Nestled within a 19th century walled garden, Ockenden Manor Spa combines contemporary aesthetics with picturesque natural surroundings. Throughout the interior, the fixtures and fittings have been carefully specified to create a peaceful, luxurious environment – with doors from Leaderflush Shapland providing the finishing touch.

The 2000m2 multi-layered building consists of a spa and six luxury suites, much of which is set into a slope planned around a series of terraces. Architect, John Cooper of John Cooper Associates Ltd, specified doorsets from Leaderflush Shapland to meet the multiple environmental, aesthetic and hygiene requirements of the project.

“As a company, we specialise in upmarket and boutique hotel projects, so I was already familiar with Leaderflush Shapland’s sister company, Longden Doors,” comments John. “For Ockenden Manor Spa, I wanted something unique that would give the project a really contemporary edge and the Envision doors from Leaderflush Shapland were exactly what I was looking for. The quality of the products is excellent and the service we received throughout the whole process was fantastic – I will definitely be using them again in future projects.”

Envision is a translucent door facing material that enables the intricate detail of high definition, photographic images to be incorporated into a factory-assembled doorset. Any image or design can be digitally reverse printed and encapsulated behind 2mm of the material, providing long lasting protection against wear. In this instance, John commissioned a local photographer to take images of the surrounding forest, creating a striking focal point that links the tranquil spa interior to the picturesque setting.

John selected a mixture of PVC encapsulated doors from the Plasform range and American Black Walnut veneered doors from the Designer range – all of which were lacquered with the innovative Hygienilac anti-bacterial finish. Hygienilac is an anti-bacterial additive within the wood lacquer that kills most species of bacteria including C.diff, MRSA, Salmonella and E.coli. The protection lasts the lifetime of the lacquer - up to 10 years - making it ideal for environments such as the spa, where hygiene is of paramount importance.

Futhermore, the PVC encapsulation of the Plasform doors provides additional protection from the daily challenges of the spa environment, in which fixtures are regularly exposed to humidity, water and chlorine based disinfectants. Designed with no visible lippings to allow easy cleaning and offering increased impact resistance, the Plasform doors will help maintain a smart and appealing appearance throughout the spa.

In addition, John specified the doors from Leaderflush Shapland because of the high technical performance capabilities they can meet. For example, the Designer range and Plasform Original doors provide up to 60 minutes fire resistance and 29RwdB sound reduction, as well as 'severe duty' strength and durability – all key concerns for ensuring the safety and comfort of guests within the spa.

“The doors have really lent something a bit special to the interior design of the spa,” commented Adam Smith, General Manager of Ockenden Manor Spa. “One of the key attractions here is the beautiful countryside that surrounds us and being able to bring that environment into the building in such a creative and contemporary way is really effective.”