Exploring Façade Cladding Systems in Modern Architecture

Besides providing external protection, natural ventilation, insulation and energy efficiency, the presence of façades enhances the building’s personality and character. Among the different types of façade systems, cladding strategies stand out for their variety of materials and textures –such as metal, glass, stone, wood and composite– all of which build durable, low-maintenance and visually appealing structures. Innovating with textures, forms and technologies, BŌK Modern has developed different metal panels for creating functional and aesthetic façade cladding systems. Showcasing six architectural projects, we delve into the practical and visual attributes of rainscreens and wallscreens.

Flinders House / Kennedy Nolan Architects

A spectacular site is both a gift and a problem for new architecture. The positives are self-evident, the negatives less so, but apparent in single-orientation, glassy boxes which proliferate on such sites. Aware of this, we were conscious of balancing the canonical attributes of aspect, prospect, and refuge without allowing the prospect part to distort the equilibrium of an ideal domestic setting. Our Client came to us with this site accommodating a radically altered Chancellor and Patrick house on the highly unstable cliff edge. Our attempts to preserve and restore the house were thwarted by the structural necessity to place it on 15-meter-deep piles, without which the house was in real danger of sliding onto the beach. Our approach then was to “remember” the house by largely reconstructing its form and arrangement, augmented by a perpendicular element that provided additional accommodation and solved the problems of vehicular and pedestrian access. A single-bedroom and bathroom guesthouse higher up the site completes our work here.

Renovation of Somekh Building / SHISUO design office

We are facing such a scene - with the development of China's urbanization, the construction land is gradually decreasing, and behind the fading waves, more old buildings are emerging in public, and the Somekh Building is one of them. Somekh Building was built in 1921 and is located in the historical and cultural area of the Bund. It is one of the most important works of the renowned Atkinson & Dallas Co. Ltd in modern Shanghai. In 2021, SHISUO was commissioned by the owner to do a renovation of the Somekh Building.

Kingway Brewery Renovation / URBANUS

URBANUS believes that the preservation and regeneration of a historical industrial site not only can restore a place but also a spirit. A city’s industrial heritage should not become merely another consumer product in the post-industrial age. Its rich memory and legacy should be rediscovered, highlighted, and amplified so that it will take on a new life with the production of new ideas and infinite new possibilities. Thus, URBANUS proposes the novel concept of “making on-site” in the renovation of the brewery, making it a showcase of the city’s unique spirit while preserving its original architectural aesthetics, collective memory, and intrinsic character of an era. - Yan Meng

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