Welsh housing association Cartrefi Cymunedol Gwynedd – CCG – has installed internal cladding system Marbrex as a wall covering in more than 4,500 homes as part of its bathroom refurbishment programme.
The panels, supplied by stockist, EWE Plastics of Caernarfon, Gwynedd via Travis Perkins Group Managed Services, were said to have been 'chosen' by 80% of residents over a tiled alternative.
CCG supply chain manager Paul Painter said the cladding product “came out on top” after the association launched a value engineering project to determine its suitability, with its cleanability and speed of installation proving to be the biggest benefit.
“The time taken to complete the work has been cut in a big way,” Painter said. “We’re also expecting a long-term maintenance saving but it’s a bit early to comment on this at this stage.”
Marbrex said the system 'can be installed in around half the time required for tiling', and 'can even be fitted over existing tiles'. It added that an 'added bonus' is that grout is not needed.
EWE Building Plastics director Will Evans added: “For the installer the simplicity of the installation means that work can be carried out quickly, and often with very little disruption to the resident. In addition to the cost benefits associated with labour saving and reduced timescales, Marbrex is also highly competitive against the cost of standard tiles.”