The construction industry sits at the heart of the world economy. The commercial spaces it provides represent not only one of the world’s largest business interests, but the places where we work, shop, play and often enough live about half our lives. Our best architects and builders are well-aware of the importance of commercial spaces and have invested a wealth of hard work and talent into designs that at once take into account cutting edge aesthetics and the practical concerns of a changing world. What follows are some of the latest trends in commercial wall-cladding. Based largely on what we are seeing in commercial facades in New York, the list sheds light on both the present state of commercial construction as well as the trajectory of where the industry is going in the coming years.
Living facades have created a lot of buzz in recent years; and while viable examples of this are undoubtedly impressive, it remains at present impractical for most commercial ventures. However, energy efficient facades made with environmentally-friendly materials abound and represent the trajectory for commercial building going into the future.
Carbonized Wood
An ancient Japanese finish that creates highly durable wood through a process of burning the surface, carbonized wood or Shou Sugi Ban has grown popular in recent years both in residential and commercial construction. Traditionally constructed from cedar or larch, the carbonized finish process can be applied to a great variety of more common woods such as oak, maple and pine. The finished product offers not only a sleek, elegant look but provides numerous benefits.
- Highly durable and long lasting
- Fire, Water and insect resistant
- No toxic chemicals employed in the finishing process
- Produced from wood, an environmentally-friendly building resource
Tiled Facades
While a tiled building façade is not exactly a new idea, the present trend in large tiled commercial facades is. At the most fundamental level a ceramic façade leverages a ventilated brick façade system affixed to an aluminum lattice structure. The end result is a building facade that is durable, customizable, environmentally sound and offers optimal thermal and acoustic insulation.
- Highly durable and long lasting
- Customizable and easily repaired
- Offers optimal acoustics and thermal insulation
- Constructed without the use of non-toxic materials
- Produced from clay, a renewable resource
Thin Brick
At first glance thin brick would seem to be a bit old fashioned and certainly the look can be a bit more traditional than some of the options outlined here. However, because it is at once affordable, easy to install and made from sustainable materials, it has grown increasingly popular in recent years. When installed properly, thin brick offers all of the ease of maintenance and durability perks that one gets with a full-brick facade.
- Composed of environmentally sustainable materials
- Provides better security than any other wall-cladding
- Water and fire resistant
- Highly durable and easy to maintain
EIFS
EIFS or Exterior Insulation and Finish System offers a superior multi-strata wall-cladding system. The EIFS system consists of an air and water proofing barrier, a substrate, attached insulation board, followed by integrally reinforced base and finish coats. A versatile all-in-one exterior facade system that offers superlative thermal an acoustic insulation, the EIFs system’s popularity has grown in leaps and bounds in recent years. A trend we expect to continue.
- Provides optimal energy efficiency
- Highly durable, flexible and low-maintenance
- Offering stone, masonry, metal and wood veneers, EIFs is one of the most customizable commercial façade options
- A fully integrated wall-cladding system that offers peak air, water and impact damage resistance
Composite Facades
Composite facades offer reduced weight requirements and superior insulatory capacity. Perhaps the biggest reason composites have grown in popularity is due to how durable and long-lasting they are. Most composites come with a 50 year manufacturer’s guarantee on individual panel integrity. Of particular interest is All Green’s Resysta, a product that offers the warmth and texture of bona fide wood—it can actually be stained—while at the same time offering the durability and thermal dynamic capacity of composite wall-cladding.
- Light weight panels significantly reduce the load on buildings
- Fire resistant due to mineral filling in panel cores
- Highly durable and long-lasting—50 year manufacturer’s guarantee offered on panel integrity
- Provides superior acoustic and thermal insulation
Fiber Cement
While fiber cement facades have been available since the 1970s, contemporary manufacturing techniques have made the option more customizable and have significantly increased its availability and cost-effectiveness. Fiber cement provides all of the benefits of building with cement, such as extreme durability, fire, water and rot resistance, while at the same time offering stylistic versatility. Stucco, masonry, and picture-perfect wood veneers are all possible with the latest renditions of fiber cement. Offering an all-in one system with a high-end water proofing system, we have found Nichiha Hardie fiber cement wall-cladding system to be a superior option for high performance wall-cladding.
- Composed of environmentally sustainable materials
- Water, rot and fire resistant
- Customizable, offing wood, masonry and tiled veneers
- Highly durable and easy to maintain
