Cembrit, specialists in natural and fibre cement slates, has a large number of Contessa natural Spanish slate for the redevelopment of an old working mans club in Wakefield into a residential area. The slates have produced a high-quality appearance to the building and were the perfect answer for the roof top.
Brookhouse Crescent has been transformed from a run down working mans club into an attractive living area. Ashtree Roofing was the contractor for the site which consists of Brookhouse Crescent itself, an apartment block and a new working mans club. The roof of Brookhouse Crescent is curved, therefore requiring a slate that is easy to handle, lay and cut – all fulfilled by the choice of Contessa slate. Some 30,000 slates were used on the Crescent but on the full site the total usage touched on 100,000 Contessa slates.
“We were extremely pleased and honoured to put our name to such a great development and the choice of using Cembrit’s Contessa slate was an easy one” explains Dominic Hazell from Ashtree Roofing. “Whenever we receive a specification that states Blue/Black slates, we always look at using Cembrit’s slates, whether they are Spanish, Brazilian or Welsh. Cembrit is always our first port of call. We have built a strong relationship with the depot manager at Cembrit’s Normanton depot where the service is excellent and, having used Contessa for so long, know that they are reliable as well as attractive.”
Contessa, one of the UK’s leading specified Spanish slates, has been selected from the finest deposits and produced by some of the most efficient quarries in Spain. This natural slate is available in Blue/Black and Grey, in a variety of sizes, and with its textured surface can be relied on to create an attractive and long lasting roof. They are strong enough to withstand most severe weather conditions and are unaffected by sunlight, ultraviolet light and even acid rain. Contessa slates will last the lifetime of the building if installed correctly and is ideal for use on any major project including supermarkets, schools, city offices and prestige homes.
Using skills built up over 80 years, Cembrit select natural slate from Spain, Canada, Brazil, China, India and the countries of Western Europe. From UK quarries Cembrit offer Welsh, Cornish and Westmorland slates. Quality levels at Group factories are rigorously maintained to high standards with fibre cement slates produced to BS EN 492:2004 and manufactured under the control of a BS EN ISO 9001:2000 quality management system. Furthermore the company operates an environmental management system to ISO 14001:1996. Cembrit UK is a member of Cembrit Holding A/S (formerly the Dansk Eternit Holding A/S) of Denmark, one of Europe’s major building material producers of fibre reinforced cement products for the roofing and cladding industry.