Perforated Nordic Brass from Craft Metals has been extensively used on the facade as well as the interiors of the North Fitzroy Library and Community Hub in Melbourne, Australia. Perforated Nordic Brass screens on the facade not only define the character of this important community building but also provide shading.
A three-storey building incorporating a library, maternal child health facility and various community spaces, the North Fitzroy Library and Community Hub has been recognised with a 6-Star Green Star certification, the highest rating that can be achieved in environmentally sustainable design.
Designed by architects GroupGSA, the building sits on a tapered site that presents long facades to the east and west. The eastern facade allows glimpses into the building, particularly at night, with views out to the public urban space.
The external glazing on the building is shielded by the curved, vertical screens of perforated Nordic Brass, each one offset against the next. The perforations throw a striking pattern, inspired by the dappled light patterns from the trees in the adjacent Edinburgh Gardens.
This perforated Nordic Brass theme continues on the inside of the building with the material used for features such as the reception desk.
Complementary copper alloys
An alloy of copper and zinc with a distinctive golden yellow colour, Aurubis Nordic Brass has a surface, which when exposed to the atmosphere begins to darken within weeks and changes to dark brown in about a year. The Nordic Copper range also includes Nordic Bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, initially featuring a similar colour to Nordic Standard copper, and gradually changing to a stable, dark chocolate brown. Nordic Brass can also be supplied pre-weathered.
Extensive surface ranges
Craft Metals can also supply other Nordic Copper ranges from Aurubis including Nordic Standard ‘mill finish’ and Nordic Brown pre-oxidised copper finish. The extensive Nordic Blue, Nordic Green and Nordic Turquoise ranges have been developed with properties and colours based on the same brochantite mineralogy found in natural patinas all over the world. Additionally, Craft Metals offers a wide choice of Nordic Décor mechanically applied surface treatments.
