When the aging glass skylights of Terminal 4 at London’s Heathrow Airport were in need of repair, the challenge for the contractor was finding a way to keep the project moving with little disruption to the busy terminal while maintaining the airport’s security protocol.
18,836 square feet (1750 square meters) of Kalwall Skyroof® cladding were used above the terminal’s International Departure Lounge and check-in desks to replace the 30+ year old glass skylights. The Kalwall translucent sandwich panels are fully Aviation Security in Airport Development (ASAID) compliant with regards to blast performance. They also improve the solar control and thermal insulation for the space below. In fact, Kalwall 100™ panels were specifically chosen to exceed code requirements, therefore future-proofing the project.
The whole retrofit was completed externally using a custom moving scaffold during evening hours, meaning there was no disruption to the inside of the building. The lightweight translucent panels allowed for the existing substrate to be adapted and reused – a saving of nearly $9 million (£7m) in project costs and more than a year off the build timeline
Kalwall offers complete line-of-sight protection, maintaining privacy for the security screening area and departure lounges while bathing the interior with diffused daylighting, regardless of the weather. Apart from providing the visual protection, its inherent strength and heavy-duty impact resistance make it ideal for secure locations such as this. It offers the highest protection in terms of windborne debris and resistance to impact, abrasion and point loads. Not only is it person safe, but Kalwall achieves S:AA (BS 476 part 3) and Broof(t4) to EN 13501 part 5 for external fire performance.
The exterior face is color stable and includes a UV resistant, self-cleaning surface. This means that normal rainfall helps to keep the surface free of dust and dirt while at the same time retaining its original color during the weathering process.
Features and Benefits of Kalwall:
- Translucent structural sandwich panel
- Glare-free for balanced daylighting
- Superior thermal performance
- Energy and electricity saving
- Low maintenance
- Safety and security through visual privacy
- Durable and graffiti / vandal resistant
- Hurricane, explosion venting and blast rated options
Kalwall Specification:
| Panel: | 4˝ | 100 mm |
| Grid core: | shoji |
| Exterior FRP: | crystal |
| Interior FRP: | white |
| System finish: | clear anodized |
| U-Value: | .15 | .86 Wm2K |
| Solar Heat Gain Coefficient: | .09 |
| Visible Light Transmission: | 13% |
