A global manufacturer of architectural products, Hunter Douglas, is adding style and expertise to an on-going £7 million refurbishment of Enfield Civic Centre with a bespoke grill wood ceiling. As part of a four year refurbishment programme to bring the 1970’s Civic Centre up to date, Hunter Douglas was commissioned by architectural consultancy Pellings LLP to create solid timber grill ceilings, totalling 480m2, in breakout areas over eight floors. The seventh, eighth and ninth and floors have already been completed and now work is to be undertaken to transform the floors below. Over the next 20 months, work on floors five to one will take place with an expected completion date of summer 2017.
Using the CAD drawings created by Matt Godwin, head of interiors at Pellings LLP, Hunter Douglas created an Ayous grill ceiling in 7-40-15-55 module. The timber was impregnated with Hunter Douglas’s standard fire treatment, which meets the European Fireclass B-s2-d0. Godwin’s original concept of an oak wood ceiling had to be changed to oak-stained Ayous in order to stay within budget of £80,000. The result is just as stunning, said. Kevin Taylor, Hunter Douglas Technical Sales Manager. It is complemented with an acoustic backing that is sprayed black to maintain a warm aesthetic.
“The use of Ayous offers designers the ideal solution because it is hard wearing and has a lovely grain to it, making it easy to stain in whichever finish the client requires,” said Kevin. “The system design allows for easy access to services, such as the air conditioning units, and also looks aesthetically pleasing.” Matt Godwin agreed that the oak-stained effect added warmth to the central space. He said he was led to commission Hunter Douglas for the civic centre redesign by the company’s expertise in manufacturing his grill wood ceiling vision.