APL Office – Timber Battens

APL Ltd is New Zealand’s largest manufacturer of aluminium windows and doors. They recently built an incredible 47,000m² office and manufacturing facility, expertly designed by Jasmax.

A strong palette of materials combined with simplicity allows the quality of detail to shine. Sculptform Click-on Battens in Vic Ash are used throughout, lining walls and ceilings with clever fixings used.

Product

Click-on Battens

Materials

Vic Ash

A Facility of Great Proportion

A significant intention of the project’s design was to raise APL’s brand profile and offer physical transparency to their business. APL contains three separate office blocks with an overall floor area of 4,500m². They house commercial kitchens, observation decks, meeting rooms, conference rooms, and many bright, open-plan office spaces.

“Amongst other objectives, APL stated the factory should provide a second home to staff, be inspirational, set standards for corporations to follow and of course produce the best window systems in the country.”

Jasmax

APL Office

Continuum of Timber Battens

Click-on Battens are used very cleverly within the foyer of the office. This area is open plan and features a staircase to the first floor with no ceiling above the reception desk. Behind the reception desk is a timber free-standing screen, allowing visibility of the office beyond.

An effective design was produced by aligning the free-standing screen with the wall’s timber battens, which then seamlessly connect through a miter joint to the timber battens on the ceiling. Miter joins were made by cutting the two batten ends at a 45° angle, to form a corner join at a 90° angle. Although this wall looks seamless, it took precision and accuracy to get right. It was all worth it though, the many straight vertical lines of timber battens add a dramatic effect to the foyer area, without being too overpowering.

Specification Details - Ceiling

Product	Click-on Battens
Material	Timber
Species	Vic Ash
Profile	Block, 32x60mm
Finish	Clear Oil
Track	Suspended ceiling mounting track
Acoustic Backing	Yes

Coffered Ceiling

A rising trend in ceiling design is the inclusion of coffered details, which can be described as recessed panels usually in the shapes of a square or rectangle that are set within a flat ceiling. In APL’s office, pieces of square coffered ceilings were created with glossy black metal beams, with Click-on Battens filling them.

Coffered ceilings are a great option if you want to have a mix of smooth and textured materials within a ceiling design, or even as an option if you need to value manage a project.

Conscious of Sustainable Choices

The building has been designed to use natural energy as far as practical, with natural ventilation, lighting and 100% PEFC certified timber sourced for the timber battens. At Sculptform we support the desire to source timber sustainably and can gain FSC or PEFC certified timber for most species.

Awards

2016 NZIA Local Branch Award – Winner – Commercial Architecture
2016 Best Awards – Offices and Workplace Over 1000sqm – Gold Pin
2016 NZIA New Zealand Architecture Award – Winner – Commercial Architecture

Project Summary

Architect

Jasmax

Builder

Foster Construction

Installer

Ice Interiors

Completion

2021

Location

Hautapu, New Zealand

Photographer

Mark Scowen

Sector

Workplace