Structural Glazing in Viertel Zwei Facade

Vienna, Austria will now be home to “Viertel Zwei” (which translates to “Quarter Two”) - an exclusive living space covering 40,000 square metres, comprising modern office & residential buildings and spacious gardens. At the core of the quarter will be a 5,000 square metre lake, on which will levitate a part of the office building “Plus Zwei” (Plus Two), like an oversized block of glass.

The building, designed by Viennese architect Martin Kohlbauer, consists of 7,200 square metres of façade glazed with solar control glass, providing the interiors with natural light and protecting the excessive ingress of heat at the same time. The facade is a W90 panel design and, therefore, fulfils the “fire protection requirements W90 for non-load bearing exterior wall components” in order to prevent fire spreading from one storey to another.

Daylight and Solar Protection

The glass used on “Plus Zwei” fulfils the twin demands of aesthetics and functionality.. The energy-saving property of solar control glazing automatically lowers the operational costs of the building and protects the environment. The extremely low solar factor (g-value = 27% as per EN 410) prevents the interiors from heating up excessively on hot summer days, thereby reducing the costs for air-conditioning and eliminating the need for external mechanical shade systems. Nonetheless, a relatively large amount of daylight still floods the rooms (tL= 50%), so that electrical light is only needed fairly late into the day. During winters, the extremely low Ug-value of 1.1 W/m2K as per EN 673 provides effective heat insulation.

Source: http://www.nbmcw.com

Hurricane-Resistant Glass / Hurricane-Proof Glass

Building codes are changing rapidly to encompass architectural structures in coastal areas. One major element that buildings in coastal regions must have is an envelope for protection from potential hurricanes. All components of the building shell must be able to resist the effects of windborne debris as well as sustained turbulent winds lasting several hours. Hurricane Resistant Glass / hurricane proof glass is a type of glass that is becoming increasingly popular for this requirement.

Hurricane-resistant glass helps preserve the building envelope, keeping wind, rain, excess air pressure and noise out. Even when used in skylights, this glass does not shatter or break apart in case of a hurricane.

Hurricane proof glass can altogether eliminate the need for hurricane shutters. The cost of retrofitting an old building with this glass has a significant cost. Modern code requirements, which include hurricane shutters or similar protection for new houses in coastal areas, make the glass a more practical option at the time of construction. The best hurricane glass is similar to a car windshield, with a durable plastic-like layer sandwiched between two sheets of glass. The outside layers break, but the centre remains intact and prevents further damage.

Manufacturing Process

A method for producing hurricane-resistant glass, mainly includes the steps of: cutting and abrading the edges of a glass; feeding the glass into a tempering furnace and heating the glass to a critical state of the softening point; feeding the glass heated to a critical state of the softening point at a speed of 25-50 cm/s into a cooling chamber, to allow the glass to develop a surface compressive stress of not less than 150 MPa; etching the cooled glass with an etching solution; and rinsing surfaces of the glass.

Hurricane-resistant insulating glass

Hurricane-resistant insulating glass is made of heat strengthened low-E lites permanently bonded with one or more layers of durable PVB (polyvinyl butyral) resin sheeting. In exhaustive impact tests, broken glass fragments are adhered to the bonded plastic vinyl interlayer, reducing the risk of injury, shattering of glass and breaching the building envelope.

Modern Hurricane Proof Glass with P.E.T Films

Hurricane resistant glass with PET (polyethylene terephthalate) film is a superior alternative to conventional hurricane resistant methods. There is also another kind of hurricane resistant glass which has a combination of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, components which improve impact resistance, safety, retention, energy efficiency, sound attenuation and UV blocking. In addition, if the glass incorporates a Low-E coating on one of the surfaces, it enhances solar performance by 25% compared to an uncoated glass laminate.

Points to be Remembered

When choosing the right hurricane resistant glass for your application, use the following checklist:

1. Determine the applicable building code and test method


2. Determine the required design pressure/wind load


3. Qualify the missile requirement - large and/or small missile


4. Identify the largest glass size


5. If using a tested or certified framing system, confirm the laminated glass qualified with the particular manufacturer's product


6. If not using a tested or certified frame, evaluate system design details, such as:
   
   
   
   
   1. Glazing method - conventional or structurally glazed
   
   
   2. Glass bite - Often large missile applications require a minimum edge engagement of 5/8" to augment performance.
   
   
   3. Anchorage and hardware requirements - typically large missile applications require an enhanced design.

“Reflections” – Glass Towers With Green Roofing

Master architect Daniel Libeskind has successfully completed construction of the very first ultra-green tower - “Reflections”, a waterfront habitat at Keppel bay, Singapore. The brilliance of the architecture of Reflections showcases Singapore as the home of world-class seafront residences.

Reflection covers a shoreline space of 750m, giving an unobstructed view to the waterfront, the Keppel club golf course and the lavish surroundings. Reflections is located in the southern bay of Singapore with six glass towers and a 11-villa apartment block which hosts 1,129 luxuries homes. The towers are crowned by lush green sky gardens on the sloping rooflines and are linked by sky bridges, providing pockets of open spaces and platforms with 360-degree views of the spectacular surrounds. The six glass towers range from 24-storey to 41-storey height, whereas the villa apartment blocks range from 6-storey to 8-storey.

Ar. Libeskind uses very different innovative design features for this spectacular residence to give each and every unit a unique shape. The floors of the residence look slanted due to the curved façade but in reality are flat units are with no balconies.

Reflections, with its many green credentials received the Green Mark Gold Award by the Building and Construction Authority in 2008.