Kindy’s outdoor screens get a cosy makeover in Avondale
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Kindy’s outdoor screens get a cosy makeover in Avondale

  • Community
  • Projects
- September 12, 2021

Thanks to a long-standing relationship, we’ve been delighted to carry out several projects for this Kindy in Avondale, Auckland over the years. This time it was to replace their old PVC screens, which were old and had received a fair amount of use in that time.

A refreshed set of screens were required to make the screens easier for teachers to roll up and down on the daily basis and close those draughty gaps to keep the little ones warmer inside.

Our Auckland shade + screen specialist Seaton Meredith was pleased to be called back to Avondale to help the kindy out. 

Outdoor screen technology has changed a lot in recent years and this time the kindy were able to upgrade from the old manual roll-up screens to Ziptrak® track-guided PVC blinds, which are much easier and quicker to operate.

Easy screen operation in an ECE or public environment also makes a swifter exit possible in an emergency, enhancing safety in the space. 

The latest Ziptrak® blinds have other helpful features these days also, including improved bottom bars and spring mechanisms to keep the area fully enclosed and make the screens easy to use and more durable.

Seaton helped the kindy achieve a custom fabricated set of Ziptrak® outdoor screens that fit perfectly with the existing frame. To stay in keeping with the posts of the existing structure the Ziptrak® frame was also powder coated in a nice dark blue to match.

Now the indoor/outdoor play area is completely draught and debris free, safer, and brighter for all to enjoy. 

Before - the Kindy's screens were manually operated and getting a bit weathered
View from outside Auckland Kindy Outdoor Ziptrak Clear PVC Screens fully down cover in outdoor play area for weather protection
After - the outdoor screens are refreshed and easier to use long-term

Looking to create your own cosy outdoor enclosure?

Learn more about Ziptrak screens here, and check out our options for both residential, commercial and education environments.

We look forward to hearing about your ideas for your project.

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Shade Sails for a Converted Shepherd’s Cottage

  • Projects
- August 13, 2021

Sometimes we get to install shade sails in some beautiful locations. This was an old farmhouse shepherd’s cottage at Ngaruru Station in Central Hawke’s Bay which was definitely one of those.

The old school farm building had been converted to offices and needed some shade to make a more practical workspace and deck area.

The first shade sail was installed by our local Hawke’s Bay expert Mark Hannan to provide shade for the deck and BBQ area. What a view they have!

Mark was also asked to add a second shade sail so the window glass could be shaded to reduce the glare and keep things cool inside.

With the shade sails measuring 6x7m and 6x6m, this was a serious amount of shade coverage for the sizeable deck.

Pro tip: Even though the two shade sails visually connect at the house in the centre, careful attention was paid to use one bracket per shade sail. Choosing to fix them to separate brackets instead of using the one bracket greatly increases the strength of the individual sails and reduces the risk of damage to the house in extreme winds.

Since installation the customer has had massive winds in the region and says the shade sail has held fast with no worries at all.

The textile chosen was our most popular – Z16 – specifically designed architectural shade cloth that comes with a 10 year UV warranty. With an extremely high UVR block of 99% this was a quality shade choice for the workspace.

The steel posts were powder coated in black to match, giving the rural property a smart and attractive finish.

Looking for your own high quality shade sail?

Not all shade sails are created equal – talk to our local expert in your area to understand the lasting difference Sunshade can offer.

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This Mt Eden customer experiences a wind funnel through his backyard. The Ziptrak® screens were a perfect solution for his family to be able to enjoy their backyard on those windy days.

Mt-Eden-Customer-Installs-Screens-for-Wind-Protection-2

We used the heavy-duty Ziptrak® system as the screens are both 5m long. The frames have been powder coated appliance white to blend in with his pergola.

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National Award win for Sunshade Residential Shade Sail Project

  • Company
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- July 22, 2017

2017 OFPANZ Award for Excellence – Domestic Shade Sail.

Every year the Outdoor Fabric Products Association of New Zealand (OFPANZ) holds a conference where members can enter recent projects into the Awards for Excellence. This year there were more than 80 entries across 16 categories. Sunshade is excited to announce that our Auckland licensee, Seaton Meredith of Custom Shade and Screens, won the National Award for Excellence in the Domestic Shade Sail category.

“Initially the client wanted a small shade sail to provide privacy for their backyard and pool area as well as the second floor living area of their home. After the first shade was installed the client liked the effect so much he called to ask for another shade to cover the patio area of the pool,” Meredith said.

The project was made more complex by the differing requirements of the client of visual privacy from neighbours as well as provision of shade. Access, the pool and placement of poles limited options of location and shape of sails. The well-established garden had to be totally protected from all workings.

For the second sail the client insisted on using the existing poles from our first installation thus having the correct angle for one shade to provide privacy and then create enough space between the first and second shade to avoid any rubbing.

Using CAD system to create the correct shape and present visual options to the client gave us the ability to make sure that the project would meet his very specific requirements.

The shapes and the Mocha Z16 shade fabric blended in well to exceed the customer’s expectations.

About OFPANZ

OFPANZ was established in 1988 with fewer than 20 members. Nowadays, the association has more than 50 members committed to excellence and awarded in New Zealand and abroad for their innovation and ingenuity. The association represents enterprises engaged in anything from canvas fabrication, sailmaking, vehicle trimming and upholstery, to medium and very large structures covered in PVC and similar materials, as well as suppliers of materials and associated components.

OFPANZ, its Executive and its members are dedicated to promoting, developing and protecting the interests of the manufacture, trading and marketing of all outdoor fabric products with exceptional quality and to recognised standards, both nationally and internationally.

The association seeks to provide fabricators and suppliers of outdoor products and materials with a forum for increasing their industry knowledge, developing new skills, legislation and technology, sharing experiences and the association helps provide a platform to network with other like-minded companies worldwide.

Says Mike König of Sunshade “The value of this industry association lies in the establishment of networks and contacts in the industry. Although we all compete fiercely with each other, if a project is outside of our capability or region then we know a trusted company we can refer it to.  And if we need help on a particular issue we know whom to ask.”

Mike Konig accepting award at 2017 OFPANZ Queenstown Conference

OFPANZ is affiliated to the Specialised Textiles Association (STA) of Australia and became a country chapter of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI), based in the United States, in 2008.

About Sunshade
Sunshade have built a reputation as one of the leading providers of weather protection products in New Zealand and to Pacific Islands.

We’ve spent over 20 years making our customers happy, and we’ve used our experience to focus on being the best at what we do.

That’s why we invest time in finding the right combination of materials, designs and structure to meet your weather protection needs. By designing and manufacturing solutions that recognize your environment, we can be sure that our weather protection solutions do the job well and are made to last.

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