Tintable glass facade
23rd June 2020

An electronically tintable all-glass façade from SAGEGLASS, a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain forms part of the Cubic building in the innovation campus created for the Swiss technology group Bühler AG at Uzwil.

The company explains: “The curtain façade of large glass elements measuring 1,12 x 3,05 m is supported by an internal frame construction, which is connected to the building’s support structure with brackets. A third of the 535 glass elements were designed as opening elements. “The swinging elements can be opened automatically for ventilation and smoke extraction in the event of a fire. The exterior view of the all-glass surface has a uniform, delicate appearance and is divided only by thin joints between the glass elements. This façade design was used on all the vertical façades, including in the three courtyards.

“The structural glazing façade was built using Vario solar protection glass by SageGlass. Thanks to its tinting electrochromic coating, the smart glass can control the heat influx from sunlight – all while staying transparent and offering an unobstructed view of the outdoors. SageGlass Vario is a certified design variant for challenging all-glass façade applications. Even in bright conditions, the coating on the inside of the glass blocks heat from the sun before it enters the building. The CUBIC building required no external solar protection as a result. A total of 1 600 m² of SageGlass was installed – 450 m² of which was used for the courtyard façades.

“To maximize the flexibility of the space, the façade was divided into small sections. Two of each of the triple-glazed elements form a zone that can be tinted individually. This is important for controlling the solar protection, as the building’s façades are shaded to varying degrees by the neighboring buildings. Areas can also be reallocated when the room layout is changed to support flexible use of space. The façade tinting system is linked via a BACnet interface to the internal building management system, which is used to monitor and manage the entire building. In addition to automatic tinting via sensors that respond directly to changes in sunlight, the façade at the CUBIC building can also be controlled manually with touch panels.

When the sun shines, the façade darkens, constantly changing its appearance. A major advantage of SageGlass is its constant ability to react to its surroundings, even when tinted. This is much more beneficial to the employees in the building compared with internal or external solar protection. Moreover, the transition between the different tint levels is smooth and completely silent, preventing any disruption of operations.”

www.sageglass.com