Bringing together more than eight decades of technical industry
experience, fire glass experts Pyroguard have completed an
ambitious testing programme in partnership with Aluprof a new,
cost-efficient, non-insulated, slimline fire-resistant glazing system
for the UK and European market.
Following two years of collaboration, the new MB-45EW framing
system has been developed and rigorously tested for applications
where non-insulated screens and doors are required. A first for
the UK market, the slim system exceeds the current ratings of E30
and EW requirements with additional radiation reduction. Suitable
for internal applications, the framing system also offers a smoke-
proof screen arrangement with doors, compliant with EN13502-
2. Pyroguard Integrity Plus glass is the first fire glazing tested
and certified for the new system delivering El 15 and EW30 fire
performance along with 1B1 impact protection.
Wojciech Brozyna, Managing Director at Aluprof UK, commented:
“As we strive to deliver a solution which is effective, cost-efficient
and aesthetically pleasing to suit the needs of specifiers today, we
had to overcome several challenges. The expertise of Pyroguard
has been invaluable and by combining our efforts throughout the
testing phase we have created a solution which exceeds current
safety requirements to deliver advanced protection.”
“Glazing often plays a vital role in modern buildings, but meeting
functional safety requirements needn’t come at the expense of
aesthetics,” says Vince Crook, Technical Director at Pyroguard. “By
collaborating with Aluprof, we’ve been able to develop a fully-
accredited and certified framing solution which utilises the key
characteristics of our high-performing products – namely design
and 1B1-classified impact protection, in addition to essential EI 15
and EW30 safety requirements.”
In what is believed to be a first for the industry, the cap-less, fire
rated curtain wall system MB-SR50N EI EFKT has recently been
specified on a refurbishment development in Manchester. The
project, known as ‘The Core’, is located at 24-30 Brown Street in
Manchester city centre.
A fire rating of EI60 was required on part of the new cap-less, curved
glass facade on the top floor. Aluprof’s new system, MB-SR50N EI
efekt, enabled the architect to have a cap-less fire rated system
With the old heavy red brick facade removed and window openings
made much larger, the new office development has been finished to
shell to allow tenants to customise their space, following the trend
for more individually designed workspaces. The central light-well
has been opened up and windows enlarged to further add light into
all floors.
The project team for the refurbishment, managed by OBI, included
PRP Architects, Russells Construction, Tier Consult as structural
engineer, and REDS, M&E advisor.
Serving the whole of the UK and Ireland, Aluprof UK’s head office
and warehouse facility is located in Altrincham, Cheshire. Aluprof
systems are increasingly being specified on a wide range of
residential and commercial projects across the UK. Systems are
designed, fabricated and installed by selected, specially trained
local companies, to ensure each fabricated product meets Aluprof’s
exacting standards.
Further information is available on the company’s website at
www.aluprof.co.uk and specialist advice is available directly from
Aluprof’s UK head offices on +44 (0) 161 941 4005 or from their
London office, based at the Business Design Centre, Islington, on
+44 (0) 207 288 6415.
Originally built in the mid-1980s as the headquarters for law firm
Halliwells, the building, also formerly known as St James’s Court,
has been given an £8 million overhaul to replace the facade and
re-fit the internals. The Core comprises 48,000 sq.ft of office space
over six floors including a new 7,500 sq.ft roof-top extension. It is
this new upper floor that proved a challenge for the architects PRP
as the planners insisted on parts of the new facade would need
to be fire rated due to the proximity of other buildings and future
developments.
whilst at the same time seamlessly blending in with areas which
did not require a fire rating. Dan Holden of facade specialists Casu
Consulto who designed and installed the facade takes up the story,
“We were going down the route of a steel system for this project
until we were introduced to this new system by Aluprof. To achieve
a cap-less fire rated curtain wall system is a big development for
the industry, but to be able to have the fire rated system on one
side of a mullion and non-fire rated on the other side in a seamless
transition, is truly impressive.”