Case Studies

Brick Repair – The Jam Factory Oxford

Client: The Jam Factory Contractor: Rowland Stone

Restaurant, bar and gallery, the Jam Factory Oxford has become a favoured destination for the food lovers and art enthusiasts of Oxford. Set in a former marmalade factory built around 140 years ago from local brick had suffered from weather and pollution damage causing the faces of a significant proportion of the bricks to become damaged.

Initially the loose faces were taken back to a solid surface and Rowland premix was colour matched to the original shade. This was done by taking a sample of the original aged brick to Rowland’s factory and testing to arrive at a good match for the existing weathered colour. While an as new effect could have been achieved the repair, colour needed to be in sympathy with that of the rest of the nineteenth century building. Similar recolouring was carried out on the mortared areas to give a full brick effect.

Elsewhere on-site further repairs were carried out using a colour matched Bath Stone Premix repair compound. With over 360 existing shades and the ability to mix a site-specific colour match within 3-4 working days, the Rowlands Premix free colour matching service can make possible seamless repairs of brickwork. Even buildings with different ages, qualities and colours of brick can be restored sympathetically using matched areas of coloured repair.

Bath Stone Repair – Bristol University

Client: Bristol University Contractor: Rowland Stone

Bath Stone is a golden coloured, granular limestone that has been extensively used in building for many centuries due to its warm appearance. It is however particularly prone to damage from traffic pollution. Bristol University buildings are located in the centre of the city on a busy traffic intersection and have suffered from considerable harm. Use of our custom matching process was vital to achieve an invisible blending of the new surface with the old.

An area of the rendered face of a window arch had become cracked and needed replacing. With the surface taken back to the brick substrate to provide an effective key for the new material a Bath Stone colour premix was used to create the new surface and restore the original detailing around the window. Working at height and in restricted areas made the use of Rowlands Premix repair compounds the best option as only water needed to be added to achieve the desired consistency and quality of finish. Its strength makes it ideal for use on natural or precast stone areas. Rowlands provide an easy to follow 10 step process for achieving lasting repairs as well as full technical support and documentation.

Lime based premix repair

With an increasing demand ethical repair of older buildings lime-based premix is now in demand for sympathetic traditional renovation work. The Rowland colour matching service is especially valuable when using natural repair compounds. Two buildings made of the same stone can still differ in colour and texture dependent on time, pollutants and weather.

A previous rendered repair to an area of stone on a pillar and window surround on the Fry’s Building at Bristol University had failed and required remediation. In this instance the colour was matched to areas of clean stone as the whole building was due to be cleaned.

Typical of smaller repairs using lime-based premix is this church in Weston Super Mare. Those responsible for these mostly very old structures are leaders in the use of natural, sympathetic repair to maintain the character of their buildings. In this instance the frame and mullions of the church had decayed over time and required structural as well as cosmetic repair. In this case the only alternative to this repair would have been replacement of significant portions of the stone, with the attendant cost and construction difficulties.

In addition to being the ideal conservation material Rowland Lime repair mortars are quick to install and easy to mix. The same colour matching properties as the cementitious product can be achieved by discussing specific site requirements with Rowlands before work commences.