![[BLOG] The construction market in the Caribbean: Adopting steel building envelopes for your roofs and façades](/uploads/news/caribbean/323/en/410-Banniere-blog-caraibes.jpg)
As the Caribbean construction market continues to evolve, innovative building materials and techniques are gaining in popularity, particularly in response to the region's unique hurricane and earthquake challenges. Among these, the use of steel roofing and cladding is changing the game, offering improved strength, durability and aesthetic appeal.
The Caribbean is at the centre of extreme weather conditions, including cyclones, tropical storms, heavy rain and earthquakes. Traditional building materials often have difficulty withstanding these stresses, leading to extensive damage and costly repairs in the event of a major natural disaster. Steel roofs and façades, renowned for their strength and resilience, offer a robust solution. They can withstand high winds and the impact of debris, reducing the risk of damage. What's more, they meet the region's anti-hurricane and anti-seismic standards - the highest in France!
Situated right in the middle of the Caribbean Sea and swept by the corrosive winds from the Atlantic Ocean all year round, its location means that these territories are highly exposed to the stresses associated with corrosion and other gases released by sargassum seaweed. Our products must therefore meet all these environmental challenges. That's why we chose ZMevolution® metal coating, which offers three times the corrosion protection of standard galvanised steel. Combined with our wide range of organic coatings, we offer an optimum solution for every situation!
In addition to their strength, steel roofing and cladding contribute to sustainable development efforts in the Caribbean construction market. Steel is a recyclable material, and its production has become more energy-efficient over the years. By incorporating steel into the design of buildings, the construction industry can reduce the environmental footprint of building projects while ensuring the safety of occupants.
In addition, our Mauka Bora and Bromo Bora sandwich panels, made up of a polyisocyanurate (PIR) core and two pre-painted steel facings, improve the energy efficiency of buildings. Used in cladding and roofing, they offer superior insulation properties, helping to maintain stable indoor temperatures. This reduces reliance on air conditioning, which is in high demand in the Caribbean region. It also reduces energy consumption and costs for building occupants.
In addition to their practical benefits, our solutions are also distinguished by their aesthetic appeal. Our cladding and façade profiles, such as Bromo Tropic and Bromo Hacierba in trapezoidal form, can be clad in a wide range of colours, finishes and textures, including various glosses. In addition, our range of Mauka roofing profiles offers a variety of aesthetics with sinusoidal (Mauka Wave), trapezoidal (Mauka Classic) or standing seam (Mauka Tropic) shapes. This flexibility in terms of shapes and colours offers architects, specifiers and builders the possibility of designing buildings that meet the tastes and requirements of modern and contemporary design, with a multitude of customisation options and aesthetic diversity, while guaranteeing high performance.
The choice of a steel building envelope in the Caribbean residential market continues to grow. Developers and architects are recognising the long-term benefits and incorporating these materials into new builds and renovations. This trend is supported by a growing awareness among homeowners of the importance of resilient and sustainable building practices. In addition, our XCarb® steel-based product offering from recycled and renewable sources helps to reduce the carbon footprint of the building with a recycled steel content of at least 75%.
In conclusion, the Caribbean construction market is undergoing a significant shift towards the use of steel materials for roof and façade design. This choice not only responds to the region's vulnerability to natural disasters and environmental constraints, but is also in line with global sustainability objectives and modern architectural trends. As this practice becomes more widespread, it should redefine building and housing standards in the Caribbean, ensuring safer, greener and more aesthetically pleasing buildings for years to come...