Petrarch Planx – A new ‘eco-friendly’ facade solution
Get your project on plan with Petrarch Planx
To celebrate 50 years of our engineered stone rainscreen, Petrarch, we’re pleased to
reveal we’ve added a brand new product to our portfolio. Unveiled earlier in the year by our esteemed distributors, CFS Nederland BV, Petrarch Planx is a super-light, super-slim (7mm) panel manufactured predominantly from otherwise waste material, which brings a high-end contemporary aesthetic to every design project.
Petrarch engineered stone has been innovating the facade market for over 50 years and is a tried and trusted facade material which comes with BBA certification and a 50 year guarantee. These same dependable qualities are now available in a modern environmentally-friendly, easy-to-install format.
The physical make-up of Petrarch Planx
In terms of its physical qualities, Petrarch Planx offers all the dependable features our clients have come to expect from Petrarch reconstituted stone panels, with the sole difference being that the panels have been pre-cut to a slim plinth to complement modern design styles and to maximise what would otherwise be by-product waste material. The fire resistance, durability, weather, impact and general ‘resistance’ attributes, remain the same – as quantified by our BBA testing.
A Petrarch Planx Premier – Het Baken in Zeewolde
In this recent leisure centre application, Het Baken in Zeewolde, you can see how these sleek Petrarch Planx complement the vibrant contemporary facade perfectly.
We recently had the pleasure of talking with CFS Nederland’s Director, Michiel Traa, who was very complimentary about our new facade product:
“We’re really proud of the result of Het Baken in Zeewolde sports centre, it’s the first example of a façade created with Petrarch Planx. We think it’s important to look after our planet’s resources and are extremely proud of this sustainable new product. In fact, Petrarch Planx is a residual by-product. Otherwise waste material from the production of the large-format panels is sawn into a slimmer, lightweight facade boards – slimline Planx.” The very fact that this building material is created from by-product material makes it extremely enviable for the eco-conscious developer.
About CFS & Petrarch Panels
CFS Netherlands has been importing Petrarch’s facade panels into the Dutch market since 2008. The reconstituted stone panel is considerably lighter in weight than its natural stone rivals and is therefore so easy to install. What’s more it’s available in many colours and lends itself perfectly to a ventilated façade application.
Pete Brough, Managing Director of Architectural Panel Solutions – manufacturer of Petrarch Planx, had this to say about APS’s relationship with CFS Nederland.
‘We’re extremely proud to partner with a distributor who shares our vision and is truly
excited by our products. We constantly look to ways to innovate and Petrarch Planx is our most recent testament to this. Given that these slim Petrarch Planx are manufactured in an ‘environmentally friendly’ manner makes them all the more appealing for facade designers and architects who are keen to implement greener materials on their projects. We’re thrilled with the result of Het Baken in Zeewolde sport centre and are looking forward to developing more showcase projects on a worldwide scale. I’d like to take a moment to thank everyone involved and look forward to working closely together on more showcase projects.’
Petrarch is a fibreglass-reinforced panel manufactured in the UK, using predominantly natural minerals, such as marble and stone. ”The product offers unprecedented design freedom because we can totally customise the aesthetic using custom pigments to provide a completely individual facade panel,” explains Michiel of CFS Netherlands. “The sky is the limit with Petrarch, both in terms of colour and texture, and all this is even morebudget-friendly thanks to the new Petrarch Planx slim format. The product is lightweight, does not absorb dirt and moisture and is very easy to clean.”
Ready-made facade system
Petrarch is available in thicknesses of 7 or 10 millimetres and is usually mechanically or adhesive fixed. “We supply the complete facade construction turnkey, including design, calculation and aluminium substructure,” says Michiel. “Everything is organised from the office in Oosterhout, which is very convenient for facade builders.” Architects also appreciate the benefits of Petrarch. “Recent Netherlands projects finished with Petrarch façade panels are the police station in Bergen op Zoom and the Radisson Blu hotel in Bruges.
Additionally, Petrarch also lends itself ideally to interior applications, as in the Phoenix building in Brussels. The possibilities are endless when it comes to its colour palette too, with a choice of over 1500 shades as well as custom shades. For the police station project in Bergen op Zoom, for example, Van Pelt architects combined four custom colours.”
Slangen + Koenis Architecten have been strong advocates of Petrarch for many years, and are extremely proud of their Petrarch Planx premier.
Initially, the idea was to use precast concrete for the facade at Het Baken, but in the end we opted for Petrarch Planx, a much lighter and budget-friendly alternative. “The advantage is that, like the sheet material, we can produce the planks in any colours and textures, so the appearance of concrete or brick can be easily emulated, which is exactly what we’ve done here. Petrarch Planx (only 7mm thick) were supplied in three striking grey shades, resulting in an attractive and varied façade aesthetic.” Slangen + Koenis Architecten
Project images courtesy of CFS Nederland and architects
Project Image – Sports Complex, Netherlands
Architect: Slangen + Koenis Architecten
Petrarch Planx: Colours #1137, #1137A, #1137B Smooth Matt
Contractor: 3ACP bv
If you’re ready to get your design on plan, get in touch and order your sample today: claddings@architecturalpanelsolutions.com