Ystalyfera Welsh School

Zentia helped with sound and sight in a new teaching block. The two to three-storey steel-frame building replaces a 1970s three-storey CLASP-type teaching block to bring accommodation into the 21st Century and was designed to BREEAM “Excellent” and BIM Level 2 standards.

Zentia Axiom Knife Edge canopies with Ultima+ tiles and were specified by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council for the £12.5 million new secondary teaching block at Ystalyfera Welsh Medium Comprehensive School in the upper Swansea Valley in South Wales.

Used throughout the new 6,500 m² building, the Axiom Knife Edge with Ultima+ Vector tiles were used, and in addition Perla 600 x 600 mm mineral fibre tiles were also fitted in classrooms and toilet areas.

The 19-month long build by main contractor Dawnus Construction as part of the South Wales Regional Contractors Framework was challenging due to the tight site and restricted working spaces. A team of eight from specialist sub-contractor SAM Drylining installed the Zentia canopies and ceiling tiles.

SAM Drylining contracts manager Ian Bartlett said: “This was a large extension to a comprehensive school and consisted of several different ceiling make-ups, including Zentia’s Knife Edge canopies, all floating in different areas with no ceilings above, and then several thousand metres of Zentia Lay-In grid."

“The programme was a challenging one but was co-ordinated closely with all other subcontractors on site. If alterations to sequence or design were required Zentia’s technical team attended to site to discuss and were able to agree changes at site level, making the installation as painless as you’d expect.”