mermet’s M-Screen
8505 fabric in the colour 0209 white / mandarin. A colour pulling together the
surrounding brick walls with the idea of a ripening pineapple.
The colour apart, Mermet fabric proved ideal for the project on
many further levels. The dimensional stability of the fabric ensures that when
secured in position on the skeletal framing it stays taut and in position.
During the day, appearing solid from the outside, yet once inside, the fabrics
transparency connects straight back with the outside world. With the planned
use of the pavilion as a venue for a programme of events and activities, the BS
476 Pt 6 Class 0 fire rating is just perfect.
The ‘Berrington Pineapple’ project is a classic example of what
can be achieved using Mermet fabrics in tensile structures – a wide pallet of
standard colours, with all the additional benefits that digital print can bring
in addition. A range of densities, from transparent through to translucent, to
solid. Easy and safe to work with, durable and safe in use.
Why was Mermet fabric M-Screen chosen for this project? Glass
fibre base to the cloth, providing the dimensional stability that makes the
fabric stay where it is put, without elongation over time the fabric lies flat,
no undulations, no shadow. Glass fibre also allowing a thin yarn which produces
a very fine weave that delivers great through vision whilst at the same time
transmitting a very diffuse light.
M-Screen not only has the mechanical and aesthetic properties
required for the project, crucially it has very high fire ratings for a shading
material. Used in the manner required of the structure, as a series of fixed
panels, forming an enclosure, accessible to members of the public, the fabric
needs to meet the fire ratings requirements of those of a building material, as
used in a public building – Bs 476 Pt 6 Class 0.
Mermet are designers and
manufacturers of high-performance technical fabrics to equip all types of solar
protection blinds. Their role is to provide safety and thermal & optical
comfort, and to optimise energy consumption in buildings.
Whether on the
interior or exterior, complete blackout or fully transparent, they offer
numerous insulating fabric solutions to meet the demands of all solar
protection projects.
Weaving glass fibre in Veyrins France since 1961,
the move to concentrate on sun-shading fabrics started in the 1970’s. Their
fabrics have been distributed throughout the UK and Ireland by De Leeuw Ltd,
trading as Mermet UK since 1995.
