Flexible Systems

A forward-thinking approach to delivering ‘best value’ and optimising lifetime costs has been put into practice at a Lincolnshire school, with help from Z-Led.

The William Stukeley CE Primary School in Holbeach has had to refurbish its 1980’s clock tower, built when the school was erected.

The 20ft high decorative wooden tower reflects the site’s heritage; originally it was the location for Stukeley Hall, which was demolished in 1993, and which historically had featured a clock tower. To optimise effectiveness of the refurbishment, and deter theft of the tower’s lead flashing detail which had been stolen in the past, contractor Mouchel advised the use of Z-Led’s Aluflash environmentally-friendly lead flashing alternative.

Mervyn Tooley, Mouchel project manager, elaborated: “The lead had already been stolen from the roof so we didn’t want to expose the school to the same issue again. The clock tower roof is very decorative, so we needed a material that could be dressed easily to accommodate the curves in all planes. We had used Aluflash before and felt it would be particularly appropriate for this project.”

Z-Led’s Aluflash uses a combination of corrosion-resistant aluminium with a solvent lacquer coloured surface and self-adhesive butyl backing to create a material that provides a viable alternative to traditional, heavy lead.

It is produced in two versions- with an embossed surface designed for applications requiring less complex shapes, such as pitched roof valleys, soakers and box gutters, and cross-corrugated surface for use where the flashing has to be moulded over and around complex shapes, such as profiled roof tiles and corner junctions.

The complexity of the roof design at William Stukeley CE Primary School meant Mouchel used both embossed and cross-corrugated Aluflash to dress the clock tower.

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