Surface Design Awards – Complete

• COMMERCIAL BUILDING - EXTERIOR
  Commercial Buildings that are used for commercial purposes, and include retail, hospitality, workplaces, factories and warehouses and buildings where commercial services are provided. At least 50 percent of the buildings’ floor space will be used for commercial activities.

• LANDSCAPE + PUBLIC REALM
  The space around, between and within buildings that is publicly accessible, including streets, squares, parks and open spaces. These areas and settings support or facilitate public life and social interaction.

Radion is a collaborative project that explores Basildon’s past and present with a focus on nature and heritage within the borough. Basildon Borough History, Basildon Borough Heritage, its volunteers and local people have been suggesting pieces of built heritage to be celebrated and remembered within the Borough. These images have been used to create a panorama depicting an alternative skyline of Basildon from a chronological perspective.

Students from ten local primary schools including Ryedene, Lee Chapel, Millhouse, Fairhouse, Pionner, Janet Duke, Noak Bridge, Great Berry, Northlands and Ghyllgrove School have all been exploring the importance of local nature through leaf rubbings and identification.

The nature panorama depicts key green spaces around the borough with each leaf inserted (over 2000) having been made by a different child. Accompanying the screen is a series of QR codes which intend to animate the screen, from an audio history tour spoken by local people, a nature map showing where each school's leaves can be found and more.

The Radion Project is funded by Basildon Council and Arts Council.

Completion and opening in August 2023

Costs: £72,000 plus VAT (Manufacture and supply only)

Vitreous enamel is fast becoming a popular public art medium due to its enduring qualities, including non-fading colours and its resilient, smooth, and glassy surface. Its versatility allows diverse decorative treatments from vibrant hues to distinctive textures and the application of line and text-based graphics.

Our Wellsclad vitreous enamel cladding system, crafted from 1.5mm thick low carbon mild steel, allows for flexible panel application, seamless integration of services, and adaptability with various backing types making it ideal for diverse environments, from railway stations and road tunnels to bustling retail areas and iconic building exteriors.

Vitreous enamel is an optimum material for usage in The Radion project as its innate properties such as graffiti resistant and high durability are invaluable for high traffic central urban locations.

We firmly believe that our Wellsclad vitreous enamel cladding system, underpinned by this exceptional material, is deserving of recognition and consideration for a Surface Design Award.

Reasons to use Vitreous Enamel:

A.J. Wells & Sons Limited are at the forefront of vitreous enamel manufacturing in the UK and a passionate champion of this heritage material for the following reasons:

-Heat and fire resistant between -40°C to 650°C.
-Resistant to the elements be it rain, sun, snow or hail.
-Lasts up to 4 times longer than standard powder-coated panelling.
-Resistant to virtually all alkali, acids, organic solvents & detergents.
-The hard surface of enamel resists shock abrasion and scratching.
-The smooth, sealed surface enamel requires very simple and only periodic maintenance and is easy to clean.
-The elements that are used to produce enamel are non-toxic and fully recyclable.

At A.J. Wells & Sons, sustainability stands as a cornerstone principle. Our commitment spans every facet of our operations - from adopting renewable energy sources to guiding our design process, meticulously selecting raw materials, and streamlining transportation. Environmental consciousness takes precedence, driving us to relentlessly minimise our ecological impact.

The fundamental component of our cladding system, vitreous enamel, is non-toxic and fully recyclable at the end of its extensive life cycle. The energy invested in its production yields an enduring value, aligning seamlessly with our ethos.

98 CO2e/m2 calculation for this project.

On this project we needed to tackle a significant challenge and overcame it by creating an application process that eliminated the usual white border layout often associated with enamel panels printed to face.

The fact that we had to work with two continuous images spread across forty-two large panels made it even more impressive.

Using full-height individual vitreous enamel decals that were furnaced to the panel face and rounded edges was a creative and effective solution.

This approach allowed for a seamless transition between the images across the panels and resulted in a visually striking outcome.

It's always satisfying when a project that presents such challenges ends with amazing results.

The attached image would be a great addition to your submission to further illustrate our achievement.

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