Regeneration of Folkestone Railway Station

The Tile Association National Awards 2005

‘Projects' Category - Best use of tile by an architect or designer

The exciting regeneration project at Folkestone Railway Station in Kent was opened during 2004 by Steven Deucher, director of Tate Britain.

Steeped in history, as the original departure point of the Orient Express, the key design feature of the refurbishment comprises 101 bronze hand prints set into mosaic panels on the principal façade of the station' exterior.

The mosaic panels are fixed to the façade using BAL Single Part Flexible Grey and the grouting is in BAL Micropoxy Grey. The tiling specification for the project is attached.

The design of the façade was created by local arts company Strange Cargo. It features a bronze imprint of a hand from a Folkestone resident born in each year of the 20th century. The youngest hand is from the first baby born in the new millennium. Some of the 9in hand prints are from well-known personalities, such as Lord Folkestone, but most were from ordinary local residents.

The backdrop to the design in glass mosaic features an abstract surging sea concept created by Mooch design of London. All the tiling was carried out by Cerface Construction Products of Gillingham. The total extent of the tiled area is 200 square metres.

The nature of this project is that the station façade is exposed and easily accessible from street level, so vandal-proofing has been a key consideration. Hence the selection, for instance, of BAL Micropoxy grout. This epoxy grout, unlike a cementitious one, is totally impervious. Extraneous substances, whether dirt or graffiti can easily be washed off. The added benefit of Microban® has helped reduce the growth along the grout lines of bacteria and mould, helping to keep the entire façade in a clean and attractive condition.

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