Concave Sliding Door Creates Unique Curved Garage Space In Redevelopment Project

A bespoke curved side sliding timber garage door by Rundum Meir has enabled a unique feature garage to be created as part of the extensive remodelling of a large private dwelling in southern England. A Rundum Original sliding garage door spanning 8m wide and 2.2m high was integrated within the new designs by BWP Architects for a major property renovation, transforming a house which had evolved in an uncoordinated and poorly designed way. 

The door provides access to a large garage space below the property’s garden level and its shape coordinates elegantly with a car turntable installed immediately in front and surrounding landscaping. The owner tasked BWP with bringing new life to the property which has many original features. 

Undoing of previous conversion and extension work was necessary to enable the rebuilding of the residential property to a significantly higher standard, complete with the feature garage. An existing detached garage to the rear was partially demolished and converted to create a private formal rear courtyard. 

The replacement curved garage is a stunning visual element, with the new automated Rundum Original door’s high quality Larch complemented by bronze coloured bespoke balustrading to add a dramatic and artistic feature to the access stair and upper courtyard over the garage. The Rundum Original side sliding door is automated using two door mounted MZ4 drives which are custom made to automate these bespoke doors. 

These motors allow the door to traverse the curving tracks smoothly and quietly as required for this project. The door was designed in conjunction with Rundum Meir’s UK team before being hand-crafted by its garage door experts. Every door is made to order to the highest standards using responsibly sourced materials and installed by Rundum Meir to provide an end-to-end service. 

Danesch Missaghian, Director of Rundum Meir (UK) said: “Not only is this exciting project completed using very high specification products throughout, but it is also designed superbly with the architects using a curved garage door in an interesting way that maximises vehicular access." "We are delighted with the contribution our door has made to the success of this project.” In addition to a range of different timber species, bespoke Rundum Original side sliding garage doors can be manufactured in high strength extruded aluminium and finished in any RAL colour. 

This makes these garage doors suitable for any domestic, commercial or public application, with the scope for architects to think differently about how the space for a garage can be integrated into the wider building design.  www.rundumgaragedoors.co.uk

Marmox Thermoblocks Insulate Tudor Reconstruction

The reconstruction of a rambling old farmyard close to Ely in East Cambridgeshire is making use of well proven Marmox Thermoblocks, specified in three widths as the ideal solution for tackling thermal-bridging around the building perimeter as part of a well-insulated design. Mitchell’s Barn is replacing a sprawling complex of dilapidated tin cowsheds and a rather more attractive oak barn which was founded on a plinth of Tudor era bricks.

The original planning permission allowed for the reconstruction of the latter structure, but when the owner, Ben Hughes came to dismantle the outer envelope, much of the timber was found to be rotten while the bricks showed significant frost-damage. The work which got under way earlier in the autumn, is therefore seeing both 215mm and 140mm wide Thermoblocks being used to support a 800mm high brick base which will then carry the conserved oak beams, creating a traditional looking inner ambience.

Ben Hughes commented: “I have taken responsibility for the design as well as the construction of what will be a four-bedroom, three-bathroom property, as a self-build project with the help of a builder, Peter Axton who I have worked with on previous projects. As it is such an exposed site, the house takes the form of a three-sided courtyard which will shelter the south facing terrace. Primarily a Class Q conversion of an agricultural building into a residential building, the new structure is all single storey, but with a mezzanine to accommodate the plant and services that will include an air source heat pump and MVHR system."

"Essentially, we are rebuilding it at the same scale using the same traditional techniques as the original, with additional oak for the frame coming from a tree felled on the site. In order to meet Building Regulations, we have gone for an insulated cavity wall with 150m of PIR insulation for the floor and roof, but when I was researching how to address the issue of thermal bridging at the floor wall junction, Marmox Thermoblock seemed to be the only targeted product solution. In terms of the loadings and the insulation values I am certain it will work well. It’s a good mix of old and new technologies and I’m very happy with the design overall.”

In total Ben and his bricklayer have used 144 x 140x65mm blocks plus 18 x 100x65mm blocks and 50 x 215x65mm blocks, purchased from Insulation Shop on-line. Bedded in conventional mortar, the stepped overlaps between adjacent Thermoblocks have been secured using a high performance (Sika) adhesive.

Ben concluded saying: “The work is progressing well and my bricklayer, Danny, has had no issues with laying the Thermoblocks or cutting them where it has been necessary. Some of the packages, such as for the windows, are still to be placed, but I am confident of the finished property exceeding the current Building Regulation requirements and making a very comfortable home.” 

He is also consulting with Marmox’s technical department over the use of the company’s even longer established Multiboard thermal tilebacker board and other products for fitting out the bathrooms, including at least one wetroom. With a proven track record going back more than a decade, Thermoblocks are available in widths of 100, 140 and 215mm and feature a unique design where two rows of high strength epoxy concrete mini-columns are encapsulated in sections of XPS (Extruded polystyrene).

They are attached at either end to the top and bottom layers of glass-fibre reinforced polymer concrete to achieve a strong bond with the rest of the structure. As well as being used in basement construction and around the floor-wall junction – supporting timber frame as well as masonry walls – Thermoblocks regularly feature at first floor level and beneath parapet walls. They are further employed for swimming pool construction. www.marmox.co.uk

Kashdan-Brown Architects Reaches For The Sky With SterlingOSB Zero

As the annual SterlingOSB Zero/RIBAJ competition celebrated its 10th anniversary,  the 2025 competition entitled Powers of Ten, challenged architects to explore the principles of scale. Entrants were unrestricted by building standards and were free to play with the concept of scale and design a structure from competition sponsor West Fraser's SterlingOSB  Zero.

This year's competition winner, Kashdan-Brown Architects, imagined a 1:10 scale model reconstruction of the 140-metre-high missing spire of Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire. Here Julian Kashdan-Brown talks about his winning entry and what SterlingOSB Zero provides architects. 

Q. What inspired your design for the competition? 

The brief this year was very much about scale, and scale is an interesting thing looking back into the past at some enormous edifices. Of course, with the economy with which we must build today, it's impossible to build to the kind of scale common previously. I was interested in trying to produce a piece at a small scale; but which 

evoked the idea of the grand scale of buildings of the past. That’s what eventually inspired the idea to recreate the fallen part of Malmesbury Abbey which is, of course, ten times the size of the OSB version that we designed ourselves. 

Q. What are some of the common challenges you face in meeting sustainability targets? 

It is increasingly difficult to meet sustainability targets today.  To begin with, it was about the nature of the material that you were specifying and how that material might be produced; and how much energy is consumed in doing that. Now it's about whole life cycle costings as well.  It is, therefore, important to consider every aspect of the material. In the case of SterlingOSB Zero, it's not just the timber that is within; it’s the way in which it is bonded together; and the sources from which those come and the degree of transportation involved. We need to consider all these points now when we specify materials for buildings. 

Q. How has designing with SterlingOSB Zero informed your view as a material regarding its versatility and aesthetic? 

With SterlingOSB Zero, I probably have more experience of it than many architects might have as I teach architecture and engineering students at the University of Bath. One or two of the projects, particularly the first project they are involved in, is often centred around building something with a certain number of materials. One of these is OSB.

I have seen these group projects come to fruition over the last decade and I've seen many students master the workability of OSB and the ways in which they might be able to join the board with other materials as well. I think that's informed my understanding of the degree of accuracy that you can achieve with the material and the way it's cut, and the way it's bonded to other materials as well.  It’s been particularly helpful for me.  

For further information, call 01786 812 921 or visit https://uk.westfraser.com