|
The exterior of the Vistas hotel in Benidorm, Spain has recently been refurbished and given a modern new look, designed by the Spanish architect Vicente Peidró. The new facade was produced in white gelcoated fibreglass (GRP) by Miraplas S.L., who moulded the triangular and elliptical GRP architectural shapes. The assembly and construction of the new facade used Crystic Crestomer structural adhesives both for bonding together the moulded GRP sections and bonding the steel frames used to mechanically fix and bond the 22.5 sq. m GRP sections to vertical steel pillars on the hotel exterior. The first phase of this hotel refurbishment project was carried out in the Miraplas factory. The nine elliptical sections were made from eight individual GRP pieces bonded together with Crestomer structural adhesives; a metal clamping frame was specially designed by Miraplas to hold all the parts in position during bonding.
The most challenging aspect of the architect’s design was the production of the nine large curved triangular and elliptical sections. These proved most cost effective to produce by making separately moulded 5mm thick glass fibre reinforced (GRP) laminate parts and bonding them together. All the GRP parts were produced using an isophthalic resin, three layers of glass matting and an isophthalic gelcoat. Once moulded, the eight separate GRP parts for each triangular section were accurately positioned in the metal clamping frame and then bonded together. Crystic Crestomer 1152PA structural adhesive was applied using a pneumatic gun. The steel frames for mechanically fixing the GRP sections to the hotel wall were also bonded into place with Crystic Crestomer 1152PA. In some confined areas, hand guns with cartridges of Crestomer Advantage 30 were used. Miraplas S.L. has a purpose built 44 000 sq m composites moulding factory located in Monforte del Cid close to Alicante, in the south of Spain. The company has traditionally specialised in manufacturing large GRP tanks and related parts used in waste water treatment, water purification and desalination plants. For this hotel project, the GRP parts manufactured by Miraplas S.L. were primarily produced by RTM light closed moulding, plus some by hand layup. Over the last 18 months, with the technical assistance of Mr Jose Manuel Bey Garcia, an independent specialist consultant in RTM processing, who was appointed as the technical advisor on the hotel project, the company has expanded its manufacturing capabilities in RTM closed moulding. Miraplas now has the expertise to fabricate a much wider variety of large complex GRP shapes for industrial and building and construction applications, such as doors, tank covers, curved cladding, cylindrical shaped parts and wind generator blades. The range of Crystic Crestomer adhesives, manufactured by Scott Bader, are proven GRP structural adhesive which have been successfully used in a variety of building and construction applications, such as for cladding panels on bridges, as well as in many fibreglass marine applications in both hulls and decks. Reliable long term structural bonding of composite and metal substrates is achievable, provided the recommended surface preparation is carried out prior to bonding. “Having used Crystic Crestomer adhesives for many years on several other projects, I was able to recommend their use for this project with great confidence that they will provide a guaranteed, reliable long term bonding performance.” stated Mr. Bey Garcia. The additional reasons given for using a structural adhesive for this type of application are that bonding helps to significantly reduce the overall weight of the final GRP section, while also offering benefits in production efficiency, particularly using pneumatic application guns where possible for larger sections, in preference to using 380ml cartridge hand guns. For more information about the range of Crestomer and Crestabond structural adhesives available from Scott Bader, log onto www.scottbader.com/adhesives. Further details about Miraplas S.L and the range of GRP fabrication services offered can be found at www.miraplas.com.
 The eight GRP moulded parts for the triangular sections (topmost section shown) were positioned in a specially made metal clamping frame designed by Miraplas for holding the newly bonded sections together until the Crystic Crestomer structural adhesive cured.
 Crystic Crestomer structural adhesives were applied using a combination of 380ml cartridge handguns and pneumatic hand guns to improve production efficiency for Miraplas.
 Finished bonded triangular sections were removed from the metal clamping frame after 2 hours, by which time the Crystic Crestomer adhesives had fully cured.
 The 22.5 sq, meter triangular GRP sections were individually transported to the hotel site on nine flat bed trucks.
 On site, each GRP section was lifted by crane and guided into position by aharnessed construction engineer, who bolted and bonded them to the vertical steel fixing frame on the hotel exterior. The team of four took eight hours to complete the new facade installation.
 A view of the striking new design from the top of the new hotel facade, looking down between the nine newly installed triangular GRP sections to the bottom of the hotel.
 The completed and transformed new hotel facade, as designed by the Spanish architect Vicente Peidró, with its dramatic new GRP sections.
About Scott BaderScott Bader was established in 1921. Today it is a £180 million multinational chemical company, employing 560 people worldwide. It is a common trusteeship company, having no external shareholders, with a strong commitment to support its customers, workforce and the environment. Scott Bader’s headquarters is based in the UK where they have purpose-built, state-of-the-art technical facilities that provide R & D as well as complete evaluation, testing and application support. They have manufacturing facilities in the UK, France, Croatia, The Middle East and South Africa. For further information regarding Scott Bader, please call +44 (0)1933 663100, visit www.scottbader.com or e-mail info@scottbader.com
|
