with a combined plaster and steel façade of in Jüterbog. The elegant pladur® Icecrystal surface never needs painting.
Ice crystals on the house – and this in the middle of spring? If you look at a pladur® Relief Icecrystal façade for the first time in sunny weather, you can hardly believe your eyes. You instinctively want to reach out for the snowflake-like projections on the shimmering surface. But they have nothing to do with the low temperatures. Instead, the “ice crystals“ are characteristic for a special method of coating the surfaces of roof and façade symbols. The Danish company DS Stålprofil uses this method to offer particularly attractive products. “Especially young architects like the special surfaces“, explains Thomas Rasmussen, Managing Director of the Scandinavian medium-sized company. “Not only for their high UV resistance and corrosion protection, but for their visual appeal”.
Steel profiles for trendsetting architecture
Building owners and architects are now increasingly combining different materials to create distinctive objects. Consequently, demands placed on classic products such as roof tiles and façade profiles are also increasing. Surfaces suddenly become a profound topic - and the versatile material steel an option for trendsetting architecture. ”Light reflections can be just as desired as special textures or an exceptional surface feel”, says Rasmussen. “Moreover, our customers are intrigued by the fact that pladur® is a cradle-to-cradle product, and that CO2-free steel production will also be possible in the future. Especially young architects see many possibilities of creating sustainable new designs with steel innovations”.
Partners for swift processes
For more than ten years, DS Stålprofil has sourced the basic material for its products from thyssenkrupp Steel, among others. This is also the case with the pladur® range, which Rasmussen's team uses for a wide range of construction projects. Mainly small and medium-sized steel profiles for roofs and façades are much in demand – including profiles with the look and functionality of a handcrafted standing seam roofing. The range is rounded out by profiles with a roof tile look and a great variety of edgings and other necessary accessories. There are hardly any limits to the possible applications: “Both single-skin for façades - for example as corrugated or trapezoidal profiles - and double-skin for sandwich elements or cassette solutions. Our organic coil-coated steels are used in various ways by DS Stålprofil“, says Klaus Kottkamp, Application Consultant for thyssenkrupp Steel.
Together with Axel Pohl, Head of Sales End User Industries at thyssenkrupp Steel, has been cooperating closely with DS Stålprofil for many years. During this time, a solid relationship of trust has developed between the two companies. “This is reflected, for instance, in the fact that DS Stålprofil purchases and stocks various pladur® variants in relatively large quantities", says Klaus Kottkamp. A true competitive advantage. The Danish medium-sized company not only stocks material for each steel profile, but also has a special machine to process it. This is far from being standard practice. Many competitors use the same machines for processing different preliminary products and then have to change the rollforming sets to suit the job. By contrast, Rasmussen’s team is able to act promptly, thus speeding up the processes. “Normally, we can deliver as early as four to seven days after the order is placed”, confirms Rasmussen. This enormous promptness characterizes DS Stålprofil‘s good reputation just as much as its hands-on mentality. Rasmussen: “We want our employees to dare to take responsibility and make decisions. We prefer someone who makes a wrong decision over someone who shirks responsibility”.
Increasing demand for steel profiles
Driven by a self-confident mindset, DS Stålprofil has established itself in recent years as a manufacturer of steel profiles for roofs and façades. The company has become one of the most important players in the market for high-quality roof and façade materials, not only in Denmark, but also in Germany. The foundation of its subsidiary DS Stahl GmbH in Sittensen in 2001 was a milestone in gaining market shares in Germany. The company located between Bremen and Hamburg offers the roof and façade specialist the possibility of serving its customers throughout Germany - mainly building material and roofing wholesalers - promptly and on the spot.
Good for DS Stålprofil: the demand for high-grade steel for roofs and façades continues to grow, not least because there is an increasing appreciation of steel as a material for demanding architectural projects. Topics like sustainable development, recycling, circular value chains or fossil-free steel production have made steel increasingly attractive to many decision-makers in the construction industry, the more so as companies like DS Stålprofil are able to provide complete proof of the sustainability of their products through environmental product declarations. That is why Rasmussen is optimistic about the future. He says that investments are currently being made in many areas, such as the innovation program for the construction and renovation of schools in Germany, and that steel for façade and roof renovation plays an important role in this connection. With pladur® Relief Icecrystal, DS Stålprofil has exactly the right product in its portfolio. Because many kids would certainly appreciate a cool look for their school.
Other reference projects
