"ceiling"

The £55.75 million development, which used a number of Johnstone’s Trade products was shortlisted in the Best Education Project category at the 2016 Partnership Awards. Acrylic Durable Eggshell in off-white was applied to the main wall areas for the striking colours. Other products that were specified for the project included Johnstone’s Covaplus Vinyl Matt on the ceilings, providing a durable finish that is resistant to fading. The doors, frames and skirting boards of the new school was covered with Johnstone’s Aqua Gloss in grey and orange to give a traditional gloss look.

Jill Ranford and Patrick Taggart are the proud owners of a beautiful new build home in Southern France. The main bedroom features a vaulted ceiling with access to a loft via a wall hatch located 2.7m up from the floor. Therefore, a loft ladder was required that could be easily operated at that height and could be folded behind the wall hatch door without taking up much loft space. The Elite Vertical Loft Ladder proved to be the perfect solution for Jill and Patrick’s needs. Read about their experience...

The outer walls were constructed using blockwork and then rendered using KEIM Universal Render, which is an extremely flexible render system, negating the needs for expansion joints which would look unsightly on the impressive building. The render was then painted using KEIM Soldalit which combines durability with breathability, ensuring the system will last for many years. The swimming pools ceilings were also plastered using KEIM Universal Render but the fine version for a smooth finish, and decorated with KEIM Soldalit to give a high performance finish in such a humid environment.

Former Terry's Chocolate Factory in York is transformed into a spectacular Care Village with the help of Johnstone's Trade. The landmark building is Grade II listed and, after a number of years lying unused and unloved was brought back to life using Johnstone’s Trade’s Covaplus Vinyl Matt and Acrylic Durable Matt. Applied to the walls and ceilings of the interior building, making it ideal for high traffic areas. In addition, Johnstone’s Water Based Undercoat and Gloss were used for the trim and window frames, providing a high sheen finish that will stay whiter for longer.

The automated floor-to-ceiling folding sliding shutters on the facade of Hotel La Maison in Saarlouis not only provide protection from the sun and noise, they are also an important element of design: when guests open and close the shutters, they exert an influence on the design of the façade. the façade consists of room-high folding sliding shutters equipped with HAWA Frontego 30 matic hardware. Guests can open and close the shutters at the touch of a button. In doing so, they determine their privacy and view and also create a new façade appearance every time.

SAS International supplied 1,200m2 of sophisticated metal ceilings and acoustic baffles to complement the building’s sustainable design. As a linear design is prominent in the lobbies and in hallways, SAS750 battens were chosen for their ability to run the length of the corridor, opening up the space. A high level of sound absorption was required in the main lobby, SAS500 baffles were selected to meet both the architect’s aesthetic vision as well as acoustic performance requirements. In the main breakout area SAS740 baffles fitted the curve of the space, achieving the multiple radii required within the area.

Premier Loft Ladders has helped Horizon Construction provide a safe and convenient access solution to a 1st floor plant room within a premium car showroom. What made this project particularly challenging was the 1.8m deep ceiling void. In addition, the access point was also in a prominent location outside the showroom offices. The solution was a bespoke Supreme heavy duty loft ladder. It offered a safe, discrete and easy-to-use solution for access to the car dealership plant room.Read the full case study...

Vienna Central station is a new, state-of-the-art railway station. The key architectural idea: Vienna should be open and free of barriers. Open halls, wide stairways and ceiling apertures create a sense of space and freedom. Simplicity and lightness are balanced by the use of high-grade materials such as natural stone and glass. About 1,100 metres of Q-railing’s oval-shaped, stainless steel Easy Glass cap rail on staircases throughout the station is a perfect example of this preference for quality. It also responded to the project’s demanding safety and accessibility requirements.

ACME Architects’ multi award winning £165million Victoria Gate is a vibrant new shopping destination in Leeds city centre, offering well over 1million square feet of premium retail and leisure floor space. Rockfon® Mono® Acoustic seamless acoustic ceiling and wall system was specified for the project to help create the desired look whilst helping deliver ambient acoustic comfort.was specified for the project to help create the desired look whilst helping deliver ambient acoustic comfort.

The National Memorial Arboretum (NMA) in Staffordshire is winner of the Large Visitor Attraction category in the Visit England Awards for Excellence 2018. Designed by Glenn Howells Architects (GHA), this stunning building is the UK’s year-round centre of Remembrance - a spiritually uplifting place which honours the fallen, recognises service and sacrifice and fosters pride in the UK. The building engages materially with its environment and harnesses a soft material concept of larch timber and natural stone. Internally this is complemented by the installation of 1000sqm of Troldtekt wood wool acoustic ceiling panels.

The Burry Port Community School is the first Passivhaus School in Walesa in a design collaboration between Carmarthenshire County Council and Architype architects. A major contribution to the pleasant environment was the choice of Troldtekt acoustic ceiling panels, especially in the classrooms and potentially noisy open spaces. Specified throughout the UK and Europe, the benefits of the 100% natural wood fibres panels include high sound absorption, high durability, natural breathability, low cost life cycle performance and sustainability documented by Cradle to Cradle certification at silver level.

The BBC TV Centre at Wood Lane London is world renowned for its television output over many years. Completed in February last year, much of the interior was extensively redesigned by HOK architects, with refurbishment and construction carried out by the BDL Group, one of the largest specialist dry-lining contractors in the UK. One of the key factors to ensure that noise was kept to a minimum and reverberation time reduced. The solution was high performance Troldtekt acoustic panels which were used to line all the ceilings and the soffit around the circular atrium.

Recently opened, the Engine Shed is Scotland’s dedicated building conservation centre, based in Stirling. Working with contractor, ESH Border and architect Reiach & Hall, Style Scotland installed a Skyfold operable wall to quickly separate the exhibition space from the auditorium, allowing educational seminars to be conducted in privacy whilst the rest of the space remains open to the public. Skyfold, a hugely innovative partitioning solution, is a vertical-rising moveable wall that retracts into the ceiling cavity at the turn of a key, creating an acoustic barrier of up to 59dB Rw.

Architect: Allford Hall Monaghan MorrisInstaller: LacunarProduct: Gustafs Linear Ribs60m2 and around 500 individual ribs were installed to the walls and ceiling of the link bridge at the AHMM offices in London. Ribs were specified in varying depths and white foil wrapping for a subtle, textured, modern finish.“Having worked with GUSTAFS on previous projects such as Leonard Street, we knew to expect a quality product when specifying our own offices, AHMM City. As elsewhere in the fit out, we looked to use proprietary components in a new way.Installed on a tapered bridge linking two buildings with differing levels and heights, the installation on both walls and the ceiling provides an acoustic buffer between our open plan offices and meeting rooms.We specified white veneered GLS ribs of varying depths to amplify the unusual geometry of the space. Referencing Bridget Riley, we created a subtle visual illusion of increased width when crossing between the spaces.The LSA team ensured that the complex intersections we had developed were resolved and installed on site to a standard exceeding our expectations.”Lizi Cushen, Project Architect – AHMM“We have worked together for many years because the GUSTAFS team contribute to the collaborative process from inception to execution.”Simon Allford, Director – AHMM

Airport terminals are immense places with high ceilings and are subjected to significant acoustic disruption from the outside due to air traffic. In addition, crowd noise can often make airport terminals disorienting and confusing. To improve the acoustic comfort of the terminal for its occupants, URS Corporation chose BARRISOL ACOUSTICS® as the best solution to balance aesthetics and the functional need for sound control. The results obtained were much better than expected by airport administrators. The terminal is now more acoustically comfortable and the space benefits from the modern feel of the BARRISOL elements.

Bolton Gate were specified to provide the security grilles for the recently completed extension and refurbishment of the BMW Motorcycle showroom in Manchester. In keeping with the prestigious appearance of the building and high-end motorcycles on show, parallel mesh electric grilles in polished stainless steel were chosen to protect the showroom and external windows. In order to remain unobtrusive during trading hours, the bottom rails and side guides were powder coated white to match the surrounding walls and ceiling. For ease of operation, all grilles were electrically linked to allow simultaneous operation.

Delta were employed to assist on this leaking podium deck project. Following a full assessment of The Hub and its underground parking facilities it was identified that rainwater was entering the basement car park through the ceiling deck at multiple points. These points included holes that were formed to allow drainage from the surface, movement joints and investigation holes that had been created through the steel rib and concrete deck. Based on “as built plans” a system was designed post construction that would offer the same quality of structural protection had it been incorporated during the build phase.

In the first phase of their plans for Charlottehaven (or Charlotte Garden) – a 178-rental-apartment development on Strandboulevarden in Østerbro, Copenhagen – Lundgaard & Tranberg Architects exhibited great deftness in their treatment of both light and shadow, and texture and detail. So, it was natural that these interplays should continue into the project’s second phase: 37 furnished hotel apartments known as Charlottetårnet (or Charlotte Tower).A perfect example of these two interplays is seen in the hotel’s light-yet-warm bathrooms, which are characterised by creamy-hued floor-to-ceiling terrazzo surfaces punctuated by d line sanitary pieces in PVD Charcoal.

Located in the small, but lively town of Bangor, Eclectic, a luxurious mind and body wellbeing retreat, has opened a three-story studio on the main street. The state of the art studio features wall and ceiling slats throughout the tranquil and elegant space in woodgrain decor H1146 ST10 Grey Bardolino Oak, which fits in perfectly with the contemporary interior. Its light colour tones and delicate texture complement the other materials used in the design, to create a warm and inviting space. As well as the slats, the decor was used to create wall units, door frontals and shelving.

The extensive refurbishment of The Mill House in Wiltshire, has been successfully achieved through using Johnstone’s Trade Professional range. Mouland’s extensive scope of work included the use of Johnstone’s Covaplus Vinyl Matt to give the interior walls and ceiling a wipeable finish. Part of Johnstone’s Ecological Solutions range with minimal VOCs, Johnstone’s Covaplus has the added benefit of lessening its impact on the environment. In addition, Johnstone’s Eggshell, which is specially formulated for interior use on wood and metal surfaces, was used to provide a smooth and washable condensation-resistant finish.

When the Gatwick consortium began renovation on the South terminal of Gatwick Airport they needed to ensure that the new floors were protected against movement of the daily traffic that they endure. Genesis provided a solution; working with the architects and installation contractors a cost effective Stainless Steel Movement Joint was selected from the Genesis range. Renovations been part of an £850million investment to see the replacement of floors and ceilings and enhance the experience travellers receive; Genesis movement Joint meets and exceeds all standards of Movement Joints and will save the floors from cracking long into the future.

Johnstone’s Trade is used to create beautiful interiors for the largest private residence in Glasgow. Delivering all requirements of the brief, Johnstone’s high quality decorative paints were used to complement the properties stunning interior and to offer a beautiful home to the residents. Johnstone’s Acrylic Durable Matt was applied throughout the property to give a long lasting finish. Used on the walls and ceilings in off-white to increase the light reflectance. Specified on the doors, skirting and other woodwork, Johnstone’s Professional Undercoat was used to provide the perfect surface for over-coating with Johnstone’s Eggshell.

Premier Loft Ladders were approached for a challenging project requiring a loft ladder suitable for providing safe and easy access to the loft of a period home. However, the high ceiling and small opening presented an issue, ruling out many loft ladders. Furthermore, safety was an important consideration to the home owners. As such, the retractable ladder needed at least one handrail and wide non-slip treads. Also, it was essential that the ladder was robust and stable. The Ecco perfectly fit the particularly tight constraints for this project. Also, the counter-balance spring system meant it was easy to operate

Truss roof rafters and ceiling joists are typically spaced either 400mm, 450mm or 600mm apart. Given that the joist is normally 50mm wide, this gives a fairly small opening width for your loft hatch and ladder. However, there are still a wide variety of options to consider. For example, space saving concertina loft ladders, are easy to operate, providing robust and durable access to an attic. Made-to-measure folding wooden loft ladders, such as the new Quadro, are available for widths of 550mm and offer minimal protrusion in the loft space above. Visit our website for more information.

A wedding venue that showcases a Historic England perfectly has been transformed using Johnstone’s decorative paints. Specified for its high quality finish and whiteness properties, Johnstone’s Covaplus Vinyl Matt in off-white was used to paint the elegant hallway of the grade 1 listed building. As well as being applied on the walls and ceilings of the spectacular reception. Johnstone’s Acrylic Durable Matt was used in the food and bar area, due to its outstanding durability. Additionally, Johnstone’s Satin Woodstain was used on the hand rails of the balconies to protect the wood from decay.

The new Muscat International Airport is designed to transform the airport experience not only in the Middle East but on the global stage. A smooth and pleasant customer journey is at the core of the design. Since its conception in 2011, SAS has been heavily involved in realising the aims for each area of the building. SAS has supplied more than 200,000m² of column casing, acoustic wall panelling, staircase cladding and bespoke metal ceilings to the project. Each product has been carefully designed to provide essential acoustic absorption for visitors as well as service integration and accessibility for staff.

2 Semple Street offers six floors of Grade A office space. With an impressive and sustainable specification, the building boasts EPC 'A' and BREEAM 'Very Good' ratings. Offering design flexibility, the popular SAS330 was specified for the main office floorplates. For the reception area, SAS600 feature rafts had an oblong perforation that oversailed the tile edges. With this prime city centre office offering prospective tenants an exceptional specification throughout, SAS International has once again provided high performance ceiling systems that make the grade for cutting edge commercial office buildings.

SAS International provided the metal ceiling solution for one of the world’s greatest law firms based in Dublin, Pinsent Masons. White SAS150 was installed in the building’s commercial office space, as the product enables full service accessibility. This is an invaluable factor which futureproofs interiors in times to come. Other SAS products included SAS740, which was placed in meeting rooms to maintain a linear effect throughout the space. Shortlisted for a prestigious Fit Out Award Ireland - Fit Out Project of the Year – Medium Office, SAS are very proud to have worked on this build.

Soundis was contracted to supply Acoustic Chip Board 28mm Overlay.As part of a major reinvestment programme into the northern seaside town of Blackpool, the owners of the promenade theme park, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, commissioned a luxury 120-room hotel featuring a 90-seat restaurant and state-of-the-art conferencing and event facilities catering for up to 200 delegates.The product chosen for this project was a 28mm Acoustic Chipboard Overlay Product commonly used over concrete subfloors for its cost-effective solution to impact noise with minimal impact on the floor to ceiling heights of the building.

With floor space at a premium, partitioning expert Style strives to deliver solutions that minimise space needed to create an effective room divide. For example, the fully-automatic Skyfold Zenith is stored out of sight in the ceiling cavity. At the touch of a button it slides down as almost entirely flat panels, allowing a room to be quickly divided without even moving furniture. There are four Zenith models capable of delivering laboratory tested acoustic performance ranging from Rw48dB right through to an incredible Rw59dB. There is also the sound absorption Zenith with a 0.65 NRC rating.

The Folkehuset Absalon in Copenhagen is an excellent example of the growing trend towards multi-use and multi-purpose cultural social centres. Designed to promote community cohesion with a flexible space to accommodate a variety of activities and services, multi-purpose venues are used to support everything from sport, leisure and learning through to childcare, heritage, culture, elderly needs, tourism, pop-up shops and events. This award-winning project by Arcgency architects has taken a former Church with its high ceilings and transformed it into a flexible community centre with ‘living-room’ feel.

Oakmeadow Primary School is one of the first Passivhaus primary schools in the UK. Designed by Architype architects, the school has a lightweight, super insulated timber frame to achieve Passivhaus airtightness, with a simplified load bearing stud wall, wrapped by an additional layer of insulation created by Larson trusses. A major contribution to the comfort of the occupants is the use of Troldtekt ceiling tiles in both classrooms and the sports hall. The tiles not only reduce reverberation time but also offer high performance acoustic absorption in areas, such as the teaching areas which need to be calm, studious & healthy.

Bedales School is set in an area of outstanding natural beauty on the edge of the South Downs National Park in Hampshire. Its new Art and Design building designed by architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios has a strong sense of countryside drawing references from traditional agricultural buildings by creating a series of connected barn forms. Their dramatic pitched ceilings comprise Troldtekt acoustic panels on one side to absorb sound and improve acoustics.In what is otherwise a lightweight building, the thermal mass of exposed concrete surfaces contributes to a stable internal temperature.

Opened in 2018, NoMad Los Angeles is the newest hotel from the renowned Sydell Group, and the second iteration of the chic NoMad New York. Designed by French architect and designer Jacques Garcia, guest rooms were inspired by the colour palette of the lobby’s original blue and gold Italianate ceiling.European-style bathrooms have Calacatta gold marble, walk-in showers with terrazzo floors and carefully chosen vintage details. The Ravello bath was the perfect choice for such a space, with its unique sculpted shape.Design: Studio Jacques GarciaDesign: Studio Jacques Garcia

The Koningin Elisabethzaal in the northern Belgian seaport of Antwerp is unusual in every respect. Located at the heart of an architecturally charming city, structurally merged with a world-famous zoo, and boasting an immensely varied history as a concert hall, it transformed from an acoustic ugly duckling into a gleaming swan of aural experience. At the core of this metamorphosis is the design by the renowned American acoustician Larry Kirkegaard, who completely remodeled the hall acoustically. Golden metal fabric by GKD – GEBR. KUFFERATH AG (GKD) plays a key role in his concept. The woven texture really underlines the one-of-a-kind spatial experience in its use as large-scale cladding for ceiling, walls, and balustrades.One of 65 participants in an international competition to redesign and remodel the Koningin Elisabethzaal, the consortium comprised of SimpsonHaugh Architects (London) and Kirkegaard Associates (Chicago) produced the winning design. Kirkegaard’s ambitious concept, which employed structural and technical agility to aim for nothing less than a world-class standard for the new concert hall, played no small part in this success. The original hall was opened in 1897, served as a hospital ward during the First World War, morphed into a venue for boxing and wrestling matches during the Olympic Games a few years later, and was reopened in 1960 following major destruction in the Second World War. The fan-shaped design of this building, which was not intended to be used purely as a concert hall, contributed greatly to its poor acoustics, which achieved only six out of ten points on the rating scale. Plus, although it provided a stage, there were no rehearsal rooms for the orchestra and soloists. One aim of the new building was therefore to finally offer a home to the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra. The new Koningin Elisabethzaal is the centerpiece of the Elisabeth Center, which was also newly built as an ultramodern 25,000-square-meter conference center. When redesigning the concert hall, the planners decided to reduce its size in order to optimize the acoustics. This resulted in an enormous light-flooded foyer with atrium in the Elisabeth Center. Architect Ian Simpson embedded the new building into the historical complex in such a way that the art nouveau façades that had previously been hidden by the building were revealed once more and the old halls remained largely untouched. One of these halls, the Loos Hall, connects the new 2,000-square-meter concert hall with the historical part and also serves as the foyer of the Elisabeth Center. With its high stuccoed ceilings and rich marble decor, it provides a representative space for exhibitions and receptions. The new four-story building comprises various conference and meeting rooms for up to 1,900 participants, the concert hall with a capacity of 2,000 guests, extensive logistics facilities, VIP and catering areas, administrative offices, and soundproofed rehearsal rooms.An acoustic embrace in a shoe boxThe designers selected a shoe box shape for the concert hall, which classical music lovers deem to be a guarantee of optimum acoustics. This is aided by a perfectly balanced distance between the stage and the wall and an unusual seating arrangement in the parterre and the two galleries. Doing without a permanent apron also prevents a loss of sound. A curved wall means that the largest distance between the stage and audience seats is 30 meters, so that every guest feels part of what is happening on stage and can see and hear equally well from all seats. Movable reflectors clad in metal fabric and suspended from the ceiling as well as frames covered in the same fabric ensure that the sound is able to unfold throughout the entire hall. At the same time, the semitransparent membranes conceal the bare ceiling and the technical installations above. In designing the walls, Kirkegaard Associates chose a wave-shaped oak wainscoting. The cavities were filled with lava sand to prevent vibrations. With this construction, the acousticians drew on the sound experience of earlier concert halls, which employed arm-thick stone walls to reflect low-frequency sound back into the hall. As such, the walls and the rear wall of the stage in the Koningin Elisabethzaal form an acoustic embrace which ensures that the echo is not absorbed but is fully reflected to the stage.Metal fabric for good soundThe same fabric that was used for the ceiling elements also covers the movable reflectors on the back wall of the stage: gold-colored powder-coated Alu 6010. For the ceiling and stage wall, GKD fitted a total of 204 frames, some of them wave-shaped, with 1,600 square meters of this fabric type. Four-meter-long and 2.50-meter-wide panels were fastened to the frames provided by the customer with thin stainless steel wires at intervals of ten centimeters. GKD also incorporated the cutouts for the lights exactly according to the specifications. A first for the weave specialists was that the entire construction consisting of frames and fabric was then coated in the desired shade of gold. This required special pretreatment in order to ensure homogeneous coloring of the components made from different materials – steel and aluminum. Prior to selecting the material, Kirkegaard Associates had carried out extensive tests on the GKD fabrics in order to achieve the best possible sound and space experience. As such, GKD was involved in the planning process with architects and acousticians from a very early stage. The decisive factor in opting for metal fabric was the acoustic neutrality. In addition, the exclusive look, flexibility, and robustness of the GKD fabrics corresponded to the ambitious design concept. That is why the fabric from GKD – Omega 1520 with gold-colored coated weft – was also chosen for the balustrades of the galleries. It fits flexibly to the bidirectionally curved corners of the balustrade and is also resistant to impact thanks to tensioning in the direction of the cable. When fitting the front and rear of the balustrade elements with 400 square meters of this fabric type, the curve needed to be followed exactly. GKD selected a slightly conical panel cut for this purpose in order to realize the radius by tracing a polygon.The clever interaction between the design of the hall shape, ceiling, wall, and balustrade is what gives the new Koningin Elisabethzaal its excellent acoustics: with 9.3 out of 10 points on the rating scale, it is considered almost perfect. At the opening concert, Belgium’s Queen Mathilde personally handed over the hall, which offers a world-class space and sound experience, to the public.

The Royal Caribbean Company, specialized on cruise ship construction, has recently inaugurated the Oasis of the Seas, the biggest and the most luxurious ship of the world. With its 360 meters long, this monster of seas can welcome 7400 persons. As a central meeting point, the Royal Walk is a place to relax and to admire oceans. 920 m² of microperforated Barrisol Acoustics® stretched ceilings were installed, offering an excellent acoustic quality. Barrisol® stretched membranes also dressed 7 " trees umbrellas " with white matt finish and the kiosk lamps with translucent Barrisol Blanc Vénus ®.