Sustainable facades for a more beautiful world

Anno 2023, sustainability is no longer a geeky topic, but an unavoidable strategy to make a long-term impact and to protect our environment. LJ Solutions is happy to go along with this. "Approximately 95% of our facade projects involve sustainability projects," says owner Roel Tromp. "Clients still appreciate a natural-looking façade appearance, but at the same time attention is growing for such things as Total Cost of Ownership, freedom from maintenance and circularity. Does a product have an LCA? Is it included in the NMD? And what happens at the end of the building or product life? What percentage of the product can be recycled? Based on this information, architects and end users often make different and more conscious choices."

LJ Solutions includes the brand names LJ Innovate and LJ Cladding. Whereas LJ Innovate specializes in preventing thermal bridges in exterior wall insulation and ventilating cavity wall constructions with facade stucco, LJ Cladding focuses on high-quality and durable facade cladding. "In both new construction and renovation projects, we actively look with the architect, developer and client to arrive at the best facade solution for each project," says Tromp. "In doing so, we pay attention not only to our own product, but to the complete construction. From rear construction to fire class and detailing and with ample attention to sustainability, environment, appearance and price. Because this is the only way to guarantee a high-quality and durable facade. We share our construction expertise throughout the project, while ultimately only charging for our product. This approach has now earned us a loyal customer base, with decades-long relationships. That, too, is sustainability, in our opinion."

New: ventilated facade system of ceramic facade tiles

Looking at the product level, LJ Cladding offers three durable and highly innovative facade products: Neolife®, Scanroc® and the Favemanc, introduced in February. "Favemanc is a ventilated facade system of ceramic facade tiles," explains Tromp. "The facade tiles and accessories are manufactured from extruded clinker clay obtained through local partners. This keeps the ecological footprint very low. Moreover, the material is very lightweight, fully detachable and easy to assemble on, for example, an HSB rear construction. The high capacity of Favemanc with ceramic extrusion creates infinite possibilities in volume and development." All Favemanc types are antibacterial, self-cleaning and disinfecting thanks to the Active Sun Plus ingredient. "As a starting point for this development, nature and the environment are central. By adding antibacterial properties to each ceramic product, healthier environments are realized. Favemanc has an A1 fire rating."

Facade system based on naturally pure wood composite

For those more enamored with wood, LJ Cladding offers the highly durable and popular Neolife®. "This cladding - based on the patented VESTA® material - is made from wood fibers from European forests," explains Tromp. "The wood fibers are bonded using a wood-based substance. In addition, mineral salts and pigments are added. Depending on the cladding selected, Neolife® contains approximately 80% of natural wood fibers, 12% of minerals and 8% of clean PVC. This ingenious combination produces a completely stable, durable ánd strong product, which is perfectly suited for WELL and BREEAM projects. Because the mineral salt does not leach out, we can guarantee fire class B for a long time. In addition, VESTA® offers excellent shock and earthquake resistance. The product can be recycled several times without losing its strength." Meanwhile, Neolife® has an LCA and the cladding has been added to the National Environmental Database with a Category 1 product card and a very low MKI value. However, this is no reason to sit still, Tromp emphasizes. "The product is still being further optimized, with an eye on sustainability, health and the environment."

Neolife® comes in panels 30 cm wide, which interlock with a tongue and groove joint. Depending on the type of product, the panels can be screwed or blind mounted with mounting clips. The cladding is colored throughout with mineral pigments with high UV resistance. "Based on sunlight and weather conditions, the original hue of the pigment stabilizes over time. So the color ends up being slightly lighter than during assembly. The final color is guaranteed 100%."

Durable alternative to masonry

Another interesting product in terms of sustainability and environmental friendliness is Scanroc®, which excels in design, earthquake resistance and fire safety. "The lightweight ceramic and cementitious cladding easily achieves fire class A1 and offers a high-quality alternative to standard masonry," said Tromp. "In addition, Scanroc® can be installed directly on the HSB wall. Because the cementitious and ceramic strips are as hard as regular masonry, optimal stability is ensured." The ventilated facade system consists of a metal frame, insulation material and stone strips and is 100% circular and demountable. "As a result, the system scores very well in the Environmental Performance of Buildings (MPG) calculations. Waste is not an issue. In addition, thermal bridges are efficiently eliminated. The 100 mm wide insulation material also makes it possible to reduce noise levels >2 times." 

The Scanroc® stone strips are available in various sizes and can easily be applied from a lifting scaffold or with an aerial platform. From bottom to top, the system is automatically anchored, which also allows LJ Cladding to comply with the new requirements of the Building Code.