In June 2014, Streamline Fibreglass was awarded the contract to design, manufacture and install the iconic acoustic backdrop wall at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Hall.

We were approached at the eleventh hour after the initial design programme was scrapped, with only 6 weeks to complete the project! We had to come up with a design suitable for the demanding installation and environmental issues. Our extensive marine and composites background meant we had the experience and product knowledge to find a lightweight solution using our versatile composite material techniques.

Once we had the design in place, our experienced composites production team had various trouble-shooting sessions to find the solution to getting this 14m x 4.6m structure through the standard door opening of the Orchestra Hall. We decided to split the structure into 10 separate sections, which we could produce from a single mould, cutting out the expensive tooling costs and reducing the lead time. 

The original design was to be MDF board, which would then be sprayed, weighing in at nearly 600kg per panel. With our method of construction, we knew that we could achieve a super high gloss finish within the timeframe, and also reduce the weight of these panels to just 190kg per panel whilst retaining structural integrity. To do this, we used the most state of the art material available to date, reducing the resin-to-weight ratio by 75%, which then allowed the fitting team to both carry the panels into the building and fit them through a standard door. 

As this was a Grade 2 listed building, we could not get a permanent fix anywhere within the structure itself. To combat this, once the panels were in the building, we then came up with a lifting strategy which both considered the environment and any safety concerns. With the help of specialist lifting equipment, we successfully fitted the full 10 panels within 4 days. As predicted, this followed the plan for an efficient manufacture within 6 weeks. 

Streamline provided a cost-effective, fantastic new product under the strictest of deadlines; however, even for us this was a difficult one! We offered our client a full safety package with this programme which was implemented with pinpoint precision.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Hall is now back to the high status it deserves, with products produced by Streamline Fibreglass as the centrepiece of the whole show!