Metal facade cladding: when manufacturing technology becomes part of the design process

The design possibilities of metal facade cladding extend well beyond choosing a ready-made panel. The surface’s rhythm, open area, depth, perforation and colour can all form part of the architectural concept. To explore these possibilities, it is worth understanding early in the design process which manufacturing technologies are available and how much freedom they offer in shaping the surface.

At FORMARCH, the starting point is the designer’s intent rather than the catalogue. Metal facade cladding can be perforated, expanded, flat or three-dimensional; what matters is that the chosen technology serves the intended architectural effect. Involving the manufacturer’s engineers allows manufacturability, fixings, module layout and cost feasibility to be explored in parallel.

This direct connection matters because an unusual surface need not be abandoned simply because no standard system exists for it. With the right technological expertise, an idea can become a project-specific detail, a prototype or a new surface solution.

The architectural value of metal lies in this capacity to be shaped. Design creativity can expand when the manufacturing possibilities behind it become an active design tool rather than an unknown constraint.