Facade panels to replace tile work
In recent years, M2uur bv has carried out several large-scale renovation projects where original tile work was replaced by high-quality reproductions on facade panels. In northern European regions, the challenging climate regularly causes problems with tiles on facades coming loose.
Steni Vision has proven to be a sustainable, cost-efficient and safe way to replace tile works and mosaics in those cases.
‘Tiling and mosaics are used on many landmarks in Scandinavia,’ explains Freekje Vervoord of M2uur bv, ‘think about mosques, schools and government buildings. It often looks beautiful, but unfortunately the inclement climate causes tiles to come loose over time. This creates unsafe situations and of course detracts from the spatial quality and beauty of these buildings.’
Steni is a producer of sustainable facade cladding made from stone cuttings released from the quarrying of natural stone. The boards are lightweight, easy to assemble and highly resistant to frost, moisture and temperature fluctuations. In addition to the standard collections, Steni has long offered the option of printing your own designs on the slabs. Since 2017, Steni has been working closely with M2uur bv in unique facade applications.
Vervoord: ‘We have over 25 years of in-house knowledge and experience in the design and layout of wall and façade graphics. We are happy to apply this knowledge to Steni’s projects.
We ensure that the customer’s wishes are translated into reproducible files. Especially when replacing monumental tiling and mosaics, our expertise comes in handy.’
For the Central Mosque in Oslo, the hand-painted tile works were photographed and digitised one by one. In the layout process, M2uur bv ensured that the individual tiles visually matched. Vervoord: ‘We were talking about hundreds of individual elements, which then had to be merged into a single connecting image. That requires extreme precision and a very careful working method.’
Several renovation projects have since been completed, in which tiles have been replaced by facade panels reproducing the original design. Vervoord: ‘We honour the craftsmanship and creativity of the original artist on the one hand, while on the other hand we deliver a weatherproof, durable and safe facade application. So in this way, the client gets the best of both worlds.’