When the two-story addition to the Indiana Blood Center in Indianapolis was built back in 1990, a thin-set brick was used as the exterior cladding. There were problems with the veneer from the outset but it wasn’t until sections of it began to fall off that a local architect, CSO Schenkel Shultz, was called in. The architect was commissioned to find a cost-effective way to deal not only with the addition, but the dated look of the original four-story structure as well. Its recommendation was to cover both with the Dr-Design rainscreen cladding system.

Manufactured by Dri-Design Inc. of Holland, MI, the Dri-Design rainscreen cladding system uses an automated production process and features a quick and easy installation system that keeps its cost down. The system’s panels are available in a variety of substrates—including copper, zinc and stainless steel—but were provided for the Indiana project with the basic .050” aluminum substrate. Three different colors of panels were selected for the project, each of them formed in 30” x 30” module.

Spohn Associates of Indianapolis handled the installation. On the original building portion, it tied the panels to the existing brick and block. In the case of the addition, the old veneer had to be first be removed before installation of the new wall system could proceed.

Approximately 30,000 sq. ft. of the Dri-Design panels were ultimately used on the project.