New Audi Dealership links multi-sector fastening technology
Stowmarket based S&G Industrial Roofing has recently completed the building of a prestigious new showroom for a leading Audi Dealership in Ipswich. The ultra-modern building represents a huge investment by Ipswich Audi, whilst the project itself indirectly links EJOT the manufacture of building fastenings, with EJOT the originator of automotive fastenings.
S&G’s design team specified Kingspan’s Topdek membrane faced insulation panel for the roof construction at the Futura Park site. That in turn called for over 6000 EJOT Opticore fasteners, including several thousand stitchers from the range. Opticore is EJOT's unique integral nylon fastener head manufactured with precision cutting fins that core through membrane faced insulated panels, with the fastener self-drilling the substrate in one simple operation. Installation is via a bi-hex and torx dual driving system designed for high performance into light section, hot rolled steel or timber substrates. The link between building fastener and automotive screw may seem tenuous, but the design engineering behind the Opticore system is linked directly with the joining technology to be found in most prestigious modern vehicles – not least the Audi range!
The quest for lightweight vehicle assembly, much like modern building techniques, is driven by reducing carbon emissions. This has seen EJOT develop thread-forming and other processes that join lightweight engineering materials to super-strength thin sheet steel. These kind of developments are shared throughout EJOT’s design capability worldwide, leading to advanced fastening systems such as Opticore. The Ipswich Audi showroom also utilises other products from the EJOT portfolio including fasteners from the Colorfast range. The Opticore range includes stitchers and provides a reliable solution for for hot and cold rolled steel as well as timber substrates. Spectrum specified predominantly EJOT Opticore LS 5.5 x 25 and SF 6.3 x 25.