A Suspended ceiling is hung from the main structural ceiling. This type of ceiling is often used to conceal mechanical and electrical services within the ceiling void. A suspended ceiling can usually be found in anything from commercial buildings or office blocks to schools and hospitals.
Suspended ceilings offer many benefits including a low life cycle cost and an extra margin of fire safety. They also allow you to easily integrate light within the ceiling. In addition using a suspended ceiling with acoustic absorbing properties reduces the reverberation time, improving the comfort of the room.
Sixty years ago, Hunter Douglas pioneered suspended metal ceilings. They continue to produce an array of suspended metal ceilings in aluminium, steel and stretch metal are available in linear, wide panel, open cell, curved and tile configurations.
Fire protection in metal suspended ceilings
Suspended ceilings are designed to give a period of fire resistance, but in order to confirm this period of resistance a fire test certificate is required. In official fire tests at Efectis, Bleiswijk and CSI, Bollate, Milan (both independent fire research institutes), all Hunter Douglas metal ceiling systems earnt a high reaction to fire classification according to EN 13501-1.
Acoustic properties
The acoustic comfort in an office space, school or public building contributes to our well being. A poor acoustic performance can affect health, communication, safety and productivity. The Hunter Douglas range of suspended metal ceilings include a variety of different acoustic performance levels. Perforated panels offer enhanced acoustics, which can be substantially improved with the addition of special acoustic pads.
Design possibilities
Hunter Douglas design and manufacturing expertise provides architects and designers with the flexibility of unlimited design possibilities. The options include linear, tiled, open and closed cell systems all of which can be specified in a range of shapes and curves. Available in a range of standard colours and the option to be coated in any RAL color.
For more information take a look at the suspended metal ceilings section of the Hunter Douglas website.
