Architectural solutions specialist Aliva UK has brought bespoke to another level with its aluminium facade innovation on an Ivy League university in the States, realising the initial design intent for the project through another material.

Aliva’s rainscreen cladding system on the Harvard Enterprise Research Campus, in Massachusetts, has all the look and feel of a terracotta facade but is actually a customised, profiled aluminium system that pushes the envelope of architectural facade innovation.

Aliva’s aluminium facade was a lighter weight solution for the height of the two elevations and more cost effective for the project’s supply, installation and build programmes.

• Aliva’s customised Alu.covering® system in two contrasting tones of rich and luscious green glaze feature on two neighbouring buildings in the campus, a mid and a high-rise.

• Its Onda Lunga Alu.covering® creates a sense of flow, rhythm and unique identity for the two elevations.

• Aliva developed 16 different dies to produce the series of fluted profiles, each with specific dimensions, giving flair and shape to a truly bespoke architectural skin.

This project was not simply a change of facade material, it included a complete rethink of the facade system. The aluminium slats were designed with a vertical, concave and convex layout to recreate the original sense of movement envisaged from terracotta.

This facade innovation preserved the project’s original identity through a tailor-made solution that integrated aesthetics, sustainability and performance.

Aliva’s BBA certified, A-rated Onda Lunga Alu.covering® system has created a statement aesthetic for this prestigious Ivy League university campus in Boston’s Allston neighbourhood, a location that blends life sciences, retail and public space into a lively urban setting.