Kerto® LVL Concept System Build
Metsä Wood’s pre-fabricated components helped Inspired Villages quickly and efficiently erect temporary marketing suites for its new, luxury retirement apartment developments. The recyclability of Metsä Wood’s products also allows the buildings to be dismantled and re-assembled again on other sites when required.
To enable potential buyers to see what the new apartments offer, temporary showrooms designed by Leisure Concepts were needed on the sites. In a move away from the conventional modular unit, Metsä Wood’s Kerto-Q, Kerto-S and Kerto-RipaTM products were specified.
Keith Cockell, Chairman of English Care Villages commented “I think Kerto is a great product. I wanted a building that was different, stylish and individual and yet we had a budget to work to. The Metsä Wood Kerto product gave us the opportunity to expose the structure of the raw material so the texture and grain of the surface could be seen instead of covering it up. We would definitely use Kerto again.”
Kerto® is a laminated veneer lumber (LVL) product used in all types of construction. Kerto is produced from 3mm thick rotary-peeled softwood veneers that are glued together to form a continuous sheet which makes it incredibly strong and dimensionally stable.
Kerto-Q was used in the marketing suite’s 12m long and 69mm thick wall panels due to its strength and dimensional stability. Meanwhile, Kerto-Ripa elements were specified for the floors and flat roof to stabilise the whole structure. Kerto-Ripa is a combination of Kerto-Q panels together with Kerto-S beams to provide strength, dimensional precision and stability. The whole building was designed using Metsä Wood’s software Finnwood® and drafted in Finnframe® which is BIM compatible.
Metsä Wood products were chosen for a number of reasons. The Kerto-Q large panel construction allowed for faster construction, and long spans in the floors and roofs could be achieved with Kerto-Ripa. The recyclability of the products was another significant benefit.
The 100 square metre buildings will be on the two sites for approximately 18 months. They will then be dismantled with 70% of the structure being re-used and the remaining 30% of the materials will be replaced, such as carpets and finishes. The structures will then be re-erected on other sites.
Demountable Sales Office Using Kerto -> more images.