Corobrik Paves the Way to the Future at UNISA in Parow

The new UNISA building in Parow demonstrates the incredible versatility of the de Hoop Red 50mm paver.

Attention to detail, energy efficiency and discovering new and innovative uses for tried and tested building materials were this project’s signature. Corobrik’s de Hoop pavers were used on both walls and floors – and those used as flooring inside the building were polished to give them a whole new glossy sheen.

UNISA Parow is becoming and increasingly popular tertiary institution. Additional accommodation comprising 20 classrooms, four examination halls, an internal student square for social activity and study, technical rooms and toilet facilities as well as a separately located administration wing was needed.

As part of an architect led initiative, the creation of an environmentally responsible building was prioritized and the vision was to achieve (in principle) a Green Star rating for the new north and south blocks. The use of the de Hoop clay pavers in horizontal and vertical surfaces fitted well with the professional team’s responsible material procurement objective both because they are locally available from Stellenbosch and because they could be factored in when it came to waste reduction, provision for the reuse and recycling of building materials, reduction of volatile organic compounds and the minimization of future maintenance.

The new UNISA building is primarily a structural steel frame with polished concrete floor slabs and de Hoop Red paver, face brickwork. The pavers were applied in both internal and external wall finishes and are inlayed into the polished concrete floors as banding across the threshold entrance into the building.

The building and structural steel is set out in horizontal brickwork dimensions. Brickwork fitted neatly into a palette of exposed steel structure and polished concrete and sandblasted off-shutter concrete. The face brick pavers’ 50mm vertical dimension resulted in the attractive brick proportions which contributed to the overall success of the building.

Because brickwork texture lends itself to the articulation of walls and planes with shadow, the architects experimented with the brickwork coursing, subtly working within the standard stretcher bond which remains the standard for brickwork and recessing brick pavers either as single elements or as continuous bands. This created interest in what could otherwise have been a bland expanse of a single material. The experiments extended to utilising various grades of sandblasting. The de Hoop Red has a white fluorescence visible on the surface and was sandblasted to create a homogenous solid surface.