Escapade Silverstone

60 homes and a clubhouse in thermally modified timber, next to the Formula 1 circuit in Northamptonshire.

WHO THIS CASE IS WRITTEN FOR

The practising architect

Project architect, studio of 10–60, residential and hospitality projects in timber

You draw the façade, you get asked what it looks like in ten years, and you are the one who has to explain why it will not blotch. The case is structured around the four decisions you actually make: expression over time, system choice, specification text and handover responsibility.

Control of the expression

Even silver-grey ageing without patchy flaking — patina as a design parameter, not a risk.

Evidence that survives review

EPD, fire and UV data plus specification text you can lift straight into the documents.

A maintainable solution

Inspection every three years, refresh within 10–15 years — no sanding and repainting.

Material honesty

Silicate technology that lets the grain stay visible instead of covering it with a film.

The brief

Silverstone Circuit aims to become Formula 1's most sustainable venue, with net-zero racing by 2030. The Escapade Silverstone neighbourhood was built into that ambition: air source heating, charging infrastructure, tree planting — and façades entirely in timber.

That made the façade task a double one. The expression had to stay minimal and Nordic across 60 volumes plus a clubhouse, which demands high colour consistency. At the same time the treatment could not undercut the sustainability profile with fossil oils, plastic films or toxic biocides.

The system choice

Lunawood Thermowood was chosen as the cladding: thermally modified timber with low moisture movement and good dimensional stability in the British climate.

The treatment is SiOO:X Wood Protecting Panel Colours — a silicate-based system that bonds into the surface of the timber rather than sitting on top as a film. It produces a controlled, even silver-grey patina, and maintenance is done by topping up, not by stripping an old layer.

The combination of thermally modified timber and silicate was decisive for consistency: the same colour behaviour across every volume, whatever the orientation.

Russwood handled the industrial application. Their knowledge of SiOO:X — from factory pre-treatment of thermowood to control of flow, coverage and drying — was decisive in delivering an even, durable finish across all 60 volumes and the clubhouse.

Three charts to bring to the design meeting

Patina development, year 0–15

Lightness index for the façade. Treated thermally modified timber settles into a stable silver-grey around year three and stays there. Untreated timber keeps darkening and going uneven.

• Thermowood + SiOO:X
• Untreated timber

Life-cycle cost over 30 years

Accumulated cost per m² of façade, indexed to the SiOO:X system's investment year (=100). Film-forming systems cost less up front but pull repeated strip-and-recoat cycles.

• SiOO:X system
• Film-forming system
• Untreated + repair

Maintenance intervals

Years between actions. SiOO:X gives visual inspection every three years and a refresh within 10–15 years, with no sanding or layer removal.

Project facts (location, year, developer, timber and system) are documented from the project. The charts are typical values for the system type in a temperate climate and should be read as comparisons, not as measurements from this particular building.

How to specify it

Specification text, EPD and technical data sheets for this exact build-up are in the Spec Generator and the Specifier's Library.

NEXT STEPS

Build the specification clause for your build-up and get it as a PDF.

EPD, fire and UV data, specification texts and BIM assets.

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