About the project
i-SOL8 bracket adaptors used to install large glass canopy to curtain walling
Partners
MBE Glazing Systems Limited, BCSD Ltd.
About the project
A large glass canopy was required to be fitted across the façade of the building.
The system supplier SAS suggested to MBE that they contact BSCD.
Running horizontally across the rain screen through the curtain wall area of the shops frontage.
Only one bay was required for the curtain walling and was 4.2m wide by 1.5m deep with the curtain wall mullion centres at 1.25/1.65/1.25m respectively.
Challenges and Objectives
A 6.3m² area of glass. The live loads required the mullions to be strong enough to accept this load at the point of connection. No realistic option was available using the standard traditional method of fixing external furniture to the curtain walling.
MBE was left with the undesirable necessity to use a horizontal secondary support steel beam across the window to meet the structural engineers requirement. This rather defeated the aesthetics the architect was looking for so the system supplier suggested use of the i- SOL8 adaptors.
Being a coffee shop the requirement for effective thermal efficiency in regards of the connection interface becomes even more critical with regards interstitial condensation than a commercial office build. The i-SOL8 meets this requirement.
Results
Although a small project in terms of quantity for BSCD we none-the-less provided the solution that met all the constraints; structural, performance, aesthetics and economical costs.
No additional secondary support steel work was required at the bracing bracket position. Ordinarily an aluminium connection spigot plate would be used for the interface with the canopy. Due to the loading this was revised to a steel connection – the i-SOL8 adaptor readily accepts different materials to be used from the traditional aluminium to spun galvanised mild steel and stainless steel economically produced using either laser or waterjet profiling.
The client had additional benefits with use of the i-SOL8 adaptors such as 90% vibration (acoustic) isolation and a point thermal transfer value per bracket of only 0.06W/K. A factor of improvement over the use of an ordinary aluminium pinned bracket ordinarily used by the industry - were it possible to use in this scenario…..!
