Exclusive development

Cotswold Windows has supplied and installed motorised Sky-Frame doors on a lakeside development by Redrow, Elements at Cerney on the Water in Gloucestershire.

Sitting on the northern edge of Lake 16 in Cotswold Water Park, each Elements home has been designed to complement the surroundings. They combine traditional Cotswold stone, slate roofs and textured, weathered cladding with large expanses of glazing.

Central to the design were sliding doors spanning two floors, from ground to first floor. Each door was to be over 4m tall and 5m wide. Redrow appointed Cotswold Windows as glazing contractor as it could achieve the desired result without compromising the design. Its experience in handling and installing large glazed items in areas with restricted access was also a key factor.

The Toddington-based fabricator supplied Sky-Frame doors on two Elements homes, alongside a selection of Schueco windows and doors. The products were installed over a period of one month.

While the Sky-Frame system could easily meet the design requirements, the large panels created other challenges, specifically lifting and handling. Each glass panel weighed over 500kg.

The glass panels had to be lifted over the properties to the lake side. The Cotswold Windows installation team then used specialist tracked mini cranes to position the panels into the Sky-Frame doors.

With such heavy panels, operating the doors may have been a challenge for some homeowners and so Redrow selected the Sky-Frame fully integrated motorisation option.

The properties are arranged in an arc, sharing the water’s edge, a southerly aspect, and open views across the lake. With an exposed location and large panel sizes, Cotswold Windows needed a big, high-performance glass unit; they used 54mm units made from 10mm toughened laminate heat-soaked tested glass.

The Sky-Frame doors also achieve a frameless look and very narrow sightlines – 20mm where the panels meet.