The roof comprises a total of 74 three-ply laminated panes in sizes of up to 5.5 x 2m which are supported on a steel structure weighing 85t in total. The 38 stainless steel cantilever beams are made from milled solid stainless steel sections tensioned with tie bars and fabricated in seele’s own plant in Plzeň. A pattern printed on the glass lends the roof glazing a feeling of vitality, but also regulates the transmittance of light and heat.
The largest of the 24 panes making up the façade measures 1.4 x 5.5m and each pane weighs 460kg. The joint between façade and glass roof permits movement. From inside the building, the uninterrupted glass façade permits spectacular views of the area in front of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial and also the city skyline.
seele initially built a mock-up of the proposed solution on its own testing grounds in Gersthofen. The mock-up consisted of three cantilever beams and the roof panes mounted on these plus the bent façade panes, and this was presented to the architect and the client as the result of the planning work.
Reference overview and Header image: © Nic Lehoux
