Shackerley Façades Complete
Office-to-Resi Transformation in Bristol
The Milliners is a six-storey office block in
Bristol that has been converted into 109
apartments for London and County Estates
by Headoffice3.
The façade design needed to consider
local context while providing a robust, high
quality finish, leading to the specification of
Shackerley’s SureClad® ventilated façade
system.
DETAILED SPECIFICATION
The project compromises a mix of studio,
one-bed and two-bed apartments and
penthouses with panoramic views. All
two-bed apartments have allocated parking
and roof terraces, which contributed to the
cladding detailing requirements.
Explains Ian Blakemore from Task Contract
Services, the cladding sub-contractor on the
project: “The upgrades and modifications
introduced as part of the conversion created
some significant detailing challenges.
“We needed bespoke detailing to
accommodate both the protruding balconies
to the rear of the building and the windows,
which are flush to the façade, so it was vital
that Shackerley prefabricated every façade
panel to our exact dimensions.”
RE-IMAGINING THE FAÇADE
The building was stripped back to the
concrete frame and Headoffice3 specified
Shackerley’s SureClad® ventilated façade
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system with ceramic granite panels,
along with new windows and insulation
to improve the building’s thermal
performance. building and work on different sections as
required.”
New structural infill panels were inserted
between the concrete frame slabs with
insulation fixed to the new external
wall surface. The SureClad® ventilated
façade system was then installed
using Shackerley’s Queen’s Award
winning SureClad® Access installation
system. For one of the elevations, to aid
soundproofing, the SureClad® ventilated
façade was used in combination with
the Kingspan BENCHMARK Karrier Panel
system. The majority of the ceramic granite cladding
was specified in a creamy ‘Travertine’
colourway with a natural honed finish,
creating a high-end aesthetic that mimics
the look and texture of locally-prevalent Bath
Stone. Beige ‘Volcado’ in the same natural
honed finish has been used to complement
the ‘Travertine’ and provide subtle contrast.
Ian Blakemore continues: “Because
the SureClad® Access system allows
non-sequential installation of panels, we
had the flexibility to move around the
INSPIRING AESTHETICS
David Smith from Headoffice adds: “The
SureClad® ceramic granite system provides
the appearance of Bath Stone with a much
slimmer, stronger, yet more lightweight
panel, which is Class A1 for resistance to
fire and is impermeable, ensuring freeze-
thaw resistance by preventing moisture
penetration.”