British Car Auctions, Birmingham: Metal Plank Ceiling in a Vehicle Auction Hall

British Car Auctions is one of the UK's largest vehicle remarketing businesses, operating high-volume vehicle auction facilities serving trade buyers and sellers. Eastledge installed a Hunter Douglas 84R V-Profile metal plank ceiling at the BCA Birmingham site, forming a faceted decagon feature ceiling across the principal auction hall volume. The installation was delivered to the operational and aesthetic requirements of a high-occupancy commercial space.

The brief

Vehicle auction halls are high-occupancy spaces designed to handle large numbers of trade buyers and vehicles simultaneously. The ceiling in a principal auction volume carries a more demanding brief than standard commercial fit-out: the space requires a ceiling that performs architecturally as well as functionally, reads clearly in a high-volume environment and withstands the occupancy conditions of a major trading floor.

The brief at BCA Birmingham called for a feature ceiling system that would define the auction hall space visually, integrate with the mechanical, electrical and lighting services above, and deliver a premium finish appropriate to a flagship site.

Hunter Douglas 84R V-Profile metal plank ceiling

The 84R V-Profile is a metal plank ceiling system manufactured by Hunter Douglas, using aluminium planks in a V-shaped profile mounted on concealed carriers. The profile's angled faces reflect light across the ceiling plane, creating visual depth and movement that a flat tile or solid panel ceiling does not produce. When laid across a large volume such as an auction hall, the V-profile generates a ceiling plane with its own visual character.

At BCA Birmingham, the planks were installed in a faceted decagon pattern: sections of the ceiling plane set at different angles to create a geometric feature ceiling across the auction hall volume. A faceted layout requires the carrier geometry for each section to be resolved individually, with plane junctions and perimeter conditions detailed before installation. The V-profile plank's directional character means that the setting-out direction for each facet needs to be confirmed against the architect's reflected ceiling plan before fixing begins.

Integration with the services above (lighting, HVAC, fire detection and PA) was coordinated before installation to place service openings within the plank layout without disrupting the visual pattern.

How we worked

The auction hall at BCA Birmingham remained at least partially operational during the programme. Working in an operational vehicle auction facility requires the contractor to sequence installation around the trading calendar, work within defined zones and apply clean-down procedures at the end of each working period before the floor was returned to use.

Outcome

The completed Hunter Douglas 84R V-Profile faceted ceiling defines the auction hall space with a geometric feature ceiling that reads clearly at the scale of the high-volume interior. The installation delivers a premium finish appropriate to a flagship vehicle remarketing facility, integrated with the services above.

For more on automotive ceiling and fit-out work, visit the automotive sector page, the metal ceilings service page and the Hunter Douglas manufacturer page.