This was the first time in Malta that the centre has worked in collaboration with industry to share the common problems found in architectural conservation, especially with regard to Maltese limestone.

Although Arte Constructo is a company with commercial interests, it has a long tradition of collaboration with the University of Leuven and is now collaborating with the Malta Centre for Restoration by donating some of its products, including natural pigments, so that tests can be conducted on Maltese limestone.

The programme consisted of two lectures delivered by Mr Ronald Hayen, from the R. Lemaire Centre for Conservation Department of Building Materials of the University of Leuven. Mr Hayen’s visit to Malta was made possible thanks to the financial support of Arte Constructo.

His first lecture was entitled ‘Lime Revealed’, in which he gave a brief overview of all the different types of mineral binders used in the building industry from the ancient times to today. The second lecture was more technical in nature and was entitled ‘Why weaker lime mortars may be better…’. Mr Hayen explained the different aspects of chemical, physical and mechanical compatibility of lime mortars and why our built cultural heritage itself is a pre-eminent example of sustainable architecture.

The seminar came to a close with a lecture entitled ‘Tendencies in the Use of Lime for the Interventions in Our Built Cultural Heritage’ delivered by Marc Swolfs who is one of the directors of Arte Constructo. He gave an overview of all the company’s products, explaining their possibilities and uses both in the construction industry and for conservation purposes.

He illustrated his presentation with examples of work done in Belgium, Holland, England and other places.