Perfect integration of blinds on curtain wall

A lot of glass means a lot of heat gain from sunlight and often trouble from glare inside. Solar shading is basically the right solution for this. However, shading often detracts from the architectural appearance of the facade. There is now a solution to that. AVZ-Group (AVZ, Smits, SunStock and Hylas) is a developer and manufacturer of sunscreens. Their SolidScreen line has enjoyed unprecedented popularity with both business and residential users for years. To meet the desire to be able to provide curtain walls with solar shading as well, without compromising the style and appearance of the facade, AVZ-Group developed the SolidScreen CW50. "A product from our own R&D department," says Eric van den Broek, business development manager at AVZ-Group.

Shading can play an important role within BENG

Van den Broek: "Good shading fits perfectly within the playing field of Nearly Energy Neutral Buildings, or BENG. For too long shading has been the poor relation, while the advantages are enormous: what you don't heat up, you don't have to cool. With our SolidScreen, you weather the sunlight before it has passed the glass. That makes a huge difference in energy consumption in summer, because you need less forced cooling. And in winter, the stagnant air between the screen fabric and the glass functions as an insulator, which saves heat loss inside. So less heating costs!" The conclusion, therefore, is that solar shading contributes to making a building more sustainable.

Narrow guides

The SolidScreen CW50 is designed so that its construction integrates nicely with the slender and slim profiles of a curtain wall. "This makes this screen ideal for project applications," Van den Broek continues. "If there is a center guide, it too integrates almost seamlessly. The SolidScreen CW50 center guide is only 50 mm wide, just as wide as the profiles of the curtain wall. Aesthetically very attractive. There is no need to fear light leakage between fabric and guide; our SolidScreen system is a so-called 'zipper screen'. The zippers welded to the sides of the fabric run in plastic rebates, which in turn are located in the guides. The zipper guide in the SolidScreen CW50 not only makes the product extremely wind-resistant, but also prevents light leakage past the fabric. The right choice at any installation height, providing an improvement in both visual comfort and a pleasant indoor climate."

The side guides are only 25 mm wide and therefore do not stand out. "From the inside, therefore, the screen does not form an optical obstacle. Those who would like to combine several screens in one upper box can do so. Up to three screens can be coupled on one motor. The maximum width of the screen box is 7.4 meters. To add to the aesthetic story, SolidScreen CW50 is supplied in all available RAL colors."

Ideal way of mounting

The screen guide is fixed directly into the nose of the facade by means of a mounting profile. This makes mounting fast, easy and sturdy. Thanks to this mounting profile, the system can be mounted tension-free on the covering strip of the curtain wall. Another great advantage is that the complete screen is almost directly aligned to the facade. This provides a nice savings in assembly time. The added value in facade construction lies in solutions such as the AVZ-Group mounting profile.

Finally, Van den Broek says, "Let us facilitate the shading towards the façade builder, then they can keep the focus on the façade."