Fire protection with Pilkington advanced glazing

Where buildings are tightly packed together, it can be hard to achieve daylight-flooded spaces due to the threat of fire spreading. However, Pilkington may have a solution to deal with this.

Pilkington’s Pyroclear® Plus insulating double-glazed units was used for the refurbishment of 7 Aylesbury Street by developers Meritcape.

With developers wanting to fill every floor of the converted historic warehouse building in Clerkenwell, East London with natural light, they faced a problem.

This was because the rear of the property was just three metres away from a neighbouring building, therefore the external walls had to meet building regulations regarding specifications on fire resistance.

These regulations are the minimum requirements for how long they can contain smoke and flames  and, in insulation terms, how long they can prevent the escape of heat.

Pilkington Pyroclear® Plus insulating double-glazed units have been introduced to the rear façade of the building.

Pyroclear® delivers not only the correct level of fire resistance, but it has also been designed to give excellent thermal insulation (U-value) properties to reduce heat-loss from the building.

Steve Bond, technical and customer support manager, fire, at Pilkington United Kingdom Limited, commented: “When you have two buildings this close together, standard glazing is not an option, as it doesn’t put up enough of a barrier to fire spreading outwards from the building.

“That’s where fire-resistant glazing can make a big difference. By providing protection against fire while also letting light flow in, we can create light-filled spaces in very built-up parts of the city where not long ago it wouldn’t have been possible.

“As well as sealing in flames and smoke for at least an hour, the glass also provides radiation shielding that reduces the amount of heat energy that can pass outwards through the glass – another key means of spreading fire.”

In total, 800m2 of Pilkington glass was used throughout, including in the front façade of the building.

Here, hundreds of custom-sized small double-glazed solar-control units were used to imitate the crittall steel-framed windows that are a signature feature of buildings in the area.

Davood Kiani, Senior Project Consultant at Meritcape, commented: “Those looking for modern commercial space expect floorplans to be well lit with natural light, and this is one of the main design challenges when working with buildings in the most densely urban areas of the city.

“Fire regulations are one of the big reasons for this, so Pilkington fire-resistant glazing means we can achieve the best of both worlds – a building that meets or exceeds all of the safety regulations while also feeling spacious and airy.”

Contact:

Pilkington United Kingdom Limited,
Greengate Works,
Sherdley Road,
St. Helens,
Merseyside,
United Kingdom,
WA9 5 DZ

Phone: 01744 692000
Fax: 01744 692569

Visit Pilkington Building Products' website

Visit Supplier's page