Glass Innovation Award 2010

The glass Awards have been distributed during the 'Glasstec' in Düsseldorf, world's largest fair for building with glass. The Innovation Award 2010 went to the project 'Composite facade INHolland' of the University of INHolland in Delft. Octatube has been responsible for the design, engineering and installation of the facades, in collaboration with INHolland, AGC Westland and Rietveld Architects New York.

The facades and the entrance of the new building of INHolland in Delft are a world premier. The entrance consists of three surfaces: two wide facades at the front and left side, and one smaller facade at the right side.

Special about this smaller part is the omission of the bearing structure. The glass facade is completely flat at both sides, because pre-stressed cables of extremely strong aramide run through composite tubes in the cavity of the glass of 54 milimeters isolation panels. As the third application of composites in this facade, also the glass spacer is made of a composite material. Because of the risks of this very experimental facade detailling, the two other facades are completed in a less complex way. These facades are also referred to as 'frameless tissues'. The same aramide cables also span a height of 13 meters while the glass is attached to the cables. The double glass units have a thickness of 45 milimeters and this results in the thinnest glass-composite facade in the world. At extreme winds, the facades can be blown 30 centimeters inwards or outwards. The wind pressure is taken in by the cables that run vertically at the interior side. To prevent that the different facades are obstructing one eachother, a lens section is taken out over the full height of the glass panels at the corners.

INHolland, Octatube and AGC Westland have collaborately worked on the innovative facades, while naturally, the ambitions of the architects Margaret and Rijk Rietveld from Rietveld Architects New York, were a great stimulant. The department Research&Design of the Composite Lab of the University, as well as the direction of INHolland real estate, have been rewarded by the jury with this Innovation Award.

source: website Bouwbeurs
see also: news article on website INHolland