Architectural aluminium glazing specialist, Technal, has worked in partnership with Allan Murray Architects, Miller Construction and Systems Aluminium to help deliver a striking new building at the acclaimed Edinburgh Park in Scotland.
The £10m scheme, developed by New Edinburgh Limited, is an interesting application of Technal’s MC curtain walling, and several variations of the system were used to create a crisp, well detailed envelope for this prominent building that forms the new entrance to Edinburgh Park.
Fabricated and installed by Systems Aluminium, 2,500 sqm of MC curtain walling were finished in black to contrast sharply with the white rendering and curved façades. This ‘family’ of architectural elements, which also includes brise soleil sunshading with a large white aerofoil profile, features across a number of buildings at the recently developed ‘A’ site at Edinburgh Park.
Unusually, the architects used an abstract arrangement of transoms and mullions in varying sizes and a special cap to several key areas of the building. There is facetted MC curtain walling to the north elevation, curved aluminium and glass at the main entrance, and long runs of MC grid curtain walling to support the brise soleil sunshading on the south elevation. 700 sqm of smoke-rated glazed screens separate the offices from the central atrium and fritted MC roof glazing above floods the heart of the building with a soft natural light.
Commenting on the scheme, Kenny McNally, Project Architect at Allan Murray Architects, said, “We had a good relationship with Technal from the early stages of the project. MC is a good, robust curtain walling system and we are very pleased with its performance both during design development and installation.”
He added, “We were also impressed with Technal’s approach to working closely with ourselves, all the relevant subcontractors and Miller Construction on the detailing throughout the design and construction phases, which we felt was very valuable and definitely contributed to the finished building.”
The curtain walling is glazed in clear glass with a low E coating, opaque spandrel panels conceal the structural elements, and obscured glass was specified at floor level for the ‘modesty’ zones.
The A1 building at Edinburgh Park provides 61,000 sqft of highly flexible speculative office accommodation over 3 floors with car parking concealed below ground level. There is a rich variety of pedestrian spaces surrounding the building, with characterful landscaping to create a feeling of community and activity. An underlying principle of the award-winning masterplan is the structured sequence of entrances, gardens, courtyards and squares, and amenities such as seating, fountains, steps and pergolas, which help to enhance and animate the urban environment. All the buildings are arranged so their main façades and entrances address the central public space to create a density that relates more to the city than the ‘green field’ environment of typical business parks.
Technal’s MC curtain walling range illustrates the design possibilities of aluminium and glass, and enables specifiers to explore complex shapes and forms with the reassurance of a proven, high performance system. Options include high-rise grid curtain walls, tilt/turn and top hung concealed windows, facetted and sloped roof glazing.
Website is free and open to all professionals. To beneficiate from Technal services and solutions.
Register