Coats Farm

A conversion project in Somerset has utilised a number of products from Catnic to provide practical and sustainable living accommodation, suitable for retirement. Coates Farm has employed Catnic's® Urban standing seam roofing and cladding system as well as Catnic lintels to ensure the environmental impact of the building is kept to a minimum.

Situated in Kittisford, a small picturesque village near Wellington, Coates Farm is owned by Maurice and Penny Stanbury. “We decided, that due to our advancing years, we wanted a practical and sustainable home that would require very little maintenance,” said Maurice. “Having received go-ahead to repurpose an old cow shed, we wanted to ensure that the materials specified would contribute to the building’s eco credentials.”

To ensure the work was allowable under permitted development, it was essential that the development was kept within the same building footprint. Working alongside architect Nigel Pearce at Pearce Practice for the planning and design of the conversion, the decision was made to specify Catnic's® Urban standing seam roofing and cladding system.

A cost-effective alternative to traditional copper and zinc standing seam roof systems, the Urban system is manufactured to meet all relevant legislation, including load bearing for wind speed in accordance with EN 1991-4 and weather tightness in accordance with BS 5534 Parts 1 and 2. Furthermore, helping to meet requirements for sustainable building solutions – Urban is BRE Green Guide Rated ‘A’ and at end of life – the panels are 100% recyclable.

“Maurice came to us with an idea that he wanted something different for the roof that would improve the eco footprint of the building whilst being aesthetically pleasing on the eye,” said Nigel Pearce.

“Because of the permitted development, we were restricted by the low roof pitch. As we couldn’t specify slate or tiles, we remembered that we had used Catnic® Urban on a recent conversion and found it to be a great option; not only could it accommodate the low pitch at Coates Farm, but it also matched the contemporary look and feel that Maurice was looking for,” added Nigel.

Initially to be specified for only the flat section of the roof, it was decided that Catnic® Urban would be utilised for the complete roof due to its crisp lines and strong aesthetics.

Maurice Stanbury said, “During the initial specification, we were really happy with the service received from Catnic. Having decided upon Catnic® Urban, we began exploring the possibility of getting our lintels from them too. Alongside standard lintels, we required a bespoke corner lintel to ensure we could match the intended design of the building. We submitted technical drawings to Catnic and the technical team made the process very easy.”

Whilst Maurice project managed the redevelopment, the installation was undertaken by Kevin and Ashley Drew – local builders known to the Stanbury’s. After specification, but prior to ordering Urban, it was decided that Maurice and Ashley would attend an Urban training day at Catnic’s training centre in Caerphilly, to learn how to correctly install the standing seam roofing system.

During the course, Ashley and Maurice spoke with Catnic’s Technical Director Richard Price, who then visited the site personally to measure up and give guidance to apply what they had learnt in Caerphilly into practice.

Throughout the conversion, Kevin and Ashley Drew worked closely with Catnic to guarantee the successful delivery of the project. Using Catnic’s Lintel Advanced Scheduling System (CLASS) ensured that they could adopt a ‘just in time’ approach to deliveries.

“Having ordered both lintels and Urban from Catnic we were able to delay the delivery of the system until we were ready to install it,” said Kevin Drew.

“We found the system incredibly easy to work with – particularly as this was our first experience of Urban - managing to install it quickly between the two of us,” added Kevin.

“We are thrilled with the end result, and we now have the property we had always dreamed of having,” concluded Maurice Stanbury. “Catnic made the process incredibly easy from start to finish, and with Catnic® Urban we are safe in the knowledge that the system will now require minimal maintenance.”