The concept of rainscreen cladding in 2018 is no longer new. It’s an integral part of the building and manufacturing industry, with more and more new builds and refurb projects being clad in copper, aluminium, ACM and now corten rainscreen cladding every single month.
Whilst the main benefits of rainscreen cladding are often discussed – protection from rain, aesthetics, easy maintenance, thermal efficiencies and cost savings against traditional methods – there are some unexpected benefits of rainscreen cladding that deserve consideration when planning for your next project.
Unexpected benefits of rainscreen cladding in 2018
Reduced sound pollution for residents
The demand for increased living space in highly urbanised areas, particularly major cities like London, Manchester and Leeds, has meant more and more buildings are being built in noisy sites such as railway networks, busy junctions and airports. We’ve all heard stories of family and friends buying a new home or flat only to learn it’s under a flight path or right by a busy rail network.
Rainscreen cladding, and in particular – ACM, provides an unexpected benefit to this challenge in that it can significantly reduce airborne sound transmission.
Plus, with the power of rainscreen cladding as a refurb option (to breathe new life, colour and style into a tired building) there is less disruption created during an over cladding project than when demolishing to rebuild.
The View, Downing Plaza, Newcastle
Safe guarding our planet
The Earth’s climate system is undoubtedly getting warmer and, as reported by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), it is more than 90 percent likely that the accelerated warming of the past 50-60 years is due to human contributions.
This causes significant changes in the timing and length of the seasons as well as the amount and frequency of precipitation and it can have effects on rising sea levels, flooding, droughts or a range of other ecosystem changes that affect life on earth.
A major factor in this climate change is due to the emissions of CO2 gasses: as these (greenhouse) gasses increase, more heat is “trapped” in the earth’s atmosphere and global temperatures rise.
Aluminium rainscreen cladding can help to reduce the CO2 gasses released into the atmosphere for a number of reasons. Firstly, most aluminium is initially smelted using hydroelectric power. This is a renewable energy resource and doesn’t produce any CO2. Secondly, it can be recycled at the end of its life meaning it can be used again and again. ACM (an aluminium composite material) contributes to this too as both the aluminium and polyethylene core can be recycled once separated. Plus, aluminium is 99.9% recyclable and it takes only 15% of the energy used in the original manufacture to recycle the product.
Renewed awe and wonder
We pass around, through and under buildings every single day and we’ve all experienced that moment of being struck by the colour, shape or design of a building we’ve never seen (or noticed) before. Sometimes it’s enough to make you stop and stare.
Rainscreen cladding can play a major role in bringing life, vibrancy and love back to tired and aged buildings without the need for demolition and rebuild. Striking, breath taking visual effects can be achieved through the clever combination of colour and, more and more, the combination of horizontal and vertical cladding.
In today’s world, the ability to shape and curve rainscreen panels means architects can design a limitless range of effects; easily shaping and curving panels to create unique details for capping, copings, bullnoses and fascias.
Modern rainscreen cladding systems are lightweight and strong, making it relatively easy to create engaging, striking designs that appear to defy gravity.
Vermillion, Rathbone Market, Cannon Town
A lighter, brighter, interior
Light is so important for the wellbeing of residents and a room or lobby filled with light has a much more uplifting effect than a dark, enclosed space. Rainscreen cladding is a lightweight façade and means a smaller load on the underlying building structure, particularly when compared with masonry based alternatives. That means significant savings can be made on foundations and internal supporting walls, but it also means more space can be created in the building for lighter, brighter, more open spaces.
Working with Sotech
Rainscreen cladding not only provides weather protection for a building’s fabric and structure but it provides a unique opportunity to change the way we live our lives.
The Sotech range of rainscreen cladding solutions provide long-term performance and our unique 3D-led design and manufacturing processes mean a limitless range of design options for your next project.
Available in a range of vertical and horizontal arrangements and a limitless variety of colours and finishes, we would love the opportunity to show you our award winning, 
marketing leading rainscreen cladding systems.
Contact our incredible technical department to learn more. With over 35 years’ of experience in the construction industry, we will work with to bring your project to life, providing support at EVERY stage of the project.
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