PRODUCTION CAPABILITY

In-House Steel Core Welding for Large Specimen Trees

Project Background

Every architectural-grade tree we build starts as a welded steel core. The skeleton determines whether a 7-metre specimen stays upright in an atrium draft, so we weld it in our own workshop rather than sourcing welded frames from a subcontractor.

Specifications

Core materialQ235 galvanised steel tube
Core diameter48–200 mm depending on tree height
Welding methodTIG welding, full penetration at joints
Surface prepHot-dip galvanised before bark carving
Base fixingBolted to a base anchor plate, not free-standing

Client Challenge

Lightweight blow-moulded plastic cores cannot be anchored and fail under wind load. Buyers who have been given a hollow core typically discover the problem on site, when a finished tree tips in a lobby draft and has to be removed and rebuilt.

Solution

We calculate the core gauge against the tree's height, canopy area and the site's wind load, then weld and galvanise it in-house. The result bolts to a structural base plate, which is the same detail your structural engineer signs off on.

Welding & Production Photos

Welded galvanised steel core section before bark carving
artificial tree galvanized steel core welding
Hand-carved bark texture applied over the welded core
workshop trunk detail texture
Carved root flare detail at the trunk base
workshop trunk base detail

Final Installation

Two workers lifting a completed carved trunk section in the workshop
Two workers lifting a completed carved trunk section in the workshop