Bespoke powder coating recreates characteristic tones of Jura Limestone

Project Overview: 

Westfield London has undergone a £600 million refurbishment and extension programme to become the largest shopping centre in Europe. With shopping and leisure outlets including a flagship gym, cinema, restaurants and bars, it is a premier retail and social venue in London.

The design intention for the 740,000 sq foot extension was for Jura Limestone to surround a significant part of the exterior of the building and small sections of the interior. Various factors encouraged the designers to explore alternatives that could provide both a fast turnaround and the majestic, enduring appearance of Jura Stone.

The Solution:

Powdertech expertise, combined with the flexibility and design freedom of aluminium and powder coating, enabled the vision to be quickly realised.

A sample of Jura limestone was sent to Powdertech where tests of different powders and effects were compared against the limestone which has natural veins of quartz and fossils appearing against a beige background. Test samples were sent back to the client and within four weeks ‘Ballycastle Stone’, a bespoke powder in our Landscape™ range, was ready to be applied to 4500sq m of aluminium cladding panels. These have an uneven leg tray to produce a saw-tooth effect as the image shows.

It was essential to achieve colour consistency between batches and our powder coatings excel in this aspect. The overall effect on the finished building is an homogenous appearance of stone, across the whole, but with variations in flecks of colour against the background, just as in the stone itself. The powder coating will provide excellent corrosion protection and has an external life expectancy of up to 40-years.

Benefits of using Powdertech:

• Powdertech is passionately interested in the development of powder coatings to reproduce natural tones and textures and in the effect of colour within architectural design.
• All powders have excellent weather resistance and colour stability.
• Powdertech's rigorous pre-treatment system will help to keep the façade free from corrosion for up to 40-years.
• Powdertech understands the need for fast turnaround in building construction and can accommodate short timescales
• Powdertech’s state-of-the-art plant has capacity for large fabrications.