Warm edge cubed

Posted On - 05/02/2018
Posted By - Glass Times

The Opus is a 21-storey tower – designed by Zaha Hadid, and which pushes physical and technological boundaries to achieve its melting ice-cube shape – used Edgetech’s Super Spacer TriSeal, in its construction.

Edgetech’s managing director Chris Alderson said: “The Opus is quite simply one of the most staggering and ambitious architectural projects attempted this decade.

“It’s got a 6,000m2 flowing glass facade, a curved, 38m-long, earthquake-proof glass bridge connecting two towers, and at night the structure is lit up by thousands of individually controlled LEDs. Its central ‘void’ section consists of 4,554 irregularly-shaped IGUs, the vast majority of which were completely unique.

“That called for a very specific type of spacer bar. Firstly, we couldn’t use automated application – virtually every IGU used on the project was a different shape. Secondly, rigid spacers were out of the question – they couldn’t practically be moulded into the weird and wonderful shapes that were required.

“And thirdly, we needed something that offered the highest possible level of performance. In hot climates, in particular, a warm edge spacer has to work hard to hermetically seal the space between the panes. Due to the thermal interaction between hot sunlight and shadows, strong mechanical forces permanently act on the edge compound due to the movement of the glass.”

TriSeal incorporates an inner acrylic adhesive seal for immediate unit handling, a polyisobutylene primary seal for enhanced gas retention and low moisture vapour transmission, and an outer silicone seal for structural strength and durability.