Aluminum, the new swear word or just the new challenge?

Ir. Lars Courage - COURAGE architects and interior design bv

At a time when everything has to be circular, sustainable, ecological and naturally responsible, more traditional building materials such as plastic, concrete, steel and, of course, aluminum are having a particularly hard time in the general opinion. 

'Oh...you don't build with wood, flax or 'puffed sheep's wool', but with aluminum???...well, that takes energy and is really very polluting...you know...'. 

What a one-sided and incomplete representation of construction. One day without these materials in daily use in our society and everything disrupts. Is this an exaggerated representation? 

Perhaps, but I've always been taught that you have to put material properties where it will do the most good, and in my opinion that is responsible use of materials that are specifically appropriate and optimized for their purpose. 

Why this somewhat critical opening of this piece of writing? Well, my personal fascination in construction is fueled by the great importance of daylight in the built environment. 

From inside to outside design, human-centered living, working and well-being. Our designs start with this premise. In doing so, daylight through glass is of great importance in all our designs. Due to global warming, designers are more than once made aware of the importance of controlled daylight and solar heat regulation. It is precisely then that fantastic architecture is possible. Beyond the calibrated aluminum window frames that are applicable in a multitude of filigranes and offer wonderful opening possibilities, I would like to make a case for the importance of aluminum in these light and heat regulation systems. 

Shutters and slats we know, but it is precisely in the power of perforated aluminum sheet materials that the range of personalized solutions is increasingly expanding. 

A challenge we still underuse, but if we take inspiration from architecture from warmer and sunnier regions we find wonderful examples. By reinterpreting these, the design and application challenge is endless and thus opportune. 

As responsible daylight applications are found more and more in the roof areas, architects are challenged more than ever to be very creative with this. The examples of challenging individualized perfo front cassettes with the most beautiful moiree effects are only the beginning of the possibilities. Daylighting through perfo aluminum. 

Aluminum, in particular, therefore challenges us more than any other material to be creative in utilizing this beautifully thin and lightweight material and to further explore its material properties. The simple challenge with aluminum, however, is not its deformability and corrosion resistance, but the limited range of colors to choose from. 

In powder coating industry almost anything is possible, in our desired anodizing many times less, and it is precisely in this application method that the brutality of the material comes out even more. 

Ladies and gentlemen anodizers in construction, take a cue from the multitude of colors in the automotive or fitting industry and offer us more opportunities to bring aluminum even better to the fore in all its splendor. We are ready for it!