COLORBOND steel with thermatech technology from BlueScope Steel used for NMIT's Green Skills Centre

Specialist steel products, supplied by BlueScope Steel , have been utilised to construct the Green Skills Centre of Excellence at the Epping campus of the Northern Metropolitan Institute of TAFE (NMIT). The Green Skills Centre was especially commissioned as class space to offer NMIT students an education in green technology installation and operation.

The 5 Green Star training facility not only provides first class learning facilities, but also incorporates a working demonstration of many of the sustainability designs and technology features that students will be learning about.

The state-of-the-art, environmentally friendly, building features steel cladding and roofing from BlueScope Steel. The cladding used was made from COLORBOND steel, in monument and woodland grey colours, as well as ZINCALUME steel. The roofing was also constructed using COLORBOND steel in shale grey, that incorporates Thermatech technology.

The Thermatech technology of the COLORBOND steel roofing made it an ideal material for use in the construction of this sustainable Green Skills Centre. Thermatech technology works by reflecting more of the sun’s heat than standard roofing steel to give a new levels of improved thermal performance.

Thanks to its advanced reflective properties the steel roof space and therefore the building achieve cooler temperatures. In hot weather a COLORBOND steel roof with Thermatech technology can keep un-insulated buildings an average of about 5ºC cooler than others and can reduce the need for air conditioning in insulated buildings.

The COLORBOND steel roof has an oven-baked finish that is resistant to cracking, peeling and chipping. The steel roofing can easily withstand harsh Australian weather conditions, protecting the building from hot sun, rain and wind. COLORBOND steel is weather-tight, non-combustible and resistant to termites.

An additional benefit of a COLORBOND steel roof is that It is easy to maintain. It needs only natural rainfall or an occasional hose or wash down to keep it clean and in good condition.