Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to site search
  • Home
  • All articles of topic façade

All articles of topic façade

The grid shell construction by seele, which has now been uncovered, consists of 403 nodes and a supporting structure made of 110 tons of steel.
Glass dome for Stuttgart 21

seele: Masterpieces in glass and steel

-

The completion of the first glass grid shell for the new Stuttgart railway station marks a significant milestone for the Stuttgart 21 infrastructure project. With the completion of this impressive steel and glass dome by seele, a visible connection between the new underground track hall and the city center has been created for the first time.

Glass facade

Okalux transforms Canadian former school into civic centre

-

Heritage meets innovation in Ontario, Canada: +VG Architects revitalised a historic school into a vibrant community hub. With wooden louvres embedded in glass, the facade delivers daylight, solar control and a warm, modern aesthetic – all while respecting the past.

40 Leadenhall Street, London

AGC Interpane: The latest ‘green’ skyscraper for the City of London

-

40 Leadenhall Street is one of the largest building projects ever completed in the historic City of London: 85,000 square metres of floor space for10,000 building users. For the glass facade, structural silicone-bonded double glazing, AGC Interpane Architectural Glass supplied more than 30,000 square metres of ‘Stopray Vision 60’ solar control insulating glass. Here are the details.

Alamir Mohsen, CEO Lithium Designers, Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
Alamir Mohsen from Lithium Designers

3 answers: 3D-printed facade nodes – from theory to practical applications

-

Turning groundbreaking research into real-world applications takes persistence and vision. Lithium Designers has moved from academic roots to international projects — and continues to expand its 3D-printing solutions for facades on a global scale.

Interview

Presenting the new event manager for FENSTERBAU FRONTALE: Chiara Sträßner

-

Chiara Sträßner is taking over the organization of the trade fair for windows, doors and facades. Elke Harreiß, who has been with the trade fair for over 20 years, will remain as Head of Department. In this short interview, Chiara Sträßner talks about her connection to trade fairs and her goals for the future direction of FENSTERBAU FRONTALE.

Alamir Mohsen, CEO Lithium Designers, Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
Alamir Mohsen from Lithium Designers

3 answers: 3D-printed facade nodes – structural stability with less waste

-

Sustainability, structural performance, and manufacturing constraints are critical factors in facade construction. The use of 3D-printed nodes offers new answers to old challenges – from reducing material waste to outperforming traditional components.

BIPV

PV for multi-family homes in Germany – Part 2

-

Photovoltaics, both in the facade and on the roof, clearly is a key source of power for the residential sector. Not all residential buildings are the same, however. Four models of implementing PV in multi-family homes are possible: In Part 1 we showed you how the power can be either used within the entire building or just to operate the shared services. Today we present the other two models.

The FireUP testing centre has a horizontal testing furnace…
Greece

ift Rosenheim expands testing options for its Greek customers

-

A cooperation between ift Rosenheim and the University of Patras in Greece allows them to meet the growing demands of their customers. With its "FireUP" fire testing centre, the University of Patras provides the testing facilities for preliminary tests and official ift tests. More on the cooperation here.

Retrofitting

Seen Elements: Modern bird protection for German modern art museum

-

While glass facades are an indispensable part of contemporary architecture, they often pose a risk to birds. At the Museum Folkwang in the German city of Essen, this problem was resolved using marking elements from Seen. The measure combines effective bird protection with design restraint.

Alamir Mohsen, CEO Lithium Designers, Frankfurt/Main (Germany)
Alamir Mohsen from Lithium Designers

3 answers: 3D-printed facade nodes – a game changer in architecture

-

Innovative construction methods are transforming the way facades are designed and built — and 3D-printed facade nodes plays a key role in this shift. From unlocking geometric freedom to streamlining digital workflows, these technologies are redefining structural components like nodes.

Pediatric Cancer Center Barcelona
Healing architecture

Smart door systems in the new oncology center in Barcelona

-

The SJD Pediatric Cancer Center in Barcelona is one of the largest children's cancer centers in Europe. Geze supported the implementation of healing architecture with integrated door systems that combine accessibility, safety, hygiene, and an appealing design.

Award entries wanted!

FENSTERBAU FRONTALE 2026 trade fair launches new Innovation Award

-

This is a strong signal for the future of the industry being sent by FENSTERBAU FRONTALE 2026: Next year, the trade fair will be presenting its Innovation Award for the first time. The new award is intended to recognize groundbreaking new products that impress with their innovative strength and appeal – and thus create real added value for the world of windows, doors, and facades.

The Rudolfshütte mountain hotel in the Hohe Tauern National Park in Austria.
heroal

How heroal is equipping the Rudolfshütte alpine hotel in Austria

-

At an altitude of 2315 m, accessible only by gondola, the Rudolfshütte mountain hotel welcomes its guests on the shores of the Weißsee lake. The traditional hotel in Austria's Hohe Tauern National Park has been fitted with heroal window and door systems, which ensure energy efficiency and comfort with optimum tightness even in strong gusts of wind.

Glass Performance Days 2025

H.B. Fuller | Kömmerling presents the latest in energy-efficient solutions

-

H.B. Fuller | Kömmerling will be participating in the Glass Performance Days (GPD) in Tampere, Finland, from June 10 to 12, 2025. At the Nokia Arena, the company will be presenting its forward-looking technologies and solutions for the further development of the modern glass industry under the headline “Glass – The In/Visible Impact”.

Advanced Building Skins Conference & Expo 2025

What will the facades of the future look like?

-

At the Advanced Building Skins Conference & Expo in Bern on November 3 and 4, 2025, over 100 international architects, engineers, scientists, and representatives of the construction industry will present new projects and developments in building envelope design. Here you will find details and the registration link.

Solar control glass

Redefining West Palm Beach’s skyline with revolutionary glass innovation

-

One Flagler, a 25-story, 285,000-square-foot office tower in downtown West Palm Beach, is now a beacon of modern design and sustainability. Developed by Related Ross and designed by SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill), the property sets a new standard for luxury office spaces and highlights innovative Solarban R77 Acuity glass by Vitro Architectural Glass.

Warm edge

H.B. Fuller | Kömmerling: A canyon running through a facade

-

In the One River North building in Denver, an artificial canyon winds its way through the 16-story structural glazing facade – a spectacular architectural detail and a complex function for the facade glass. These were implemented using the Ködispace 4SG warm edge system, which ensures energy efficiency in accordance with IGU units under the extreme climatic conditions of the city.

Nordic Facade Forum 2025

Building boldly and sustainably: A talk with James O’Callaghan

-

James O’Callaghan, co-founder of Eckersley O’Callaghan, is recognized as a leading pioneer in structural glass. More recently, he has played a crucial role in designing the world’s tallest hybrid timber building: the Atlassian Tower in Sydney. He will be a keynote speaker at Nordic Facade Forum 2025 in Helsinki. Here are some insights you can expect from him.

Permasteelisa Group

Facade builder Gartner secures contract in London

-

Facade contractor Gartner has secured the contract for the design, supply and installation of the exterior facade for the 50 Fenchurch Street high-rise project in London. The 36-storey building was designed by Eric Parry Architects. As part of this project, Gartner will work closely with its British colleagues of Permasteelisa UK.

Bird protection for facade glass can now also be retrofitted.
Bird protection

Hegla boraident: Bird protection for retrofitting with mobile laser unit

-

Glass facades and window fronts can quickly become deadly traps for birds, as they do not perceive the glass as an obstacle and fly into it. Bird protection glass can significantly reduce this risk. Hegla boraident offers a mobile laser application that can be used to apply a protective pattern to glass retrospectively, which is an interesting new field of work for installation companies and facade builders.

Warm edge spacers

Swisspacer: Belgium sea views stretching to the horizon

-

A new architectural landmark now graces the beach promenade of the popular Belgian seaside resort of Knokke-Heist: The Heldentoren with its two sister buildings offers its residents panoramic views to the sea. Insulating glass featuring the Swisspacer Ultimate warm edge spacer ensures living comfort behind the glass facades.

Val Voznyi of GlazingAI

3 answers: How can European glass and facade players handle the US tariff wars?

-

The situation concerning tariffs in the US is currently unpredictable. Against this background, the question arises as to whether it would make sense for European suppliers for the glass industry to establish additional branches elsewhere in North America, e.g. in Canada, a highly developed and mature market. And with tariffs also impacting Canada, it may be in the country’s interest to open up to the wider world. Our expert Val Voznyi lives in Canada and has answers.

Andreas Engelhardt (left), personally liable partner of Schüco, and Raimund Heinl, CEO of Saint-Gobain Germany and Austria, want to promote glass recycling in the construction industry through the joint cooperation.
Glass recycling

Saint-Gobain and Schüco enter into partnership

-

The reuse of glass is becoming increasingly important for the construction industry. In order to promote glass recycling, Schüco and Saint-Gobain Glass Germany are now entering into a partnership to jointly utilise used glass from existing buildings for the material cycle and bundle material flows.

USA

Updated NGA guidance outlines glass performance in solar applications

-

The National Glass Association in the US has refreshed its technical paper on glass characteristics for photovoltaic systems, supporting both manufacturers and end users with up-to-date insights.

London

AGC: Glazing so close to heaven

-

The London skyscraper 8 Bishopsgate combines a striking tiered design with high-tech sustainability features – from active facades with intelligent glass to energy reuse systems. Its use of AGC Interpane glazing and cradle-to-cradle materials helps it earn top environmental certifications.