AAC facade system provides perfect finish for Sydney apartment building

When Ghazi Al Ali Architect needed a design solution for an apartment complex at Caringbah, Sydney, Australia, Hebel’s PowerPattern facade system provided the perfect answer. The system consists of AAC facade panels with a range of different decorative patterns pre-routed onto their surface, which gives the architect and designer freedom for their creative visions.
“It has achieved a really great outcome for us,” says Ghazi Al Ali, director of the Burwood-based architectural and interior design practice. Ghazi established the firm in 2011, and since then, he and his team have worked on a variety of projects in the Sydney area. These include retirement villages, townhouses, boarding houses, and residential developments such as the current project in Willarong Road, Caringbah, in which Ghazi has teamed with Hebel to bring about the eye-catching result.
Comprising 45 apartments, the Landmark Property Development Group project was designed by PBD Architects, with the building’s construction documentation managed by Ghazi Al Ali Architect, who specified the use of Hebel PowerPattern for the facade.

AAC panels allow for flexibility
“All the parties involved, from the PCA to the client, wanted to move away from a traditional cladding finish which was initially specified,” says Jo van de Ven, Senior Associate with Ghazi Al Ali Architect, who worked on the project. “We found that Hebel PowerPattern gave us the design flexibility to do some interesting building features with texture, and with the benefit of using a lightweight product.”

The four collections of decorative patterns of the PowerPattern system are “Lineal”, “Geometric”, “Prism” and “Organic”. For the Caringbah project, Ghazi Al Ali Architect chose the PowerPattern “Lineal” collection, with its deep vertical lines etched into the face of the AAC panels providing an eye-catching facade for the apartment building.

Modular in design, and intended to work with the other panels in the collection, each panel is custom made to order and can be combined with a range of paint, render and spray on coating systems to achieve a variety of looks including metallic, sandstone and polished concrete finishes.

The panels for the Caringbah project were coated with a smooth set patch and prep and acrylic paint finish from Rockcote, one of a number of coating systems that are compatible with the PowerPattern collections.

“During the process we were impressed by how diligent CSR Hebel worked with the elevations and plans to ensure the panel layouts were aligned with windows and wall ends, so there weren’t any obvious pattern inconsistencies on the building. This made a huge difference for us during construction as we hadn’t used the product before,” says van de Ven.

The PowerPattern panels have a thickness of 75 mm and a width of 600 mm. They are available in the four different lengths 3,000 mm, 3,050 mm, 3,100 mm and 3,300 mm. The facade of the Caringbah apartment building, that makes up 500 m2, consists of over 300 panels measuring 3,000 mm x 600 mm each.

All PowerPattern panels consist of autoclaved aerated concrete with a dry density of approx. 510 kg/m3 and are reinforced with single mesh. They have a thermal performance of R3.02-R3.47 in winter and R2.82-R3.27 in summer.

Hebel system meets all the architect’s requirements
With its design versatility and strength, as well as its fire-rating performance (FRL -/120/120 external fire source only for facade with hidden slab; FRL -/180/180 external fire source only for facade with visible slab), the Hebel PowerPattern system met all the requirements of Ghazi Al Ali Architect for the Caringbah project.

“Blank facades can be a problem for us, particularly when they end up on the property boundary wall,” explains Jo van den Ven. “Councils don’t like them and are often unwilling to approve them being kept blank. They usually want some facade treatment.

“The finish on this project looks fantastic and there are no concerns about material flammability or safety. We are really happy with the result, and appreciative of all the technical help and support the CRS Hebel team gave us along the way.”

Speedy installation saves time
Along with these benefits, Ghazi says the speed with which Hebel systems can be installed was another reason for specifying the Hebel PowerPattern system for the project’s facade. Construction of the entire apartment building took about 6 months only.

“In terms of time-saving, Hebel is definitely right up there,” he says. “It’s quick and easy to install, which was one of the big factors in specifying it. From an aesthetic point of view, we also liked the fact that by using Hebel, we had a choice of designs and coating systems. The PowerPattern system has given the building a very clean and neat finish. Hebel should be just as proud of the outcome as we are.”