Theres no blurring around the edges and corners with GAs stunningly different Transformational range of sharp relief geometric aluminium sheet patterns.
These new leading edge Transformational aluminium sheet designs are excitingly inventive and positively mood setting with their distinctive and clearly cut forms.
Testimonial:
‘We use your aluminium products in fitness clubs and find your service second to none’
Mark Coleman, Admiral Construction Services
Even the briefest of Google searches for ‘advantages of aluminium’ will present a plethora of statements extolling the virtues of aluminium. Among its many attributes are said to be its lightness, strength, flexibility, durability and corrosion resistance. At first sighting the uninitiated may be forgiven for asking, ‘how can this be?’ How is it possible that one metal can possess all of these qualities?
The good news is all of these ‘wish list’ properties can be accurately attributed to aluminium, or rather aluminium alloy. The key word here is ‘alloy’. Alloys are the other metals that are added to aluminium, in relatively small amounts, to produce the required performance characteristics (along with post-production processes that include cold working, heat treatment, etc.). It is a combination of these factors that mark aluminium alloys out as such truly versatile materials.
To fully appreciate the performance enhancing benefits of alloying aluminium let’s consider Aluminium in its pure state. Unalloyed aluminium has a yield stress (the stress at which a material begins to deform plastically) of around 7-10MPa. The range of aluminium alloys, normally used within the architectural industry, usually produce somewhere in the region of 100-200MPa. without necessarily being a graduate engineer you get the drift! The addition of alloy to aluminium is performance enhancing and could be equated with an athlete consuming chemical supplements to build muscle mass, but with only desirable side effects.
It should be understood that the mechanical properties of a particular aluminium alloy will vary considerably dependent on the form type, be it an aluminium extrusion, sheet, casting etc., in addition to the amount of work hardening, heat and solution treatment, applied post production.
For instance let’s take a look at specification 6063 (a commonly used extruded architectural alloy) to see how beneficial the addition of small quantities of alloy are. This alloy grade (when heated) is sufficiently plastic to allow for the production of small intricate profile shapes and after cooling, for subsequent cold working techniques to be carried out e.g. rolling into curves and rings. At the same time this aluminium alloy is strong and rigid enough to be selected as suitable for panel hanging systems. Independent tests have demonstrated the interlocking profiles (illustrated below) to be capable of suspending the equivalent weight of a small car! As an added bonus, 6063 alloy is also a suitable grade for the anodising process.
Image: GA WP1 Panel Fixing Profile
Details on aluminium properties and its alloys can be obtained from the Aluminium Federation.
In relation to our materials and products is there any specific performance data you would like us to publish for future reference?
Gooding Aluminium are a national and international supplier of a wide range of high quality aluminium channels, stair nosings and aluminium angle. For more information about bespoke or ready made aluminium products, visit our main site at www.goodingalum.com
Follow us on Twitter @Gooding_Alum
It is widely accepted that surface patterns and textures assist in disguising minor surface abrasions such as indentations, scratches and other undesirable markings.
With plain surfaces it seems that no matter how large the area and how small the damage, the eye will register the offending mark and return to the exact same spot time and time again. How annoying is that first scratch on the newly acquired glass table!
Fortunately there is a wide range of patterned aluminium sheet that help to conceal undesirable surface markings.
However the question of surface marking is highly subjective, with ‘beauty being in the eye of the beholder’ etc. I therefore decided to commission some independent testing to establish a scientific basis for these claims. Ceram Research carried out the laboratory analysis on our behalf.
Full test results for this research will be uploaded onto our website in due course. In the meantime I would like to share a sample of these findings with you.
GA Vertex sheet (a small pyramidal pattern) was tested in both mill and anodised finishes and was compared with a reference sample of plain mill finish sheet.
Briefly, the test method involved using P40 grade (rough grit) emery paper and this was attached to lead weights and a mechanical device pulled the emery paper along the aluminium surfaces.
Only 1 pass of the emery paper was required to produce a noticeable difference to the surface of the plain mill finish sheet. Significantly a minimum of 40 passes were required in both mill and anodised finishes of the Vertex pattern to produce a similar effect.
In culinary terms ‘the proof is in the eating’ and in metallic terms ‘the proof is in the testing’. Ceram’s testing has established beyond reasonable doubt just how effective aluminium patterns and textures can be in disguising surface damage.
Gooding Aluminium are a national and international supplier of a wide range of high quality perforated sheet, stair nosings, aluminium angle and aluminium channels. For more information about bespoke or ready made aluminium products, visit our main site at www.goodingalum.com
Gooding Aluminium recently celebrated 31 years as the high quality aluminium supplier ‘par excellence’ and recently received confirmation from Margot Christel Wanten of MCW Architecture that she has been specifying our bespoke and ready made aluminium products for as long as she can remember!
Margot Christel Wanten also recently emailed;
‘If only all companies I deal with in the architectural world were so helpful and efficient as yourselves, my professional life would be far more enjoyable!’‘
If you have aluminium project requirements and require samples, our FREE on-line samples service responds quickly and efficiently to your requests.
GA samples are supplied in attractive presentation sleeves and binders and are normally dispatched within 24 hours
For more information about bespoke or ready made aluminium products, visit our main site at www.goodingalum.com
London Festival of Architecture use Super lightweight aluminium treadplates, making Duke of York Steps accessible for all.
The project brief was to make the historic site of the Duke of York Steps (running between The Mall and Waterloo Place near Lower Regent Street) accessible for all. Previously, the steps were completely inaccessible to wheel chair users. Gooding Aluminium’s super lightweight aluminium treadplates (GA HGP1601) were the perfect partner for this weight sensitive and innovative project.
Project: Zero-Energy Lift Tower
(partly sponsored by Gooding Aluminium)
Event: London Festival of Architecture 2010
Location: Duke of York Steps, St James’s
Park, London SW1
Product: GA HGP1601 Aluminium Treadplate
Architect/Designer: Matthew Lloyd Architects
Client: The Royal Parks
The core objective was to facilitate the passage of a person in a wheelchair or mobility scooter up and down the steps using dignified and independent means without connecting to mains electricity. This installation has become one of the key highlights of the West End focus for the London Festival of Architecture 2010 and there is future development planned for a more permanent solution for the London Olympics in 2012.
Project Solutions
Gooding Aluminium’s workshop fabricated the slip resistant alloy material into folded trays for use as flooring plates on the access ramp and lift floor. Aluminium is perfect for incorporating into weight sensitive applications, such as this one. Aluminium is only 1/3rd the weight of steel.
Aluminium’s surface has a self generating and repairing oxide coating which makes it corrosion resistant and therefore less expensive to maintain than steel and other corrodible metals.