An extruded aluminium baffle system was showcased in the UK for the first time, thanks to Hunter Douglas Architectural’s involvement in the refurbishment of a key Canary Wharf office building in London. 

25 North Colonnade was one of the first office buildings to be built in the capital’s financial district, completed in the 1990s.

Now it has undergone a major transformation, enabling it to meet the needs of 21st century businesses.

Hunter Douglas Architectural was proud to play its part in the revitalisation of this waterfront Grade A office building, located adjacent to the Canary Wharf Crossrail Station, after being specified to supply 375m2 of its Sedes™ baffles for the lift lobbies on all 15 floors.

Kevin Taylor, specification sales manager, said the designer at architect Gensler, which led the refurbishment, selected Sedes™ because the sharp corners on the baffle complemented the overall design ethic throughout the building.

“It is a great lightweight baffle system that works well in commercial spaces such as 25 North Colnonnade,” he said.

“The designers were impressed with the sharp look and I’m pleased the system has been used to such good effect in this newly refurbished building.”

The Baffles Sedes™ Straight system enables designers and architects to create a wide range of ceiling designs with variable baffle spacing. It is available in widths of 20, 30, 40 and 55mm, heights of 50mm to 300mm and lengths up to 6000mm as standard, although longer baffles can be provided upon request.

The system can be tailored to individual design needs, thanks to the range of different paint colours, plus powder-coated wood look for both interior and exterior and laminated wood options. Custom colour matching is also available.

“The options we have for the Sedes™ system provides a significant design freedom,” said Kevin. “For this specific project, we were specified to provide a bespoke size baffle section that meant we had to manufacture a new extrusion die.”

Paul McDonagh, director at installation contractor CIM Ltd, added: “We worked closely with Hunter Douglas to ensure that our team was able to install the ceiling smoothly and quickly and I’m pleased to say they did a great job on this impressive scheme.”

For 25 North Colonnade, the global architectural products company provided the baffles that measured 50x150x2800mm and these were installed with 100mm gaps.

Hunter Douglas Architectural also copied the UK brand colour reference for the anodised finish colour, matching to Anolok 547 to the architect’s approval.

The system uses a standard angle profile as a carrier and its design means it is easy to access the plenum.