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In its 40th year of operation, Calvary Public Hospital in the Canberra suburb of Bruce, needed to undertake works to reclad the facade of its Intensive Care Unit. Responding to a desire for clean, precise lines and a smooth finish, Cemintel’s Surround cladding was chosen as the ideal solution for the project.
All buildings in Australia must comply with the requirements outlined in the Building Code of Australia (BCA). Cemintel’s Surround offers a high-end and durable solution that can be used wherever a non-combustible material is required under the Deemed-to-Satisfy provision of the BCA.
As the facade was required to be reclad for safety reasons, the Hospital took the opportunity to update the look whereas previously, the facade was the more common, metallic aluminium finish often used in commercial buildings.
Referencing the Calvary Health Care colours, Surround was chosen in four tones and stacked in an intricate tessellation to create a unique and sophisticated facade. The primary tone, Surround Greyish, is a colour that works well on its own for a subdued effect, or as a complement to bolder colours.
In this project, Greyish was complemented by Whiteish, Blackish and Blueish. The colour matched rivets also formed part of the design aesthetic as they effortlessly blended across the panels and were simple to install using the rivet fixing system.
With a core range of expertly curated neutral colours and discrete patterns, Surround’s subtle tones establish a sense of calm on the exterior of one of the most important buildings in the hospital complex. Like any ICU, it needed to be easily recognised within the hospital precinct, but it also needed to be inviting as people who require medical treatment, or those accompany patients are usually under duress.
The new facade was installed by Eifer. Contractor Jackson Roberts commented on the replacement of the facade’s panels with Cemintel.
“Moving from a 4mm aluminum composite panel to a 9mm fibre cement product meant we had to completely upgrade the framework to be compatible with the new panels. While we were replacing the wall for compliance issues, one of the shortcomings of aluminium facades is that even to replace a damaged panel, you need to remove the whole wall.”
“Luckily, the rivet fixing method of the Cemintel is easy to use, despite the thickness of the Surround panels. Having a pigment coloured core on the panel, combined with the gasket tape in the express joint, gives a unique look and negates the need for a silicone joint like other facade systems,” says Jackson.
Jackson also commented on Surround’s ease of installation, especially with the difficult task of replacing each panel and some site challenges.
“The Surround product is pretty easy to work with and is cut with normal fibre cement cutting blades. We were a little concerned because it was a prefinished product and had to take a little more care, but we established a clean storage area and just moved it to the cutting area as the project progressed.”
“Replacing the facade was a challenging process, but ultimately, using Surround gives better security and longevity to the project. The durability of the product was of real importance to ensure the new facade would stand the test of time.”
“It was very important that the products used were compliant with Australian standards and were non-combustible, given the highly publicised industry issues associated with combustible cladding, especially in public buildings. Selecting Cemintel offers peace of mind that the materials used comply with Australian building standards,” concludes Jackson.
Cemintel’s Surround replaces cladding identified as non-compliant with current Australian building standards. An audit is currently in progress in The Australian Capital Territory to identify public buildings that contain potentially combustible materials.
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