What is Wall Cladding?
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The inside of your building is the heart and soul. You want to protect that in a way that is both functional and beautiful. Wall cladding refers to a group of products designed to add increased protection to a wall surface. Depending on the type of protection needed, interior wall cladding can deflect or stop a hard impact from luggage, carts, gurneys, handtrucks, equipment and wheelchairs. The advantage of using wall cladding is that it can be used in just about every type of building application, whether you need a more decorative approach or more industrial. Hotel lobbies, hospital patient rooms, school hallways, restaurant kitchens and back-of-house areas all need varying degrees of protection to keep walls safe from dents, dings and deep gouges. |
Why is Wall Cladding Important?
As experts on wall protection, we are often called in after a project has been completed and the building is in use. Soon the evidence of abuse and damage to the walls becomes apparent. If the damage is severe, our recommendations often include replacing sections of drywall and adding the right type of wall cladding for the area. This retrofitting is often more expensive than it would have been to have the wall cladding installed from the start.
When looking at your interior walls, it is often good to think about what is behind the wall. There are four common interior sub-wall wall products:
Drywall – baseline wall construction, tends to dent and gouge easily
Cement Board – offers increased resistance to higher level of abuse. May be used in moisture applications, and is often used in selected areas requiring moisture resistance
Fire-rated Plywood – offers increased resistance to higher level of abuse and more secure fastening of mechanical systems to wall, i.e. handrail, wall guard Used in targeted areas to increase protection from known or anticipated heavy abuse
CMU wall systems, (Concrete Masonry Unit) – 2 hour fire rated walls in school gymnasiums and mechanical rooms May be clad with wall protection to reduce painting or soften look aesthetically Must be sanded to matte finish with thin coat of compound applied first to prevent telescoping through extruded plastics Adhesive takes longer to set up because it cannot evaporate as readily as with the other substrates listed
Once you understand the sub-wall make up, it’s important to find the right wall cladding to fit your protection and design needs.
What Are the types of Wall Cladding?
Inpro offers a wide variety of wall cladding options available to fit your needs. From textured and cleanable Ricochet® wallcovering to stainless steel wall panels and everything in between our variety of wall cladding materials have you covered.
Ricochet® Flexible Wall Protection
A brand new class of materials called Flexible Wall Protection is showing great potential to be a true game changer by combining the look of wallcovering with the durability of rigid wall protection, so walls can make an impact while being able to take the impact.
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Flexible wall protection:
As with all wall coverings, proper surface preparation and adhesive is critical to prevent mold behind flexible wall cladding. |
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Palladium® Rigid Sheet Wall Protection
Our most popular product, Palladium® Rigid Sheet Wall Protection is built for superior impact resistance. Available in sheets, rolls, beadboard panels, and even cut to virtually any design, our rigid vinyl extruded wall cladding comes in the following standard thicknesses depending on the product:
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Most products offered in the U.S. are Class A fire rated. It’s important to remember that sheet products are not recommended for areas with excessive moisture since any moisture behind the material will encourage mold growth in air pockets left in adhesive.
Learn more about how to install our vinyl rigid sheet wall cladding and finishing options.
Prism™ Solid Surface Wall Protection
When you need wall protection for sterile environments or other sensitive areas that get damaged and dirty quickly, our Prism™ Wall Cladding Panels is the best solution. BioPrism® inhibits the growth of mold and mildew. Available in ¼” or ½” thickness, this wall cladding combines protection and durability.
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Features of solid surface include:
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Aspex® Printed Wall Protection
If design is a primary consideration for your wall cladding, but protection is also necessary, our Aspex® Printed Wall Protection is a great solution. You can choose from using licensed images, logos, photos or any one of our standard patterns to create a unique look for your space.
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Features of printed wall protection include:
Printed wall protection is perfect for creating inspiration, education, wayfinding and branding while preventing dings and dents to some heavy traffic areas. |
Palladium® Wall Panel Systems
Another stylish and protective wall cladding is our Palladium® Wall Panel System. With virtually limitless ways to create panels this gives your lobbies, waiting rooms, and other gathering spaces an elegant feel with all the protection of our Palladium® Rigid Sheet.
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Wall panel systems come in three options: Our panels are engineered for balanced construction which prevents panels from bowing, warping or material chipping. To add additional design elements they can come in with the look of real wood or with our Aspex® to incorporate custom artwork and photography. |
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Heavy Duty Options
We also offer Stainless Steel Wall Panels and NuTree® Diamond Plate Wall Protection when you need more industrial wall cladding. These options are great for back-of-house applications, kitchens, cafeterias or other high traffic areas where extensive damage can be done.
Walls are such a big part of your building, using wall cladding to protect them ensures they stay protected and beautiful for a long time to come.