Metal mesh provides one-of-a-kind ceiling system
by Jonathan McGaha | April 30, 2010 12:00 am
At the brand new Cultural Arts Center on Montgomery College’s Takoma Park, Md., campus, modern stainless-steel metal fabric panels from Cambridge, Md.-based Cambridge Architectural fashionably divides space and provides a one-of-a-kind ceiling system.
The most recent addition to the Silver Spring Arts and Entertainment District, the Cultural Arts Center has become the area’s premier venue for the performing arts, hosting professional public performances and events sponsored by community organizations. Inside the facility’s main 500-seat theater,Cambridge’s metal fabric provides a state-of-the-art building element—a flat tensioned ceiling system extending more than 50 feet (15 m) in length, but capable of extending hundreds of feet in length. Additional polished vertical mesh panels create an intimate space by isolating house seating from exterior aisles. Completed in June 2009, Washington, D.C.-based SmithGroup was the architect.
Cambridge’s Landscape Interiors architectural mesh system was specified for the project because the versatility and style of the material allowed it to uniquely envelop the house in elegant, clean lines and to create a revolutionary tensioned ceiling system using metal fabric that can be specified for any requested length while remaining completely flat.
“I was amazed by Cambridge’s ability to install the metal fabric ceiling in tension,” said Adrian Vaughn, senior project manager for Bovis Lend Lease Inc., Bethesda, Md., the contractor/installer of the project. “I have been in the industry for 20 years,and I’ve never seen anything like it.”
The new Landscape Interiors wall and ceiling system inside the Cultural Arts Center maintains acoustic transparency, improves ventilation and engagingly reflects architectural lighting. The Landscape Interiors system was fabricated with mesh in Cambridge’s Scale pattern.
“This is an unprecedented project for Cambridge, and for the metal industry as a whole,” said Heather Collins, Director of Marketing for Cambridge Architectural. “Our new tensioned mesh ceiling application creates innumerable interior design possibilities with very few limitations, and further provesthe benefits of our design-build approach.”
Cambridge’s design-build approach made the tensioned ceiling system concept and implementation successful. The method helped the team to better understand the product, and allowed Cambridge to develop an effective solution by being involved in the entire process, from initial design to final installation.
Overall, the Cambridge metal fabric system built for the Cultural Arts Center matches the tone and purpose of the space itself, adding a carefully conceived artistic flair that boasts supreme “behind the scenes” functionality.
“Cambridge’s material is a perfect example of fine craftsmanship,” Vaughn said. “Its placement, in combination with how it is highlighted by architectural lighting, creates a beautiful, innovative interior design element.”
Cambridge Architectural, www.cambridgearchitectural.com
Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/projects/metal-mesh-provides-one-of-a-kind-ceiling-system/