Project Description

Aspire are proud to have been involved with a recent project at Whitehall, London.

We were commissioned to manufacture traditional Solid Oak raised & fielded wall panelling to conceal heating, ventilation and air conditioning units at a prestigious office in Whitehall.

This challenging project involved us working together with the architect & English Heritage.
We were tasked with salvaging 100+ year old Oak wall panels which had been removed from a now unused courthouse on the same site.
Each original panel was carefully cleaned, repaired and re-French polished.
Due to the size of the new room 4 new replica panels had to be manufactured. These had to be an exact match to the originals. These were constructed using the same traditional craftsmanship, materials and French polish finishing techniques that would have been used on the originals.

To match the original panels, quarter sawn English Oak was used due to the medullary rays in quarter sawn Oak planks. Medullary rays have always been an indication that the furniture item you have purchased has been crafted from the finest and most expensive quarter sawn oak.

Not everything on this project was done as it would have been 100 years ago though.
The latest CAD & 3D modelling software was used to produce 3D models, renders & production drawings for client approval.
By using 3D modelling we can visit the site and take accurate dimensions then replicate the room in 3D on the computer screen. From the model we can the list every component needed, every joint required, allowing our machine shop & bench joiners to get to work.

Here are a few pictures of the panelling under construction in our workshop.
Unfortunately, we are unable to post finished pictures of the panelling in situ due to the sensitive nature of the building…
We’ll leave you guessing what that could be!