The UK MoD has just awarded a contract to Concrete Canvas to supply 5500m2 of Concrete Cloth for use with sandbag defences. This was based on successful field trials on the front line in Afghanistan to evaluate its performance.
A new CCS54 shelter has been developed featuring significant improvements over previous models including higher strength, reduced setting time (17hrs) and upgraded PE inner and security doors.
Production volume increases have enabled large reductions in Concrete Cloth prices.
Trials have been successfully conducted in conjunction with the British Army to assess the effectiveness and ease of reinforcing existing gabion basket defences with Concrete Cloth (CC)
Download an overview of gabion basket reinforcement here.
Concrete Canvas have joined the Defence Manufacturers Association (DMA) a UK Trade Association that represents all aspects of Defence and Public Security procurement covering land, sea and air interests for domestic and overseas markets. CC is also a member of the LANDing and Research and Technology special interest groups.
To better illustrate what the inside of a CCS54 looks like, Concrete Canvas completed a virtual tour of our onsite demonstration shelter which can be viewed here.
Concrete Canvas Shelters were recently featured as part of the Daily Planet programme, aired on the Discovery Channel. Broadcast both in Canada and South Africa, the programme featured both Concrete Cloth and Concrete Canvas Shelters.
Recent developments in the formulated dry cement mix of Concrete Cloth, now mean that sea water may be used to hydrate the material. More rapid setting Concrete Cloth variants are also in development. Download a material data sheet for Concrete Cloth here.
Concrete Canvas Shelters are to feature in Casa per tutti (A house for All): an exhibition shown at Triennale di Milano taking place from May to September in Milan. The exhibition centres around accommodation modules capable of providing a possible solution to emergency housing problems in metropolitan areas and areas affected by sudden natural catastrophes.
Visit http://www.triennale.it/ for further information. Click on the following links for photos of the exhibition. Image 1, Image 2, Image 3.
Defence Export Services Organisation (DESO) which is part of the UK Ministry of Defence, recently exhibited Concrete Cloth at DEFEXPO, India 2008. The exhibition, which ran from 16th to the 19th of February was held in Pragati Maiden, India. Since it’s inception in 1997, it has since grown into one of the most internationally recognised defence exhibitions in the world.
The British Army has begun using Concrete Cloth to upgrade frontline sandbag defences in Afghanistan. The Cloth has been proven to prevent the degradation of sandbags from incoming fire, outgoing muzzle flash and environmental exposure. Ballistic testing has been conducted up to .50” caliber . It is important to note that CC is not applied to provide additional ballistic protection, but instead to protect the integrity and prolong the effective life span of existing defences.
A demonstration CCS54 has been deployed at the Concrete Canvas Ltd. factory site in South Wales. A video of the 10m x 5.6m variant deployment can be seen here.
Concrete Canvas is to feature as part of the D&AD exhibition held at Urbis in Manchester. The exhibition runs from October 22nd through to February 2008. "An exhibition of the most outstanding design and advertising from around the world bringing together award-winning work from the prestigious D&AD Global Awards 2007."
Concrete Canvas has recently taken on several new employees as the company grows to meet CCS and Concrete Cloth volume production requirements. Concrete Canvas is continually expanding and new positions will be posted on this site as and when they are required.
Concrete Canvas reached the final ten of it’s product category in the 2007 INDEX: AWARD. INDEX is the biggest design award of its kind in the world and is presented every two years in Copenhagen, Denmark. Concrete Canvas reached the final via an international jury consisting of leading designers, researchers, writers and thinkers from Europe, Asia and the U.S. This year’s theme, “Design to Improve Life”, differentiates INDEX from other design awards, as design is evaluated in a much broader sense than traditionally. It focuses not only on form, but also on the context of the design, ethical and cultural considerations, impact, number of people affected, sustainability and level of innovation. Concrete Canvas and the other final nominees were exhibited for six weeks in an array of large acrylic spheres in Kongens Nytorv square in central Copenhagen. These have since relocated to Korea, featuring in the 2007 Gwangju Design Biennale, where they will be exhibited from October 5 & November 3. Visit http://www.indexaward.dk for further information.
Concrete Canvas’s new website is launched, updating the company’s progress. If you have any comments on the site, please contact us at info@concretecanvas.co.uk.
Concrete Canvas has moved premises from Northampton to a larger site in Pontypridd, Wales, where we are setting up the volume production facility to manufacture Concrete Cloth and Concrete Canvas Shelters. The new factory site is Unit 3, Block A22, located in the Treforest Industrial Estate, in Pontypridd, approximately 15 minutes outside Cardiff in Wales and 5 minutes off J32 of the M4. (see 6.0 Contact for details and directions).
Concrete Canvas won a prestigious yellow pencil award for Outstanding Achievement in 3D Product Design at this year’s D&AD ceremony based in London. Over 25,000 designs were attracted to enter the competition. We received one of the 59 Yellow Pencils awarded for outstanding innovation.
http://www.dandad.org/awards2007/entry.asp?entry_id=23804