Located on Auckland’s North Shore, Bay Rise is a nine-unit townhouse development which offers comfortable living with the amenities of Mairangi Bay right on the doorstep. The development has been designed with luxury and practicality in mind — with care taken to select materials that are attractive and long-lasting. Aluminium cladding in a combination of finishes — including a stunning wood grain from Metwood — perfectly hit this brief.

“The number one thing the client wanted with the cladding was minimal maintenance,” explains Trevor Gribble, Vulcan, cladding supplier for the project. “But they also wanted the townhouses to look striking — using a mixture of colours and also incorporating a wood look.”

The architects worked with the Vulcan team to develop a design using Vulcan Ulltraclad aluminium cladding profiles. A combination of dark grey and white powder coated boards were specified for the main facades, while wood grain panels with a negative detail were chosen to add interest around windows and doors.

By using the Vulcan Ulltraclad aluminium cladding to create all three finishes, the architects could specify just one cladding product, and the builder had to install just one type of cladding — simplifying the process for achieving the multi-clad look.

Having worked with Metwood in the past, it was a no-brainer for the Vulcan team to go to Metwood to achieve the finish for the timber-look boards — particularly when it came to ensuring a flawless look for the negative detail panels.

“Traditionally in New Zealand there’s been an issue with the wood grain look, especially if you have a negative detail; if the best quality processes and materials are not used, you can get a “shadowing” effect in the corners and negative details,” explains Trevor. “We use Metwood as they have the most state-of the-art-equipment in New Zealand, the best film available and the best base powder coat available as well, so we know we’re getting the best of the best.”

Working with the Metwood team was easy — they provided Vulcan with an extensive range of colour and wood grain samples to choose from, which allowed the client to pick the exact finish they wanted. “It was a very easy process,” says Trevor. “And when we ordered the product, it was done on time with no issues on quality. It was all very seamless.”

The wood grain finish — created through a sublimation process which embeds the wood grain pattern into the underlying powder coat — is not only attractive, but virtually maintenance-free. While traditional timber cladding would require costly scaffolding and repainting, the timber-look aluminium only needs a simple wash-down to keep the homes looking as good as new.

The end result is a stunning multi-clad look for Bay Rise with the Metwood wood grain finish creating a striking contrast with the rest of the Vulcan Ulltraclad cladding. “It’s fantastic, we’re very pleased with it,” says Trevor. “The selection of profiles and colours is not going to age, so the townhouses will always look new.”

The Vulcan team already have more projects using Metwood in the works. “Metwood are very easy to work with, very accommodating and really forward thinking,” says Trevor. “We’ll continue to use them — in fact, just this week we put through orders for more wood graining jobs.”