Edgewater College
Durable and sound-dampening classroom flooring
Education spaces are driven by practicality and function. Flooring, in particular, has to stand up to heavy use, while maintaining its appearance and contributing to acoustic comfort.
Designed by DLM Architects, Edgewater College’s renovated two-storey, 10-classroom ‘Nelson’ block creates an attractive and highly functional learning environment for 13- to 17-year-olds. The project creates richness through different settings across open-plan and cellular learning spaces, resource areas, shared breakout spaces and wet areas.
Carpet tiles, ceiling tiles and fabric pinboard walls were all critical in controlling noise. The selected carpet tiles – City Square by Tecsom and Regeneration by Voxflor – provide 27dB in sound reduction, as well as soft surfaces to trap airborne dust for a comfortable environment for students.
Teaching spaces usually have predefined finishes for functionality and budget reasons, so the art is in selecting variety within available options. ‘We chose a neutral colour for the flooring, so spaces will feel modern for years to come,’ says project architect Dasha Tapa. ‘Three different grey carpet tiles create a pixelated, salt-and-pepper pattern and work well with blues and greens inspired by the school’s colour scheme.’
‘For single-cell spaces we chose two carpet tile colours,’ says Dasha, ‘City Square 18 and Regeneration 10. And in the larger breakout we used a combo of four colours – City Square 17, 33 and 18, and Regeneration 10.’
Carpet selection criteria included a tile that would wear really well, feel soft underfoot, hide the dust, and provide good acoustics. The carpet pattern provides a consistent ground plane throughout the building, while individual spaces are given their own character with wall and furniture colour accents. The overall atmosphere is restful and calming, with the carpet tile geometries adding a subtly playful effect.
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PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS
City Square carpet tiles are a solution-dyed, 100 per cent polyamide. With a high tuft density, they are a high-wear and high-performance commercial carpet tile. Tile size is 50 x 50 cm. Read City Square’s specifications and see all 31 colours.
Regeneration by Voxflor uses the 100 per cent recycled nylon Econyl®. The heavy-duty, commercial-grade carpet tiles are 50 x 50 cm. Read Regeneration’s specifications and see all 16 colours.
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CREDITS
Project: Edgewater College, Auckland
Architect: DLM Architects
Product: Tecsom City Square & Voxflor Regeneration
Photographer: Dasha Tapa Photography
Writer: Folio