"architectural glass"

Designed and built by C Plus C Architectural Workshop. Large format curved glass panels up to 2400mm high x 3500mm girth have been manufactured by Bent & Curved Glass in a variety of glass types to meet the design requirements for thermal performance, privacy, night lighting effects while also maximising natural light and a sense of space and openness. Early consultation between architect, glass manufacturer and frame fabricator and a process of glass sampling, review and selection created the best project outcomes. The quality of these glass elements has made a significant contribution to the success of this exceptional project.

The Chadstone Shopping Centre in Melbourne, Australia, is an amazing piece of engineering and architecture. With its stunning gridshell glass roof, the extended building is now the largest enclosed shopping centre in the Southern Hemisphere.

Designed by Benson McCormack Architects and built by Hone Constructions. The curved glass elements seen at the ground level entry shopfronts and in the feature penthouse facades are key to the undulating design which becomes the signature for the “Wave” Apartments building. In particular the projecting curved façade at each end of the penthouse roof level is a major element of the architectural design and a feature that can be seen from afar. The sweep of the concrete rood appears to float above the skin of curved glass creating a dramatic visual effect.

With completion of the restoration, the building is a leader in terms of energy efficiency and environmental profile and has received the prestigious LEED Platinum certification. Guardian Glass high performance glass products for the façade contributed directly to achieving this LEED certification.

Designed by Freadman White and built by Visioneer Builders. The exceptional level of finish and functionality is the result of a successful collaboration between architect, builder, glass manufacturer and window fabricator. Double glazing provides an ideal solution on projects where high performance glazing is required to meet the increasing standards required by the Australian Building Code Section J. Bent & Curved Glass manufactures high quality curved double-glazed units to a range of specifications. Curved glass can create a dramatic point of difference for projects where a streamlined, seamless design aesthetic is desired.

The unique spiral design of the tower is a remarkable architectural accomplishment, with an overall twist of 156 degrees clockwise – one of the most extreme twists in any architectural project. Each of the tower’s 52 floors is rotated through 3 degrees, leading to its twisted corkscrew shape.

The six-storey car dealership opens up to the south and city streets with a fully glazed façade construction. In the evening the building reveals itself as a glass shelf. Inside the showroom, the floors are connected to each other by air spaces, creating a mix of visual relationships.

The Victoria Tower is a skyscraper hotel located in the Kista district of Stockholm, Sweden. At 118-metres high, it is one of the tallest in Scandinavia. Designed by Wingardh Arkitektkontor AB, the building is wrapped entirely in a cloak of glass, standing like a lighthouse along the road between Stockholm and the city’s airport.

Architecturally designed, the new build Technology Rooms at Nagel College in Bairnsdale feature PROCORE A1® highlights in Candy Red and Golden Yellow. These striking elements contrast against the warm tones of the timber and the earthiness of its rural setting.

High performance doors for this architecturally designed house

Designed by Woods Bagot Pty Ltd and built by Lend Lease Group, BCG manufactured curved heat strengthened laminated glass panels for the feature stair to the entry lobby of the first completed commercial tower at Barangaroo – International Towers Sydney (ITS) 2. Working closely with Woods Bagot Architects and fabricators F & D Normoyle Engineering, BCG assisted with the fine tuning of the detail design. BCG’s precision bending and laminating processes provided the quality of finish and timely supply required to ensure the successful completion of the project.

This architecturally-designed pool pavilion makes for a stunning showpiece. The flexibility and rust free qualities of PROBOND FaçadeFR® make it a logical, economical choice in a demanding environment which experiences fluctuating moisture levels. Suitable for interior and exterior applications, PROBOND FaçadeFR® delivers a low maintenance, long-term solution.

In museums, glass displays protect valuable artefacts from damage or distress, whilst presenting them in the best possible light. Sometimes the glass itself can act as an obstruction to the view. Unwanted glare, reflections or reduced lighting levels can obstruct visitors’ views through the glass, preventing precious works of art from being seen clearly and in their original colour and detail.

Didier Repellin, from the architectural firm RL & Associés, oversaw the project. As honorary Chief Architect of Historical Monuments and a member of the French Heritage Society (among other titles), he was the perfect choice for the renovation of the buildings and the grounds. His vision was to make use of the history of the city to embellish the ancient buildings and has done so by respecting the history of the Hôtel-Dieu while giving back the grounds to the inhabitants of Lyon.

Designed by Smart Design Studio, the building is an honest layering of old and new as expressed by the raw treatment of the exterior façade through to the smooth, modern interior. The rooftop addition connects the double-height banks of glass Breezway Louvres with an articulated aluminium roof folding down as a screen to the back of the building. The end result successfully incorporates flexible and functional office interiors and a two-bedroom rooftop apartment within a rigorously controlled contemporary architecture of old and new.

The headquarters of the BNL-BNP Paribas Group building is a stunning example of how to successfully combine innovative architectural design with optimum comfort and wellbeing for the building’s occupants. Due to the clever structural glazing, the aesthetics are visually appealing, reflecting the building’s surroundings on all sides and changing its appearance depending on the time of day and the weather.

This stunning architectural build is the new Australian Headquarters for PROBOND. Three shades of PROCORE A1® create this show-stopping commercial facade: Midnight Metallic and Custom Pearl Grey Metallic accentuate the office space popout. Sabre Silver Metallic is used in the window surrounds and the side wings which disguise the distribution complex and feature a multi-faceted 3D triangle pattern. The lightshow throughout the day is stunning as the sun moves across the complex.

The 5-star Hyatt Regency Sydney on the fringe of Darling Habour, formerly Four Points by Sheraton, underwent a vast redevelopment which included refurbishment of the hotel and construction of a new convention space and 25 level tower. Adorning the recognisable covered facade is Equitone Tectiva, a through-coloured fibre cement cladding, which was installed by Stane Industries. Architect: Cox Architecture

Fairview provided the Collmill Group with Snow White Vitracore G2 to clad the bespoke Lantern Apartments in Melbourne's inner-city suburb of Collingwood. Our deemed-to-satisfy non-combustible product was ideal for the residential development due to its weather resistant coating and the lightweight nature which allowed for greater ease of off-site pre-cladding. Builder: Orange Building Solutions, Architect: Plus Architecture.

Ferrero’s new global HQ gathers in one building with nearly 1,300 people, previously spread over five different offices. The building, with a total floor space of almost 30,000 m², opened in December 2019. The building is designed to evoke the atmosphere of an Italian square: a vast atrium is surrounded by two multi-storey office wings. Boon Edam was appointed to craft and install the golden revolving door, on behalf of facade builder Groven + Portal, who in turn worked for general contractor Felix Giorgetti. The colour of the revolving door makes a visual reference to the world-famous golden chocolate - Ferrero Rocher. The Casa Ferrero administrative building consists of two blocks built on a common basement. It was the combination of these plots, and the architectural skills, that resulted in what you see today: a building that is both impressive and elegant as well as being a pleasant and functional workplace for the employees of the food group. Ferrero’s colours are subtly incorporated into the classic facades, with bronze tones and a gilded effect over the windows as well as the entrance glass panels. This effect was achieved by applying a gold-coloured textile fabric to the laminated glass during the project’s construction. Behind the glass facade of the entrance, the most jaw-dropping area of Ferrero’s headquarters unfolds - a central atrium that connects the two blocks and is entirely covered by a glass roof. The spacious atrium is designed to function as a reception and meeting space. Horizontal circulation between the two blocks is facilitated by connecting walkways with a range of 20 meters. The vertical circulation occurs through panoramic glass elevators. The central atrium’s glass-roofed space is open to life within the company and encourages interaction between employees. This 11-storey building, including six upper levels (ground floor + 5 floors) and five lower levels, adapts perfectly to its urban surroundings. The office areas are spread over nine floors, taking advantage of maximum light for the interior space. Levels -3 to -5 include technical areas and parking spaces. Ferrero’s wish was for a functional and pleasant building for everyone who works there. We think they have achieved this in spades!

The Forensic Pathology & Coroner's Court is located in Lidcombe NSW. Fairview's deemed-to-satisfy non-combustible Vitracore G2 panels were chosen to achieve the unique exterior as designed by Silver Thomas Hanley and Cox Architecture, The design features vertical fins with pyramid details in five complementary finishes - Fresh Green, Pure White, Cool Grey from Fairview standard range and custom colours. Bechett and Irish Moore. Builder: Watpac NSW, Architect: Silver Thomas Hanley & Cox Architecture.

Sitting proudly at the junction of the M4 and M7 motorways in Sydney's Greater West is Calibre Eastern Creek Building 3. An architecturally designed warehouse and two-storey office space which incorporates 990 m2 of Vitradual on the attractive facade of the development. Builder: Vaughan Constructions, Architect: SBA Architects.

Located in the Amsterdam Southeast district, the ING Pavilion is an inspiring and stimulating meeting place for employees on the campus, as well as local residents, students, visitors and entrepreneurs. Positioned at the centre of the ING campus, it’s also a high quality dining option and a multi-functional space for the whole community.

Golden Yellow PROBOND Facade FR is a stunning addition to this architect-designed building. The contrast against the natural earthiness of the timber feature walls is used to great effect.

This design stemmed from the idea of the ‘Halo Effect’ – ‘a natural phenomenon whereby icebergs act as physical refuge for aquatic organisms while simultaneously releasing nutrients to their surroundings and generating a ‘halo’ of energetic life’. The Halo House is the epitome of an Australian modern family home. Breathe Architecture explained “the building reads like a geological feature in a landscape, continually evolving with the passing of time, weather and seasons”. The design represents a ‘breath of fresh air’, using light and natural materials to create a warm and nurturing home.

Architects from APP Arch-Studio created a building that serves as a multi-functional cultural centre, hosting important musical events, painting and photography exhibitions, as well as theatrical performances and film screenings. Combining all these functions was made possible due to a clear division of the building into two spatial modules: the glazed part acts as a philharmonic hall, while the second part is visual and exhibit-like, comprising of photography studios and a small cinema room.

PROMINIUM in Natural White has been utilized on this project for Kenworth Trucks. The spectacular result on the sales and service complex is worthy of this iconic brand. The choice of PROMINIUM 3mm Solid Aluminium ensures the façade is rated non-combustible to AS 1530.1 Standards, safeguarding vehicles, plant and personnel.

The Perth Optus Stadium is a world-class sporting venue located within WA, Stryum, Australian-made, non-combustible façade system, was chosen to provide a unique and customised finish to the 60,000 seat Perth Stadium development. The stadium features over 16,000m2 of Stryum in 6 different anodized colours. Builder: Brookfield Multiplex, Architect: WESTADIUM

The Paper Mill is located on the Georges River in Liverpool NSW and features 2,800m2 of Vitracore G2 in Zinc Light and Zinc Dark. Builder: MN Builders, Architect: Woods Bagot

The Australian National Archives is located within Canberra ACT, Fairview products were used as both exterior cladding and interior lining on the National Archives of Australia’s new preservation and storage facility. The building includes enough shelving to stretch approximately 115kms and is expected to house around 10 million Commonwealth records.Builder: Doma Constructions, Architect: May & Russell Architects

The inspiring Kubix Apartments development features an impressive 16,500 m2 of Vitracore G2 - the leading deemed-to-satisfy non-combustible, aluminum composite cladding - in a myriad of colours over the geometric façade. Builder: Crema Constructions, Architect: CBG Architects.

QLD Nero Apartments Project News

A new build at a Total Tools Outlet required signage on an enormous scale. The largest of three massive signs was over 23 metres long.PROBOND Ultra® in Ultramarine Blue and Traffic Yellow was used for the base signage.

The Burj Khalifa – formerly the Burj Dubai – is a legendary building that can only be described in superlatives. At 828 metres high, it is the tallest building in the world. The Burj Khalifa has 160 floors, more than any building in the world. The building also has the highest floor, the highest façade made of aluminium and glass, the highest nightclub and the highest restaurant, the highest service lift and the lift with the longest travel distance. Finally, the building has the highest positioned revolving doors ever installed in a façade worldwide. In less than 30 years, Dubai has become the leading city in the Middle East and is known for its architectural and technical excellence. The Burj Khalifa has become the symbol of this progress. The Burj Khalifa also takes the title of the highest structure in the world back to the Middle East; the Great Pyramid of Giza used to hold the title 4 millennia ago. International Collaboration The tower was designed by architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merril, known for their designs for the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) and the new One World Trade Center in New York. The three-pronged design is based on the spider lily desert flower and consists of three elements around a central core, with the elements spiralling upwards. It can rightly be called an international project: the construction team consisted of Samsung Engineering & Construction employees from South Korea in collaboration with Besix from Belgium and Arabtec from the United Arab Emirates. The UK consultancy Hyder Consulting was responsible for overseeing construction of the building. In total, companies from more than 30 different countries contributed to the construction of the Burj Khalifa. A Windy Challenge The wind is quite a challenge when building a skyscraper of this size. Without additional measures, the top of the building would move so much from side to side due to the wind that people would become seasick. Dubai is also regularly tested by the shamals: sandstorms that can last for days. As the outer façade of the Burj Khalifa contains an enormous amount of glass, these weather conditions presented a considerable challenge. The three-part design proved to be the solution because the spiral floors break the wind currents around the building, resulting in a stable structure. The World's Highest Revolving Doors Skidmore, Owings & Merril's design includes an observation platform on the 124th floor of the building. Two glass revolving doors provide access to this room. At 442 metres above the ground, these are the highest positioned revolving doors ever installed in the façade of a building. The revolving doors must also be able to withstand an extremely high wind load of at least 3000 Pascal, which corresponds to an F3 class tornado. The Burj Khalifa required two automatic revolving doors with a diameter of 3,000 mm and a total height of 2,700 mm; the cover could only be 300 mm high with the motor installed. Generally speaking, a revolving door with these specifications would only be able to withstand wind loads of up to 689 Pascal. It was clear, then, that not every revolving door manufacturer could supply an entrance that met these requirements. Challenge Accepted Koninklijke Boon Edam was one of only two companies invited to devise a system for this challenge. There were two main problems that had to be solved: the round sides of the revolving door had to be strong enough to resist the wind, and the door set had to be properly fixed so the door wings could not be blown off during a storm. Boon Edam worked closely with Mace, the Hyder Consulting Group, Samsung Engineering and Construction and Turner Construction, the subcontractor, to develop a system that met all these requirements. During the first phase of the process, the second company invited to tender had to give up because their design did not meet the challenging conditions on the 124th floor. Boon Edam persisted in its efforts, and after conducting various wind load and glass tests, it became possible to adapt the construction of the Tourniket to the requirements of the Burj Dubai. A Tornado-Proof Revolving Door at the Burj Khalifa Our proposal for the Burj Khalifa consisted of a Tourniket with specially reinforced door frames twice the width and thickness of a normal revolving door. These were securely anchored with special bolts under the floor to guarantee the structure's rigidity. Although most revolving doors are installed on the top of the subfloor, this door was installed under the top finish layer of the concrete floor. To guarantee the stability of the door set, an extra-thick steel frame was added to the structure. This allows the door wings to easily withstand the wind pressure. Expansion on the 148th Floor in 2014 Boon Edam installed the same specially designed Tourniket revolving door on the 148th floor as on the 124th floor. However, the new project brought an extra challenge: transporting all of the materials from the basement of the building to the 148th floor. First, the materials had to be transported in one lift to the 111th floor. They were then transferred to a second lift, from where everything had to be moved manually from the 149th floor to the 148th floor, to the door's location. Special Projects Based on Standard Solutions The revolving doors we created for the Burj Khalifa were an extreme challenge. The experience and expertise of our technicians combined with the tried and tested technology of the Tourniket enabled us to develop a successful solution. Both revolving doors are now used daily and give visitors a spectacular view of Dubai. The glass design beautifully complements the modern façade of the observation platform and puts Dubai's beautiful skyline in the spotlight.

Northpoint Tower, centrally located in North Sydney CBD has been overhauled, with the redevelopment project including a newly-constructed hotel and a complete reclad of the façade using Vitracore G2.The use of Vitracore G2 in this reclad project has ensured a deemed non-combustible, durable and modern appearance to the development. Installer: ABS Facade.

The City of Boston is known for many things – from Fenway Park to the Boston Marathon to the bar from Cheers, the city is full of iconic landmarks, events, cultural assets, education centers, and more. The City is also recognised for its vast history, especially downtown, where hundred-year-old buildings have been preserved or restored. There is also a mixture of new property development, including 33 Congress Street, in the heart of the financial district, which combines the best of historical design with new construction. 33 Congress incorporates more than 400,000 square feet of office and retail space, transforming the historic neighborhood and positioning the area as a dynamic downtown destination. The project was designed by Arrowstreet, an award-winning architecture and design firm, and was led by Jason King, AIA, LEED, AP, BD+C, Senior Associate for Arrowstreet. Blending Historical Features with a Modern Design According to King, the 33 Congress Street building consisted of three different structures that were built at separate times: in 1904, 1906, and in 1922 and then all combined into one space. While the space functioned as one building, there were three separate elevator cores, sets of restrooms, sets of stairs, and more. Those entities needed to be reconfigured into one. The most striking feature of 33 Congress is a new, modern glass and steel structure, containing 6 additional floors of office space that sits on top of the original three masonry buildings. Another important project goal was to upgrade the main lobby to a modern design that allowed public access, increased security for building employees, and respected several historical aspects. “We needed a way to get people into the new, main elevator lobby quickly due to the high volume of traffic that we were anticipating would take place after the redesign,” King said. “We also wanted to create an entrance that would create a better flow of entry from the sidewalk into the building.” The original building had an existing revolving door, but it was small and surrounded by stone. “It was dark and uninviting,” King said. “We were creating an open and airy Class A lobby space and wanted visitors to clearly see the ornate, coffered ceiling and experience the grand and historic nature of the lobby as they entered.” Revolving Door and Speed Gates Provide Aesthetics and Function King implemented a Boon Edam Crystal Tourniket manual revolving door to lead visitors in the double height lobby space. The Crystal Tournket is constructed virtually completely from glass with only a few stainless steel accents to ensure the solidity of the revolving door. It fits seamlessly with modern glass facades but can also be a beautiful eye catcher in more traditional or classic designs. For employee access, the building’s previous design did not incorporate turnstiles to the elevator banks. “The building did have card reader access, but only at certain doors and locations,” King said. King installed four lanes of Boon Edam Lifeline Speedlane Swing speed gates and two Winglock Swing model access gates to provide secure employee access to the building’s upper floors. The Lifeline Speedlane Swing speed gate manages and channels the flow of people entering and moving around buildings. It employs sensors that detect visitors approaching, with pulsing light strips to guide the user. A sleep function saves on energy use. It can be customised with dimensional and glass choices, including corporate identity colors or other options, so that it either blends-in or stands-out from its surroundings. The Boon Edam Winglock Swing is constructed from stainless steel and a single glass panel, and is unobtrusive in nature and design. The access gate easily manages bi-directional traffic, with LED lights that signal if the gate is in use or on standby. The access gate ties into a manned security desk located near the front doors. Employees gain access to the building through either the Lifeline turnstiles, or a Winglock Swing access gate, while building visitors can receive credentials at the security desk. King said, “We started the process looking at Boon Edam from a security and an aesthetic standpoint. We went through multiple product options but always had a Boon Edam product as the basis of the design. We have been happy with Boon Edam entrance solutions and we are planning to use them again for future projects.”