PPM wraps the British Museum

Building wrap Specialist Project Print Management (PPM) has created a trompe l’oeil print to cover scaffolding and construction work at the British Museum in London.

PPM was commissioned to cover the museum’s triangular pediment with a 40m (wide) x 12m (high) trompe l’oeil printed on plastic sheeting, replicating the edifice and its sculptures, and with perspective in mind. The company was also asked to hide the scaffolding behind the pillars with printed scaffold sheeting, which was digitally printed onto a fire-retardant mesh PVC from Verseidag. PPM owner Justin Murray said building wraps such as these are becoming increasingly popular but are difficult to execute. For the British Museum job PPM worked closely with the architect of the renovation and with the scaffolding company Wellmax, who needed to install a sub-frame to accommodate the wrap. Murray explained that the British Museum also wanted printed scaffolding sheeting to cover the bulk of the scaffolding instead of using debris netting. “We colour matched the Portland stone and printed a solid colour. Then we added a sky effect to the roof area. But we do have the expertise to print any design such as stone, wood or brick and blend it into the background if needed.” The project required the printed scaffold sheeting to be hung vertically, unlike debris netting which is usually installed horizontally. The sheets were finished with a pocket at the bottom for a scaffold pole to hold the sheet in place. Almost 50 panels totalling 2,800m2 were used, making it one of the largest building wraps produced this year.