Natural Stone Cladding: Anchored In The Past, But Ready For The Future-stone cladding

The longevity of stone puts any human concept of old age to shame. Stone creates a sense of permanence and solidity, even when worn and weathered. It’s been used throughout history as the structure and facade of buildings- buildings that have literally stood the test of time.

While natural stone has been the material of choice for millennia, glass has dominated commercial construction—especially large scale projects like skyscrapers—in recent years. But architects are increasingly reacting to this glut of glass by returning to stone for their projects. For many developers and architects, glass had become the default, a sterile, too obvious choice which resulted in a flat, texture-less and uninspired design.

Mae'r newid o wydr yn ôl i garreg hefyd yn ganlyniad i bryderon amgylcheddol. Yn ddiweddar symudodd maer Dinas Efrog Newydd, Bill De Blasio i gwahardd skyscrapers gwydr newydd in the city, making New York the first city to mandate energy efficiency. But it won’t be the last: According to the United Nations, 40% of the world’s energy consumption can be attributed to buildings. Pressure to construct buildings in a sustainably responsible manner is being felt by developers and architects around the world.

INDIANA LIMESTONE – FULL COLOR BLEND™ ffasâd ar goncrit rhag-gastiedig | Stadiwm Yankee | Pensaer: Poblogaidd

“It’s pretty well known in the industry that those glass facade buildings are not energy efficient,” said Hugo Vega, vice president of Architectural Sales at Polycor. “Meaning that in the summer it becomes super hot and you need to have an extensive system of air conditioning and in the winter you need a lot of heating as compared to a traditional building with more stone.”

The design community has been embracing stone for facade design instead, and just in time, as changes in building codes and regulations are set to further tighten architects’ design choices. Natural stone plays an important role in the future of sustainable architecture thanks to its life-cycle, durability, ease of care, low maintenance, and energy efficiency— the list goes on. The minimal environmental impact that innovative cladding wall systems provide is another reason the building industry is moving back to natural materials.

Mae cerrig naturiol polycor yn berthnasol ar gyfer amrywiaeth o systemau angori a chynnal ffasâd. Gweld sut.

“Energy inefficient glass facades concerns are a good driver for the growing popularity of stone cladding,” said Vega.

Vega understands this continued demand for stone cladding better than just about anyone: he’s been the driving force behind the development of the cladding division of Polycor and he has an in-depth understanding of what architects and builders are looking for in their products.

BETHEL WHITE® a CAMBRIAN BLACK® paneli gwenithfaen 3cm ar system Eclad wedi'u gosod dros y strwythur presennol | Adeilad TD | Pensaer: WZMH

“The type of stone will dictate possible finishes, thickness, and more,” said Vega. “For example, it’s inadvisable to use polished 3cm marble and expose it to the elements for cladding. Direct communication with selected quarries will help validate the block sizes and thus the maximum finished panel sizes, what natural features can be expected in the stone, and the availability of the material according to job size and phases.” Specification challenges can present themselves throughout a project, such as alternate stones being introduced by other parties and detracting from the initial design intent. Maintaining a close contact with the quarry teams helps ensure this is preserved. As Hugo points out, “Make sure to specify the true, branded names of the materials to avoid being supplied with undesired alternates.” The old days of calling out marmor Eidalaidd doesn’t cut it anymore.

Cladin Wal Cerrig Naturiol Tywodfaen Heulwen Aur

AR FLAENAR ARLOESI GLADDU CERRIG NATURIOL

Stone cladding isn’t just the smart alternative to energy efficient glass, it’s also the simple choice, thanks to new cladding attachment systems.

“These new attachment systems allow stone to be used for lighter applications, when the structure has not been designed for a heavy full bed,” said Vega. “They also allow for a faster installation compared to traditional methods.“

Mae datrysiadau cladin arloesol yn caniatáu mwy o bosibiliadau dylunio | Yn y llun: Litecore wedi'i dorri'n denau Glynodd Calchfaen Indiana at gefnogaeth crwybr alwminiwm

Gall arloesiadau cladin gynnig ateb cain a chost-effeithiol ar gyfer ymgorffori lliwiau a gweadau carreg naturiol heb gymhlethdodau cludiant costus a gosodiad hir. Wrth bersonoli cymeriad dilys carreg naturiol, mae rhai o'r systemau hyn yn parhau i fod yn ysgafn er hwylustod, gan ei gwneud yn ddewis craff ar gyfer mynd i'r afael â'r gofynion llym y mae'n rhaid i benseiri eu bodloni mewn codau adeiladu modern.

Mae cerrig naturiol polycor yn berthnasol ar gyfer amrywiaeth o systemau angori a chynnal ffasâd. Yn tarddu o'r Chwareli Polycor and all through production, the stones are manufactured to each of our partner system’s specifications from ultra-thin profiles up to full thickness dimensional elements complimenting a wide range of facade structures.

Wrth ddewis carreg ar gyfer cladin, mae angen i benseiri bwyso a mesur llawer o ffactorau: ymddangosiad, defnydd arfaethedig, maint y prosiect, cryfder, gwydnwch a pherfformiad. Trwy ddewis cerrig Polycor ar gyfer ffasadau, mae penseiri yn elwa o'n perchnogaeth lawn o'r gadwyn gyflenwi, o'r holl ffordd i lawr yn y creigwely hyd at y pwynt gosod. Gwerth gweithio gyda chwmni fel Polycor, gan ein bod yn berchen ar ein chwareli, yw y gallwn ateb yn uniongyrchol i unrhyw gwestiynau neu bryderon a allai fod gan bensaer yn ystod y broses o ddatblygu manyleb ar gyfer ffasâd yn hytrach na chael 2-3 o ddynion canol.

Polycor Bethel White® granite quarry | Bethel, VT

“We have a wide array of our own limestone, granite and marble, so architects can discuss with the source and get accurate and reliable information,” said Vega. “We fabricate ourselves and sell blocks to other fabricators, ensuring competitiveness of the offers, while preserving the design intent. We work with industry leaders like Eclad, Maen Hoffmann and others to offer a complete cladding solution for the project.“

Mae Vega wedi bod â diddordeb mewn technolegau cladin arloesol ac wedi gweithio gydag arbenigwyr ymchwil a datblygu yn ein gweithfeydd gweithgynhyrchu i wneud cladin carreg naturiol o drwch amrywiol y gellir ei ddefnyddio naill ai y tu mewn neu'r tu allan i adeilad. Yn gyffredinol, caiff ei osod trwy system reilffordd a chlampio annibynnol.

Polycor’s stone veneer can be installed over solid facing, which eliminates the challenge of removing the original substructure in some cases. Some stone panels are cut thin, while still maintaining the authentic look and feel of a thicker stone without the heavy weight of a 3-6 inch deep stone veneer, making installation fast and simple. Polycor’s thin stones are compatible in many cladding configurations and are manufactured for systems like Litecore, datrysiad sy'n cynnig carreg ar ffracsiwn o'r pwysau a gosodiad ddwywaith y cyflymder.

Delwedd trwy garedigrwydd: Litecore

Stone on Honeycomb gyda'r system Litecore

Mae'r paneli wal amlbwrpas, cyfansawdd hyn yn defnyddio carreg Polycor wedi'i dorri'n argaen tra-denau. Gan gadw at diliau haenog, wedi'u rhyngosod rhwng dalennau alwminiwm a rhwyll gwydr ffibr, mae'r paneli'n darparu system ffasâd dwysedd isel, cryfder uchel ac ysgafn.

KODIAK BROWN™ ultra thin 1cm granite with carbon fiber backing on Eclad system | Architect: Régis Côtés

Carreg 1cm â Chymorth Carbon gyda systemau Eclad ac Elemex

Mae slabiau cefn ffibr carbon polycor 1cm yn gynhyrchion carreg naturiol hynod denau, ysgafn a gwydn sy'n dibynnu ar gefnogaeth berchnogol ymlynol a ddefnyddir yn lle alwminiwm. Mae'r paneli carreg dilynol wedi'u haddasu i integreiddio i systemau cladin Eclad ac Elemex.

GEORGIA MARBLE – WHITE CHEROKEE™and Indiana Limestone facade on precast concrete | 900 16th St. Washington, D.C. | Architect: Robert AM Stern

Carreg ar Goncrit Perfformiad Uchel Iawn

3cm stone mechanically anchored to thin, precast concrete panels provides additional installation advantages. Companies such as Hoffman Stone systems are compatible with Polycor’s stones.

Mae gan Polycor yr arbenigedd i greu unrhyw brosiect o wal syml i feinciau, prosiectau pensaernïol rhagorol a thu mewn cyntedd uchel. Mae pob datrysiad yn caniatáu i benseiri ddylunio tu allan adeiladau arloesol, cynaliadwy a dymunol yn esthetig gan ymgorffori arwynebau cerrig.

“These solutions can also be used interchangeably to blend with more traditional architectural elements and stone masonry construction such as full bed trim, cornices, lintels and things of that nature,” said Vega. “And again, once the material is specified, it can be used on any cladding system, traditional masonry and fabricated by pretty much all the fabricators operating on the market today. This way architects can lock in their design intent, and let engineers and builders establish means and methods to realize the design within budget.”

INDIANA LIMESTONE – STANDARD BUFF™ cladin yn asio ychwanegiad modern gyda gwaith carreg traddodiadol | Senedd Canada, Ottawa, CA | Pensaer: Diamond Schmitt

Wedi'i angori yn y gorffennol ond yn barod ar gyfer y dyfodol, mae cladin carreg naturiol yn diwallu anghenion pensaernïaeth a dylunio modern. Ac er bod datblygiadau cladin yn parhau i wneud cerrig tenau yn haws nag erioed i'w defnyddio, nid cladin yw'r unig ddyfodol o garreg naturiol.