Colourful façades breathe new life into Haarlem gallery flats

Integration with the existing facade image

The new front facades are the most eye-catching feature of the major maintenance that passers-by tend to notice, says De Wilde. “Over the years, several modern round flats with plenty of glass features have been completed in the vicinity of the Rousseaustraat. As a result, the four older flats stood out in their surroundings quite noticeably. That is why integration into the existing facade image was an important requirement of the client, housing association Pré wonen.”

A rainbow of colour

The existing facades had already been fitted with blue Rockpanel facade panels at an earlier stage. “We completely stripped it off the facade, including the insulation. We then installed a self-supporting construction and applied new insulation material.”

New Rockpanel Chameleon facade panels have been mounted on this construction, each flat in its own individual gradient colour scheme. De Wilde: “Together with our client, we went in search of a facade panel to give the building a modern, unique look. When we came across Rockpanel Chameleon in the dealer showroom, we were sold on the spot: thanks to a clever crystal layer, you can actually see the facade change colour as you walk past it, with a different incidence light every time. No matter what the angle, you won't see the same thing twice. They give the building the exact modern look that is needed at this location.”

New recycling service for Rockpanel board material

Thanks to their new warm insulation and installations, the flats are now in line with modern sustainability requirements. During the renovation, ways were also sought to keep the ecological footprint as small as possible. Among other things, De Baak Projecten was one of the first parties in the Netherlands to have dismantled Rockpanel sheet material collected via Rockcycle. This is a comprehensive Rockpanel recycling service that collects stone wool residues and processes them into high-quality new stone wool products without loss of quality.

De Wilde: “Our ROCKWOOL insulation material has been smoothly collected and processed by the supplier for many years, but recently this has also become possible for sheet material. Since we are replacing Rockpanel boards with other Rockpanel boards with a different design in this project, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to try out this new service. Because we want to minimise our impact on the environment and the planet, we like working with materials that can be reused. In the long run, this approach benefits us all. If we can do our part in that regard, we are happy to do so.”

Moreover, De Baak Projecten hardly needed to adjust the working method for Rockcycle during the major maintenance in Haarlem. "It was simply an additional logistical operation. All we had to do was collect the Rockpanel boards in a separate container when we separated the construction waste. The benefits of recycling far outweigh this extra step.”

Visible impact on the environment

Marc de Wilde is very proud of the project for several reasons. “The facade is truly magnificent. It's safe to say that it not only brings the gallery houses in line with the look of modern façades, they actually stand out very positively. I can tell, for example, by the response of passers-by. They literally stop, walk slowly along the facade and continue to admire the play of colours. It is such a wonderful thing to see. The fact that we have also contributed to a better environment with Rockcycle, is another welcome bonus to this project.”

*Disclaimer: Due to changes in our assortment, it is possible that the designs shown in this case study are no longer available. Feel free to contact us in case of doubt.