How is our reconstituted stone raincsreen cladding made, well here in the UK firstly, and here’s how….

Behind the Scenes at Petrarch | ACA Studios Factory Tour

There really is no substitute for seeing a façade material being brought to life to truly understand its quality, character, and the care behind its manufacture.

Earlier this month, we had the pleasure of welcoming the ACA Studios team to Petrarch HQ for an in-depth, behind-the-scenes experience.

During their visit, the team toured our Petrarch Panels facility; witnessing the full lifecycle of our reconstituted stone cladding, from seeing the raw materials blended together and pressed at high temperature, through to examining the expertly finished final reconstituted stone panel – hot off the production line.

This kind of direct engagement offers invaluable insight, not only into the craftsmanship involved, but also the rigorous environmental standards we uphold throughout production.
The group had the opportunity to speak with our in-house chemists about colour development, and to explore our distinctive textural finishes; these are hallmarks that set Petrarch panels apart as a leading GRC alternative in the façade sector.

We’ve brought together some of our favourite highlights from the visit, in collaboration with talented architects aca studios – capturing the spirit of the day and the passion that drives everything we do.

Stay tuned for a first look at the project that inspired the visit. It’s one we can’t wait to share 👀

 

In the words of Daryll Brown, Associate Director at ACA Studios

Behind the Scenes at Petrarch | ACA Studios Petrarch Panels Factory Tour

A super valuable opportunity to witness the refined product process of the Petrarch material range. Earlier this month, ACA Studios headed over to Hastings to visit the Petrarch HQ.

We always perceive building materials via specification, data sheets, test reports – but there is no better way to learn of a material quality, performance, aesthetic and value, than by witnessing its essential production process, directly from the factory floor. We got up-close with every stage of the production process, watching the raw material make its way down the conveyor, onto the intense heat and pressures of the press station.

Beyond just a colour palette, we had the privilege of entering the composition lab and discovering the hundreds of achievable colours and natural finishes. The infinite different recipes of reconstituted stone.

It is great to have a collection of our favourite highlights to share from the tour. Looking forward to seeing the culmination of all this design collaboration, shining in the sun on the façade of one of our projects – now in construction.

Thank you very much for having us and sharing the well-researched and refined process with our design team.

Petrarch Panels Testimonial:

After a short trip, we arrive in Hastings – warmly welcomed by Tom – into Petrarch HQ.

It was great to compare minds on the current regulations, the product specifications, and figure out how this unique material product can be applied in many different formats across our projects.

Especially with the new Gateway design submission process all buildings will now be undergoing here forward, it is essential that the design team really understands the materials we apply in our design, so this became a very valuable educational opportunity.

We entered the expansive factory space, where we were walked through every stage of the production process; from the blending of the raw crushed stone and marble materials; by the mixers, to the roller beds, and finally to see the material compressed and released for quality review.

From one space, we could witness the full conception process of a panel from start to finish – and even got to see the CNC routing of panels across the workshop, adding well designed and controlled pattern work to the panels that could not be replicated by hand.

We had discussions on material combustibility, façade maintenance, the weight load and site logistics factor (these panels are significantly lighter than most), and the numerous finishes and applications of the material that could add a whole new range of qualities to our future projects.

The material lab was also a greatly educational experience. We saw the massive material library and colour palette that panels could be mixed too, with numerous stone recipes, achieving any stone aesthetic you could imagine, without compromising the facade performance or combustibility parameters.

Very much appreciated their time to show us around and teach us how it is all put together. The material more than does the job and will likely be the solution in many design challenges across the country.

Daryll Brown, Associate Director of ACA Studios