Smaller
Projects
Small projects are equally difficult and
often unproportionally big time and effort-consumers in comparison with large
ones.
The cost
efficient scope of consulting and designing services of our company were large
developments.
We seldom saw small projects. Our firm accepted only these of
them, which presented unusual technical challenges, after they were declined by
all other engineering companies. This was a last resort of desperation and
usually involved a great deal of emotional attachment on owners'
side.
The one I
decided to present here is the glass annex (winter garden) designed on octagonal
plan, what makes it unstable for side wind. We received this commission after
all major and minor architectural aluminum subcontractors' engineering
departments rejected the architectural design.
The architectural design
was a typical assembly of impossible elements: glass size exceeding production
limits, mullion size, length and modulation exceeding production
limits and structural capabilities of typical steel and aluminum
alloys. The architectural design also ruled out
any additional support and any diagonal bracing for sake of transparency.
The curtain wall eave has been designed too narrow to stiffen the structure
diagonally, nor to accommodate the perimeter stiffening band. Additionally, the
eave has been designed straight on the line of average human view at height + 2m
(6'-7"). This was one of reasons, why we were not allowed to widen the
eave, in effort to make some room for stiffening band. The
vertical mullions made different angles in three planes, creating fancy
transitions, what made all efforts to solve this problem within any
off-the-shelf system solution beyond discussion.
Fortunately we have
eventually designed custom steel four-way adjustable joints of mullions, small
enough to hide them in a tiny space of eave.
They are presented on the
drawings below.
Another
construction problem example: The architectural design demanded rafter mullion
profiles beyond actual maximum lenght limit of production - standard produced
lenght is 14,000 mm (approx 46ft) and even usage of the strongest profile
with additional strenthtening steel insert, piled inside the aluminium
mullion profile - it still was too weak, taking weight of snow into account. The
architect desired to achieve effect of a light, free space and did not allow to
support the roof on poles or to use any supporting superstructure. We have
proposed the tensioned rods attached underside the rafter mullions, which
solution has eventually satisfied the architect.
Last modification 02.27.2005