Rainscreen cladding is an exterior skin of rear-ventilated cladding which can be attached to new or existing buildings. It is a double-wall construction where the outer cladding is designed to breathe since the inner layer serves the purpose of insulation, the exterior cladding blocks rain giving the system its name. The structural frame stays dry since the rainscreen panels don’t allow water to reach the thermal insulation. Here you will be able to see applications of this system in education facilities.
Balsai School
Vilnius, Lithuania
Facade Material: Swisspearl Carat, Black Opal 7020, Coral 7031, Azurite 7040, Amber 7083
The Balsai School in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, accommodates 600 children. As the surrounding urban fabric has no cohesive urban concept, the new school was intended to give the area an unequivocal focal point. It is also intended to serve a broader function for the wider community after school hours and over weekends.
- Facade
The choice of Swisspearl fiber cement panels for the façade cladding enabled the architects to realize their concept of alternating solids and spaces, thus also reducing the scale and tying the complex into the extensive site. Each volume has a different articulation of colored panels that echoes the 'positive versus negative' concept and gives each structure an identity. - Interiors
The off-shutter interior walls have been enlivened by Swisspearl panels in shades of blue, red and yellow, thereby linking the interior with the exterior and illustrating the versatility of the fiber cement material. - Award
The success of the design has been officially acknowledged in Lithuania: the school was awarded a Gold Medal for Project of the Year 2011 by the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists
Facade materials
Swisspearl Carat
The Carat collection offers a through-color panel that features either a translucent or pigmented top layer. The unique, natural look and timeless beauty of the monolithic material has a delicate vein texture which provides an exciting and noble expression to buildings.
- Carat is available in a wide spectrum of complementary shapes and is a good facade solution to create contrasts and special effects or to blend into any setting.
- The proprietary processes pioneered by Swisspearl include a special surface finish, sealed edges and back coating to ensure optimal behavior and durability of the panels. Thanks to the smooth surface finish, there is minimal maintenance.
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