As sustainable design becomes mainstream in the architectural landscape, brick wall cladding stands out to architects and engineers as an ideal solution for building an eco-friendly façade. Using a brick slip cladding system achieves the aesthetic of a real brick exterior, and facilitates a modern building façade design not just by its aesthetics, but by its eco-friendly features, such as longevity, energy efficiency and biophilic design – all of which meet vital principles for sustainable design.
Smartbric, the brick slip cladding from Fairview, is an energy-efficient rainscreen system that allows architects and engineers to design a modern, contemporary and, most importantly, an eco-friendly façade.
Understanding the Smartbric™ Brick Cladding System
Smartbric brick cladding is a unique cladding solution, taking elements of the classic brick façade design and updating them for today’s eco-friendly landscape. Similar to traditional brick facings, brick tiles and brick slips, Smartbric offers superior advantages through its design and installation system, which reduces wastage and increases longevity.
Two Smartbric profiles are available: Classic, which features a mortared design, and Rapid, which features an innovative ‘dry’ mortarless installation system – both of these are installed onto a universal Track and Rail system.
Traditional Brick Cladding
Brick wall cladding is an enduring favourite – but it comes with limitations, such as the weight of the bricks, which can make installation time consuming and costly. Traditional brick wall façades also require mortar and grout and need a certified bricklayer or brick installer to install them. By contrast, Smartbric features lighter weight brick tiles or slips, which fasten quickly and easily into a track and rail system and do not require a professional brick layer to install, saving significantly on both install time and cost.
Brick Slip Cladding
Many varieties of brick slip cladding rely on grout or adhesive to keep them in place, requiring a more difficult and fiddly installation that is not suitable for large, tall or multi-storey buildings. The universal Track and Rail system provided as part of the Smartbric system is a secure, interlocking design which holds the brick slips in place, removing the need for adhesive or grout, and allowing a brick wall cladding style to be achieved even on large scale projects. The bricks will not fall out or require extra fastening.
The Sustainability Factor: How Smartbric™ is Reshaping Eco-Friendly Design
Eco-friendly design encompasses a number of principles, from energy efficiency of the entire building to the materials used in the design, to their longevity. Smartbric contributes to the sustainability of a building, optimising material usage to reduce wastage and conserve resources, without compromising on quality and durability. Its energy-efficient system also contributes to the overall energy efficiency of the building, leading to substantial cost and energy savings over time.
Energy Efficiency in Modern Contemporary Façade Designs
Rainscreen Cladding Systems facilitate some of the most energy-efficient façades in the architectural world today. Creating an outer layer for a building with a ventilated cavity behind the rail or track to promote airflow and water drainage, rainscreen façades can regulate temperature better and reduce condensation which could otherwise lead to deterioration. The building requires less energy to heat or cool it, reducing electricity use overall. Smartbric’s Track and Rail system helps it act as a rainscreen, allowing air to flow through a ventilated cavity and making it a highly energy efficient alternative to a traditional brick cladded façade.
Longevity in Large Building Designs
Another important aspect of sustainable design is its longevity. The innovative Track and Rail system allows Smartbric to be installed on both interior and exterior façades of large building designs, without requiring grout or adhesives to keep them in place. The heavy-duty, interlocking galvanised steel or aluminium track reduces the risk of structural movements and diminishes the risk of cracks and other structural problems resulting in the need for replacement. If an individual brick tile or section is damaged, the replacement profile simply slots securely into the Track and Rail system, without requiring a whole new brick wall – saving substantially on replacement costs and material wastage.
Natural Cladding for Biophilic Design
The principle of incorporating the natural environment into built environments, or biophilic design, is an essential part of sustainable architecture. Biophilic façade design evokes the natural world on the façade of a building, through use of greenery, biomorphic styles and natural building materials. Bricks are formed from natural materials such as clay and stone, making them perfectly suited to biophilic design. As Smartbric brick slips are made from real brick stock, they are completely natural and thus can contribute to an earthy, brick wall cladding façade that invokes sustainability every time it is viewed.
The Long-Term Benefits of Smartbric™ Investment
Choosing and investing in the Smartbric system provides many long-term benefits – including financial and design benefits as well as clear environmental benefits for a long-term sustainable project. Durable, versatile and eco-friendly in every way, Smartbric future-proofs architects, designers and even building occupants against environmental changes in the future, contributing to a Sustainable Built Environment.
• Natural and Energy Efficient: Smartbric contributes to a biophilic design with its natural materials, and its properties as a rainscreen help the entire building save on energy
• NCC Compliant: made from non-combustible materials and providing thermal efficiency and weatherproofing, Smartbric completely satisfies the new requirements as set out by the NCC.
• Non-Combustible: for a fire-safe façade that reduces the risk of harm to the building’s occupants
• Weather resistant: the secure installation system and rainscreen style system protect both the façade and the building itself against the elements
• Universal fixing system: easy, convenient installation for both mortared and mortarless designs, saving time and costs and the need for a bricklayer
• Exceptional durability and strength: a façade resistant to impact and deterioration, and which will stand the test of time
• Quick and easy installation: brick slips fit conveniently and securely into the Track and Rail system to save time and complete large projects quickly
• Suitable for small spaces: lightweight, small brick tiles that are suitable for spaces with tighter tolerances than traditional bricks
• Architectural appeal with a natural real brick: recreate the beloved brick wall exterior with real brick stock, minus the weight and hassle of a full brick
• Low maintenance: for a long-lasting façade that requires minimal further costs
Read more here: https://fv.com.au/products/smartbric/
Adopting Smartbric as your brick slip cladding material of choice can contribute to the wider goal of creating a sustainable built environment. The durable, energy-efficient product can allow the design and installation of building façades that stand the test of time, lasting for years without wastage or replacement, while evoking a sense of the natural world through their biophilic feel.
Unlock your decision-making problems and begin creating solutions for your next design by requesting a Smartbric sample or get in touch with a brick cladding specialist to learn more.
