We have more than once familiarized our readers with the diverse possibilities of such a unique and environmentally friendly modern material as glass fiber concrete. And we must admit that the possibilities of this material, which is quite new for our country, are practically limitless today. Imitating any textures - whether it be natural facade stone, bronze or rare wood species - and having a fairly wide color spectrum of color, glass fiber reinforced concrete is gradually replacing other materials, firmly winning its niche in the domestic market. Reducing the cost of the facade, its high fire-resistant properties, quick production and installation with consistently high product quality - this is just a small list of the advantages of this material.
For more than 17 years the company "OrtOst-Fasad" has been a leader in the design, production and installation of decorative elements made of glass fiber reinforced concrete. During this time, the company took part in the implementation of more than 100 objects of varying degrees of complexity - both in our country and abroad.
Fiberglass concrete is a type of artificial stone created from fine-grained concrete reinforced with alkali-resistant fiberglass. This combination gives the structure special strength and durability. This material was first used in Russia in the early 1960s. for the manufacture of various engineering structures. And only in recent years has it become one of the main decorative materials.
The beautiful stucco decoration and extended embossed cornices of the English Quarter residential complex on Mytnaya Street in Moscow are completely made of glass fiber reinforced concrete and assembled by OrtOst-Fasad. Looking at this house, it becomes obvious how delicately and subtly the material reproduces the classic details that were traditionally made from limestone, marble, granite. Visually, the details made of SFB differ little from their noble "progenitors", while, having a hollow structure, they are much lighter and several times cheaper. Ready-made elements created at the factory are delivered directly to the construction site, where they are easily assembled, saving the developer's time, effort and money.
Another striking example from a number of projects implemented by the OrtOst-Fasad company is a residential building on Trubetskaya. Here the company was again engaged in the manufacture and installation of decorative elements made of glass fiber reinforced concrete. The project was originally planned to use exclusively natural stone, including plinth trim and spiral columns on the façade. However, upon entering the construction site, the developer realized how technically difficult it would be to implement the architect's difficult plan. As a result, it was decided to make extended undulating cornices located at a high altitude from SFB. The columns are made of the same material, twisted into a spiral like candles, noticeably tapering upwards. It is very difficult to make columns of such an intricate shape from natural stone. It is not easy to lift heavy elements to great heights. And, using the material in question, it turned out to be both quick and inexpensive. On the facade, even in the immediate vicinity of elements made of natural stone, the columns look dignified, not giving away their artificial origin.
Stucco moldings, ornamental designs, profiles and busts of great people and mythical animals - all this comes out of the SFB so naturally that the material is actively used in the field of reconstruction and recreation of lost architectural monuments. Thus, a residential complex on Malaya Nikitskaya Street in Moscow was recreated. Its main facade is made with the use of glass fiber reinforced concrete, which made it possible to bring the building closer to its historical prototype.
In addition to decorative possibilities, GRC is increasingly used to imitate certain materials. For example, wood is a very popular material in our country; it is actively used both for housing construction and in public buildings. Due to its unique natural properties, wood cannot always meet stringent fire resistance requirements. Here GRC comes to the rescue. It exactly repeats the soft texture and warm colors of the desired wood species, is absolutely non-combustible material, and besides, it wins in price. A good example of the use of fiberglass concrete imitating natural wood is the office center on Dovzhenko Street, where a coffered ceiling was made from SFB under the roof of the building. In the building on Trubetskoy, glass-fiber-reinforced concrete wall panels "imitation wood" were used. At first it seems as if the walls of this house are sewn up with solid wooden bars and only by touching the walls with your hand you can understand that they are made of concrete.
Noble travertine and other types of natural stone can also be easily replicated in glass fiber reinforced concrete. The cost of such elements is several times lower. Their weight is much less than exactly the same parts made of stone. The terms of implementation are reduced, installation is simplified. For example, a six-meter travertine column is very beautiful, expensive, long and difficult. It is difficult to manufacture, transport, install. Not every investor can afford such chic. At the same time, taking care of the quality of construction, he can safely make a choice in favor of GRC columns. Such columns consist of two parts, like a shell. Inside, they are hollow, and therefore have a fairly light weight. Parts are manufactured at the factory, and at the construction site they are simply fastened to an iron substructure. By the same principle, columns imitating marble can be created. Such objects are already being successfully implemented by the OrtOst-Fasad company.
Fiberglass concrete repeats the texture of brickwork no less effectively. The panels that are used for facade finishing are molded in special shapes. And here there are a lot of variations - any brick color, its various shapes and different surface depths. It is even possible to make the "brick" look like a historical masonry. The panel itself can also be of any size convenient for mounting. The high strength of the material makes it possible to obtain thin-walled facing elements of low weight - the wall thickness sometimes reaches 25 mm - and high resistance to cracking. Similar brick-like panels made by OrtoOst-Fasad were used to decorate a house on Millionshchikova Street. Most of the façade there is made of real bricks, but the lintels are covered with glass fiber reinforced concrete panels. which are mounted on a subsystem using conventional ventilation facade technology.
A variant is possible when the brick is not imitated, but is integrated into the panel. You can actually integrate anything into GRC - concrete tiles, marble, clinker tiles, ceramics, and mosaics. The object in Kursoviy lane was solved with the help of SFB panels with the integration of sawn marble of two shades, which creates a special melange. Technologically, many elements on the facade are very difficult to make directly from marble, so developers often resort to the use of flexible materials such as fiberglass concrete. Concrete tiles integrated into the panel can be painted in a wide variety of colors, creating an unusual and striking architectural image. In the same way, any clinker tiles chosen by the architect are embedded in the panels. The panels are easy to manufacture and transport, they significantly lighten the facade and significantly reduce its cost, which, however, does not affect the quality of performance, which is always at its best with OrtOst-Facade.
