Technals's MC Trame Curtain Wall Creates 4-Storey Curved Façade

Designed by Nightingale Associates, the six-storey clinical building at King's College Hospital has a fully glazed, curved façade created using 2,000 sqm of Technal's MC Trame Horizontale curtain walling.

The £76m PFI scheme developed by a Costain/Skanska consortium for King's Healthcare NHS Trust, provides a wide range of facilities including a new maternity unit, medical wards and a large ambulatory care centre to replace an inadequate outpatients department.

The building is located on an extremely tight site, with natural light coming mostly from two sides. The north facing elevation is fully glazed in Technal's MC Trame Horizontale facetted curtain walling which spans four storeys to give maximum daylight, space planning flexibility and to allow views across London from the upper floors.

The aerofoil MC Trame cap runs across the façade providing horizontal emphasis and was also used to form an arrow head return at the extreme ends of the glazed screen to add interest and accentuate the curve.

"The Trame system fitted in with the scale of the building and allowed us to have a bold façade for the new wing, which has impact and a distinctive visual appearance", said David Cannon, Project Director at Nightingale Associates.

He added, "The curtain walling is facetted to produce a gentle curve – a much more cost-effective solution than curved glass. The arrow head fins finish off the curtain walling and the concealed windows help to naturally ventilate the building."

An opaque square pattern is etched onto the glazed spandrel panels to conceal services between floors. The design has a different appearance in different light conditions, creating a range of effects and a changing façade.

Fabricated and installed by St Gobain Solaglas, the curtain walling was glazed in smoked grey tinted glass to reduce glare and carries around 200 top hung concealed windows from Technal's MC suite to provide natural ventilation.