Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/687429
Glass-fibre-reinforced concrete used for external vertical extensions from Sound Solutions. J UNE 2016 | 23 The strong, lightweight cladding products have been a staple at Sound Solutions for several years. But now, for the first time in Canada, says Andrew Rogers, presi- dent of Sound Solutions, a cementitious material, not metal, is being used for exter- nal vertical extensions. Known as fins, they are back in, according to a recent article in The Globe and Mail, whose author describes them as "high-Modernist details I thought had gone out with Nehru jackets." The fad for fins – in both metal and concrete – has been sweeping Asia, Europe and the Americas. But until now, in Canada, only metal fins had been deployed. "These external elements can provide shading and decoration. There's a lot of glass boxes out there for high- and mid-rise buildings. A trend now is to interrupt the smooth, seamless glass look. We've been contracted to do a concrete fin system. It hasn't been done here in the past because concrete was seen as too heavy. We'll be using a thin Fibre C product," Rogers says. The flat, glass-fibre-reinforced concrete to be used for the fins is extruded and reinforced with two layers of fibre mesh. "We're attaching the fins to the curtain- wall, not the slab. It's never been done with concrete," Rogers says. Porcelain is one product from Europe that's attracting more interest these days. "We're seeing an increasing number of jobs spec'd for porcelain," says Blair Davies, VP and general manager of Engineered Assemblies. Why porcelain? "It's inert, never going to change, absorbs almost no water, so no freeze-thaw cycle, and last forever. It's cool, authentic, and with a digital process can even simulate the look of marble or granite," Davies says. Its versatility for both colours and finishes, the back-up of a global supply chain, as well as being a good fit for today's fabrication methods, are also boosting the drawing power of porcelain. Sintered compact surface slabs from Spain, Italy and Turkey, are composed of natural products like mica, feldspar, clay and silica. The slabs are formed under high heat – 1,200 degrees Celsius – and four bars of pressure. This process and the resulting product caught the interest of Ontario Panelization a few years ago and initiated development of a pressure-equalized, rear-ventilated rainscreen system, called Ceramitex, and a spin-off company named for the new product. "Ceramitex uses a proprietary, patented method of attachment with a hidden fastener system," says David Waugh, architectural sales consultant with Ceramitex. Roofing/Cladding Materials Building Products.indd 1 16-05-19 2:40 PM