The London Borough of Sutton Council wanted to breathe new life into a number of communal areas in their large municipal office building. For this iconic refurbishment, they turned to international flooring and interiors specialist Gerflor to provide an array of spectacular world class flooring that would deliver outstanding durability and incredible eye-catching designs that were in keeping with the required vision of the interiors finish. Gerflor supplied over 2500m2 of Creation LVT and Gradus Lunar Carpet tiles for this major renovation and worked closely with the client and supply chain to manage this transformation, so that the project was on time and to budget.

The Sutton Civic Offices is a community facility and is also the headquarters of the London Borough of Sutton. The current civic offices were commissioned to replace the old municipal offices. The building, which was designed by the Assistant Borough Architect, Charles Sierakowski in the modernist style, was completed in phases between 1972 and 1975. The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage onto St Nicholas Way with a canopied glass entrance to the civic offices and to the public library on the left, and a canopied glass entrance to the college on the right: there were continuous rows of glazing with brickwork above and below on the first, second and third floors throughout the complex. In the absence of a purpose-built council chamber, a multi-purpose area within the public library known as the “Europa Gallery” was designated as available for use by the borough council for their meetings.

Commenting on the Sutton Civic Centre project Paul Sceats, Specification Sales Manager at Gerflor commented, “The project came about through our regular and ongoing contact with the London Borough of Sutton, as we have been gradually refurbishing the general offices within the Civic Centre over the past two to three years using Gradus Latour2 Carpet Tiles. We are also about to start refurbishing the next three levels very soon with another two thousand m2 of both Gerflor products.”

Paul Sceats went on to add, “I met with the client to review the specification and project brief and he explained that he wanted to do something a bit unique for the busy reception area and of course choosing Gerflor for its flooring refurbishment would tick that box perfectly.”

On product specification, Paul Sceats further said, “At the time the Gradus Lunar collection had recently been launched, it would be an ideal product to consider as the natural and neutral tones would blend extremely well alongside the authentic wood-effect planks of Gerflor’s Creation 70 LVT. The client Rob McNaught used these finishes to very cleverly “sculpt” a walkway through the main carpeted area of the reception. To one side, he also created a small kids play area with a “pencil” effect on the walls.”

In supplying a superior interiors finish, the Gerflor floorings for this distinguished project would need to be installed by a company who could deliver on both timescale and quality of service.

South-East London- based Specialised Flooring (Bromley) Limited supply and install quality carpets and flooring. With over 30 years’ experience, they provide a quality and reliable service tailored to their customer’s requirements. They cater for both commercial and domestic installations throughout London and Kent, supplying and installing all types of floor coverings.

Commenting on the Sutton Civic Centre refurbishment, Ian Hook, Company Director at Specialised Flooring said, “We install all the flooring work for RT Services who were the main contractors on the project. We had seven days on site with two fitters and a labourer.”

On the installation itself Ian Hook went on to comment, “The Gerflor products which we installed in the communal areas, walkways, offices and the reception area were very easy to work with and lay.”

Ian Hook ended by saying, “Our client is extremely delighted with the finished result. Specifying Gerflor products, is for us, a natural choice as they offer a vast range of flooring in a fantastic array of contemporary colours and designs, which are suitable for many demanding applications.”

Paul Sceats concluded, “This was an outstanding project to work on. The selection of specified Gerflor products has really met and surpassed the specification set by the client. The communal areas now look really eye-catching and are a big hit with the visitors and staff.”

The Gerflor teams have always considered customers and the environment as their absolute priorities. Their floor coverings, wall solutions and finishing components are user friendly, healthy, fit for purpose solutions. They are designed with respect for the planet to last as long as possible with proposed end-of-life options. From product design through end-of-life, the circular economy is a core priority for the group.

Gerflor are ready and on hand to assist customers with specifications, provide technical advice and free site surveys for both new build and refurbishment projects. In addition to this, the core collections in Creation LVT and Lunar Carpets Tiles are stocked and readily available in the UK for fast delivery when time is of the essence.

Learn more about Gerflor solutions, ask for a free sample or contact us to speak to a specialist today by calling 01625 428 922, emailing contractuk@gerflor.com, or visiting gerflor.co.uk for the latest innovations.

Overview of Gerflor and Gradus products installed at Sutton Civic Centre

The credible and well established LVT Collections from Gerflor provide a unique all in one approach which is conceived using a method offering designers an à la carte choice of design and fitting depending on either renovation or new projects. The Creation Collection also considers the levels of light, moderate or heavy footfall that might have to be required.

With the Creation LVT Collections, Gerflor offers a range of solutions that are easy to live and work with, together with providing a stunning floor that is both durable and simply beautiful to look at. With 35 years’ experience in decorative tiles and planks, Gerflor continues to innovate!

Aimed at Architects, Specifiers, Decision-makers, and Interiors Professionals, the Creation LVT product ranges provide clients with a complete flooring solution targeted at four levels of traffic intensity. Creation 30 (Class 31) Creation 40 (Class 32) Creation 55 (Class 33) and Creation 70 (Class 34).

With exclusive designs and a variety of formats (Solid Clic, Rigid Acoustic, Dryback, and Looselay), the Creation LVT finishes offer over 100 different choices and possible combinations. The development of these world class ranges is spearheaded by their Creative Director, Gino Venturelli and an in-house design and research team.

The team closely with designers from around the world, studying international design influences and identifying key trends related to the world of fashion, interior design,
architecture and surface finishes. They also draw inspiration from natural materials such as wood, stone, marble, and concrete as well as graphics and architectural forms, whilst adding new colour blends and surface treatments. The results are applied to the creation of Gerflor’s pioneering, design-led, flooring innovations that are tailored to the individual markets and their needs.

The Creation LVT collections also deliver four ranges for different traffic levels and five fitting systems. One latest spectacular innovation for the Creation LVT product range is a new RIGID clip system that has improved performance characteristics and is available as two options: Creation Solid Clic and Creation Rigid Acoustic (with built-in underlay) for improved everyday comfort.

In a challenging world, Gerflor knows that designing and manufacturing products that are durable and easy to customise are key to ensuring that designers, specifiers, and architects can have a myriad of choices at their fingertips. By sheer hard work and innovation, Gerflor delivers products that are simply unique in their design and always at the forefront of technical achievement. The high-definition surface grain combined with an ultra-matt surface results in a more realistic finish to the Creation LVT collection.

Gerflor also has introduced new and on-trend herringbone formats for laying planks diagonally giving an ultra-realistic finish to modernise nineteenth-century interiors. Only available in Creation 55: Bonded fitting: 152 x 762 mm. Clip-on fitting: 125 x 750 mm.

The Creation Collections also comes with the innovative surface treatments including PUR+Matt on Creation 70 and Protecshield™ Treatment on Creation 30,40 & 55. These revolutionary coatings preserve the beauty of the floor-covering over the years, preventing dirtying and wear over time and offering overall optimal protection. These invisible films protect against micro-scratches without changing the matt appearance of the coating. In addition to protecting against external damage during day-to-day use, these surface treatments make maintenance much easier and cost effective. With Co-ordinated finishes from Gerflor a successful overall appearance is provided, delivering perfect harmony to the finished floor. Matching skirting and threshold planks are available to give a complete effect in which every detail plays its part.

Lunar is a revolutionary out of this world collection, now available within the Gradus Carpets portfolio. Inspired by the natural landscape of the moon, this stunning carpet product range has a distinguished design and is available in celestial decors that will help to create an extremely stylish and modern interior.

Lunar is a tufted loop pile carpet tile which can be randomly laid, it is available in eight eye-catching colourways and is on trend. Its unique designs reflect the mountain ranges of the moon. From the ethereal ‘Janssen’ through to ‘Jura’ and ‘Moro’ the myriad of colour choices stimulated in design by our nearest celestial body will both inspire and delight Designers and Specifiers alike. If you want to also go even further, and you are imagining a very particular and unique floor scheme, the Lunar carpet tile can further be mixed and matched with the Creation LVT ranges for a bespoke and customised look.

Lunar is perfect for commercial offices, a host of education applications and many other contract environments. Lunar is available in a 500mm x 500mm format, it is made using 100% solution dyed nylon yarn, and the bitumen backing contains 75% recycled material providing outstanding levels of performance and comfort. The Lunar Carpet collection is also available with a 12-year wear warranty and a 10-year anti-static warranty, as standard, a true commitment to its life longevity and quality.

Gradus Carpets is a brand of the Gerflor Group, manufacturing premium quality carpet tiles and planks, broadloom, and impervious backed carpets. Using a range of high-performance yarns, Gradus’ extensive range of carpets are suitable for a wide variety of contract applications including commercial office, education, and healthcare environments.