The May edition of “1 month – 1 member” focuses on Palram and its London's Design District canteen, the city’s latest creative space on the Greenwich Peninsula (London - United Kingdom). The glazing of the canteen was fabricated using solid polycarbonate sheets which had enabled the architects to materialize their vision with a transparent envelope that offers a unique 360-degree view.
With a superb location and stunning views, the canteen further highlights the vibrant idea that Greenwich's new design district is a creative community open to all.
In designing the building envelope, the challenge was to make the interior spaces feel secluded and protected from the outside while maintaining an open street view. The vision was that the canteen would offer a warm, intimate atmosphere with a sense of peace, tranquillity, and cleanliness.
By emphasizing light, air, and openness, architecture has responded to the challenge.
The structure is designed as a bulging, transparent caterpillar with a glaring entrance. The interior is filled with sunshine and greenery. The main structure is made of metal beams and profiles, while the envelope is glazed with transparent, solid polycarbonate panels. The architecture provides a range of sitting options, from secluded galleries to open areas.
The glazing sheets had to be bent in order to create bulgy shapes.
Polycarbonate is a versatile material that can be bent, cut, and shaped easily. It has properties that make it strong, heat-resistant, and anti-reflective.
The entire project was covered with 700 square meters of 10mm PALSUN solid polycarbonate sheets. This solution solved the main architectural challenges of on-site cold bending, simple and easy installation, and excellent thermal and optical properties. Solid polycarbonate sheets of 10mm thickness provided excellent strength-to-weight ratios and were curved on-site to fit the structure.
While polycarbonate is similar to glass, it is more durable and less prone to damage. Unlike glass, polycarbonate is easy to fabricate and work with.
Polycarbonate was used as the glazing material of this architectural project because of its flexibility, lightweight, durability, and transparency.
From an architectural perspective, this is a very innovative glazing solution, combining cutting-edge design with a material that will withstand the test of time. Polycarbonate is an affordable and versatile material. It is used widely in construction and architecture by high-end designers worldwide.
For more information on Palram and their products : https://www.palram.com/
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