CUPA R12 Excellence from CUPA PIZARRAS has been installed as part of an extensive family home refurbishment project in rural Norfolk. Working closely with the property owner, contractor Aspect Group Services specified the natural Spanish slate as it offers outstanding aesthetics, quality and a guaranteed warranty of 100 years.
Situated in the picturesque village of Old Buckenham, the extensive property consists of a number of separate buildings including a main house, a smaller newly built lodge, a pool house and garage, all of which the owners are refurbishing over several phases. The first phase was the new lodge, completed in 2021, followed by the main house and the swimming pool area. As well as new slate roofs, work has included the addition of external insulation and off-white render for the main house as well as galvanised guttering and rainwater systems throughout.
“The owners bought the property eight years ago and have been slowly refurbishing it,” explains Matt Dillon, Owner Director at Aspect Group Services. “Aesthetics were important to the project, and as we’ve used CUPA PIZARRAS slate before, we were confident of the quality of the product and the overall service we would receive from the company.”
After liaising with the CUPA PIZARRAS team and local merchant AJW Distribution, it was decided that CUPA R12 Excellence was the ideal replacement for the old concrete tiles on the roofs of the main house and pool house. Aspect Group Services’ roofing division installed the slates on both properties using copper nails. In addition, they integrated low-profile solar panels into the roof of the pool house alongside the slates for a flat, linear finish.
CUPA R12 is a high-quality, dark grey slate with thin laminations and a smooth surface. Being a high-quality natural slate product, it has a guaranteed lifespan of 100 years and requires minimal maintenance. The slate provides a smooth, uniform appearance which was important for this refurbishment.
“I like the guaranteed consistency of appearance from CUPA R12,” comments Matt. “With lower specification products you can get impurities in the slate and colour variance, which can stand out on larger roof areas. They can also be quite brittle, which means there is a lot of wastage. You get none of this with CUPA R12.”
In addition to its uniform appearance, CUPA 12 natural slate provides a sustainable solution, which was a significant factor for both the homeowner and Aspect Group Services. As CUPA PIZARRAS owns its quarries, the company can extract the material, process it locally, and return any excess slate to the mountain. At the same time, closed circuits enable the reuse of water.
Each step of the production process is continually assessed, and measures are introduced to tackle carbon emissions, such as using renewable energy sources, including photovoltaic solar energy, to power the plant and help reduce the company’s carbon footprint. Many of CUPA PIZARRAS’ slate products, including CUPA 12, have received BRE verification confirming that their environmental product declarations are in accordance with the requirements of EN 15804:2012+A1:2013 and BRE Global Scheme Document SD207.
The homeowners are thrilled with the finished work, which has completely transformed a traditional brick property with associated buildings into a striking and modern family home. The slate roofs bring visual appeal to the area and complement the external finishes of the main house and separate buildings.