Blackbutt is a commonly grown hardwood that has attractive colouring from cream to pale brown, sometimes with a slight tinge of pink. Its grain is usually straight and texture is medium and even. Blackbutt is a versatile timber and is used for structural, exterior and interior applications. It is used for cladding, internal and external flooring, decking, joinery, landscaping and furniture. Blackbutt is also used in the manufacture of plywood. Blackbutt can be stained, painted or polished but there can be issues with painting because of its tendency to surface check.

Doubling as Australia’s largest public dentist, this cutting-edge facility was recognised for ‘establishing a unique benchmark’ in its collaborative student spaces and public interface. It took out the prestigious FDG Stanley Award for Public Architecture, an Award for Interior Architecture and an Award for Sustainable Architecture.

The building’s steel posts are cleverly concealed by the Blackbutt fins, which also serve to provide a seamless link to the native gum trees surrounding the building. Fully customised and precision machined, the tongue and groove profiles cover steel posts with specialised CNC routing and drilling for the striking silver bolts.

The shape of the profiles eased installation while minimising the effects of natural timber movement. The profiles were coated with Cutek Extreme to enhance the hardwood’s natural beauty and long-term dimensional stability.