Armourcoat is a market leading manufacturer and specialist contractor of decorative surface finishes. The company has its UK head offices in Sevenoaks and has a wholly owned US subsidiary business based in Las Vegas. Developed over 30 years the company works with a network of partners and customers enjoying product sales and installation into 80 countries. The UK business manages the manufacture of the brand’s wide product range, global distribution and technical support. It also runs a significant contracting business operating in the UK and Europe.
We spoke to Group Marketing Director Daniel Nevitt about future design trends and how the international aspects of the business help to influence product development.
We’re fortunate at Armourcoat to have the opportunity to access to an international group of businesses and can quickly channel ideas for decorative finishes into market ready products. Working with our international team of partners and customers we consider design trends at a local and international level and they often influence one another. Traditionally Europe has been considered the centre for design excellence and the source of new trends in surface finishes and colour themes. However we’ve seen traditional and modern aspects fusing to create new directions from the Middle East, Africa and southern Europe. This adds greater potential for cross-market development and also flavours our design team with a global colour palette and forecast for future trends.
Over the past few years we have worked on projects across all market sectors including hospitality groups, boutique retail brands, luxury resorts, healthcare and commercial. We also have a significant business in the residential sector with discerning clients. The underlining design principle across all these projects considers the seamless nature of the brand finishes particularly for large scale application, together with the recognition of the value of natural mineral materials being hand applied by talented artisan applicators. The idea of small-batch material, custom designed finishes for a particular client, perhaps even a complete one off, never to be repeated effect, resonates with the specifier and end customer alike.
A popular current theme is the use of concrete colours for a distinctly urban industrial style, perhaps combined with metal rust and verdigris colours. We are currently seeing a shift towards the specification of more luxurious metallic, opulent reflective surfaces. Also we note the subtle use of distressed or antique effects such as the cracked gesso finish. Another important style is the use of geometric forms and repeating patterns, together with intricate layered pattern details. This could be in the form of a seamless 3D sculptural surface or by using pre-cast shapes which work together to produce large scale decorative effects.
Pre-cast or modular panels are a distinct trend as some sectors make a preference for offsite construction. This is favoured by both contractors and their clients due to the shorter construction schedules with less delays and cost overruns. Often projects are under tight deadlines for completion or it is impractical to work with ‘wet’ plastering trades on site. Modular solutions can be highly customized to suit the client, sent directly to site and installed by a joiner or millworker in a few hours.
A great example is the renovation of the latest Las Vegas strip hotel by Elkus Manfredi Architects. The Boston based architects converted the original Imperial Palace hotel into a lavish property specifically designed for the Net Generation. The new Linq Hotel boasts 2,500 rooms, a casino, retail space, pool deck, vortex roof and full service spa featuring a corridor of custom finished ArmourFX panels. Elizabeth Lowrey, Principal and Director of interior Architecture at Elkus Manfredi Architects explored the idea of ‘instagramable’ backdrops within the property. This was done to redefine the hotel’s purpose in the city and also with the millennial audience’s heavy use of social media in mind.
The Linq Spa includes Armourcoat Timber Effect panels created from douglas fir planks that are hand worked to achieve different aesthetic qualities. The panels offer great design options, often replacing exotic or expensive timber for commercial projects. ArmourFX Timber Effect panels have been used to replace or match Shou-Sugi-Ban Japanese charred planks or, as in this project, mountain pine beetle blue-stain timber.
Tel: 01732 467993
E-mail: specsales@armourcoat.co.uk
Website: www.armourcoat.com
We met with Daniel Nevitt, Group Marketing Director at Armourcoat to gain a better understanding of the business recently. The interview provides an insight to the business and can be seen here