22 April 2021
..So why was Metabronze called upon to repair or replace our Clamtite drains?
In 2020 the roofing membrane of Auckland's Aotea Centre, forty years following construction, needed replacing as were other components of the outer cladding. The interior of the building also required functional and aesthetic refurbishment upgrades.
After forty years of service, we were still surprised to receive a call to review any problems associated with the original Metabronze clamtite drains that were manufactured for the construction of this 40 year old iconic Auckland building structure.
We were certainly relieved to see that our drains had not failed. Why should they, the solid bronze clamtite drain design, now approaching 50 years in the New Zealand market place, had yet to fail, and should really be lasting several generations.
We found, regrettably, that Drainage Inspection Contractors, using crow bars to open the drains when trying to insert cameras into the drainage system, had damaged the majority of drains grates and the bridge component of the clamtite bodies of the Metabronze roof drains.
This problem could only be resolved with two options, either an expensive drain replacement installation, inclusive of the considerable cost to dig out the original clamtite drain bodies from the Centre roof and ceiling cavity, or a 'tricky' repair project. Clearly all of the Metabronze Clamtite drain bodies and grates that had not been accessed, were still in great condition so the better option was to leave all the Clamtite drain bodies if possible.
The Metabronze team, with approval from Babbage Architects, provided an innovative solution to repair the drains. We were able to manufacture replacements for the clamtite dome grates, and create a 'pattern', and subsequent substitutes for the clamtite bridges that had been bent or broken during the inspection process.
Our Engineering team were then able to cut away the damaged components of the drains and spot weld onto the clamtite body, either the new bridges, or the existing bridges that under heat, could be bent back into their original state. Where required, new clamtite dome grates replaced the damaged grates.
Within three days, a complete solution, satisfactory to all project stakeholders, was provided to the customer with no resulting delays to the application of the new roofing material.
Any drain components that could not be re-used were retrieved from site and put through our recycling process.
We are positive that our re-established Clamtite Dome grate drains will again, outlast the next life of the roofing materials, and most probably all other building envelop claddings.
Make sure you choose Metabronze floor drains, available from all major plumbing outlets. Call us today or drop us an email!
We are committed to keeping our customers competitive without sacrificing quality or service