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The bright and minimalist apartments at Foster + Partners residential development in Shoreditch feature QIC Trims innovative designs for concealing blinds and curtains.

QIC Trims, a leading manufacturer of trims for the interior fit-out sector, has designed window fitting solutions for one of the tallest residential projects in London – Foster + Partners’ 50-storey Principal Tower in Shoreditch.

The company helped the architectural team design and extrude in excess of 5,000 linear metres of bespoke Blind Box housing for roller blinds and curtains in the development’s one and two-bedroom apartments. The product had to be turned around efficiently and quickly so as not to impact a tight site programme. Further projects are now in the pipeline with the development team.

Principal Tower is part of Principal Place, a mixed-use development on the edge of the City of London in the borough of Hackney. At 175 metres, it is one of London’s tallest residential buildings. The relationship between the creative, formerly industrial east end and Britain’s financial centre is expressed in the tower’s massing, which appears as three slim volumes.

On the Shoreditch side, the tower appears lower from ground level, while from the west it reflects the high-rise nature of the City. A central volume rises up between the two to provide an elegant marker on the skyline.

The 50-storey building has a variety of different sized apartments and a single, duplex penthouse. There are eight residences on a typical floor: four two-bedroom and four one-bedroom apartments. The rectilinear layout is extended on each side to create a cruciform plan, maximising the perimeter so that almost all of the units are dual aspect, which creates a sense of space and light in every residence.

Layouts maximise the living area, with a plan that places the entrance at the heart of the space to eliminate unnecessary corridors. The bedrooms are enclosed by solid cladding panels for privacy, while the remainder is fully glazed and protected by shading fins. Almost every residence has its own curved balcony with bronze exterior detailing – externally, this helps to soften the tower’s profile, contrasting and setting it apart from the City’s office buildings.

QIC Trims can confirm the clarifiction of ‘Fire Rated’ Trims.

Some other suppliers claim to have products with fire resistance, however Approved Document B is the Fire Safety guidance within the UK Building regulations, the document which details the requirement for internal walls and ceiling linings. Internal walls and ceilings require classification within buildings as they have large surface area within a room. Skirting, window frames and trims are all classed as “Narrow Members”. These items are not considered as a wall and therefore do not require classification.
We will continue to offer products of the highest standard and with the utmost integrity to not mislead our market or customers with tests that are not required by building regulations. Any queries please contact us directly.

At last, after 3 months of extremely hard work and focus from our dedicated team of staff, we were ready for our Open Day. This day not only signified all the work since our unfortunate fire back in April but also to finally showcase a market leader of Extruded Aluminium Products in a state of the art 38,000 sq/ft facility. We were astounded with the amazing response from customers, clients, installers, distributors, architects and main contractors working in the interior fit out industry. People were treated to a tour of the factory followed by some delicious food provide on the day by our friends at Wildfire catering.

Quotes from the day included;

‘what an amazing set up’

‘Wow I had no idea how many products you held in stock’ to the most common remark on the day;

‘I had no idea how large your factory and operation is’.

Of course a huge thankyou to everyone involved in setting up the day but also and more importantly to our very loyal customers, new and old.

April 2018 witnessed major unforeseen fire damage in the QIC factory, specifically to the paint line and oven, in Gawcott, Buckinghamshire causing a major setback for the business.

QIC Trims Ltd thankfully report that no physical injuries were sustained from the fire and the business only have the expert local fire service to thank for their diligence on this matter.

As market leader for the supply of aluminium trims, this circumstance brought around a unique situation for the factory staff, customers, their orders and the QIC Trims Ltd staff themselves.

With thorough consideration of customer demand and the necessity to fulfil this, the brand worked quickly and efficiently to implement a solution to allow its customers to receive the products ordered with minimal delays.

Seizing the opportunity to grow from this unfortunate occurrence, QIC Trims Ltd began to work with Gema, the powder coating enterprise with more than 50 years industry expertise, to build a new and improved paint line to not only cover existing demand but to also answer the requirements of the growing market.

A new oven was sourced from Havilland Ltd who specialise in designing and manufacturing bespoke industrial ovens.

The new facility is now up and running.

Here at QIC we have been working very closely with Gema, Gema Switzerland GmbH is a leading supplier in the area of electrostatic powder coating with a worldwide presence. From simple hand coating through to fully automated powder coating, this Swiss company offers solutions that meet the high demands and requirements of customers around the world in a wide range of industrial sectors. Since 2012, Gema has been a part of the global Graco Group, an internationally leading manufacturer of liquid conveyance systems and components.

These technologically advanced and high-quality devices and systems are developed and manufactured at Gema Switzerland‘s headquarters in St.Gallen. A state-of-the-art coating laboratory is available to customers for coating experiments. The findings are then integrated into the design of complex coating systems with the result being customer-specific, tailor-made solutions.