Gulf Construction Online - Slim-line system meets market needs

Glass & Aluminium

Decovec BL 54 ... was used to create the facades of the Dubai Police headquarters.

Slim-line system meets market needs

01 October 2005

Installux Aluminium, one of the leading aluminium systems in the Gulf, has recently expanded its large range of aluminium systems with a four-sided structural glazing curtain-wall.

Already used in two projects in the Gulf, Decovec BL 54 is characterised by its slim-line 54-mm-wide aluminium mullion, and transoms.
“This system is a further enhancement to Installux’s popular Decoface curtain-wall range, which can now easily satisfy the full range of curtain-wall needs for any project – from traditional two-sided curtain-wall and skylights to the four-sided structural glazing applications,” explains Basim Al-Saie, general manager of the Bahrain-based Installux Gulf, the regional subsidiary of Installux France.
The new system complements Installux’s range, which hitherto comprised two traditional four-sided structural glazing series, VEC, and VEC BL – which have wider 74-mm aluminium mullions and transoms, and where the glazing is bonded to an independent aluminium frame, he points out.
Al Saie continues: “We have developed the Decovec BL 54 based on our customers’ needs for a product that is slimmer and more cost-effective. The system is unique in that the glazing is bonded directly onto a very slim black anodised profile, without requiring expensive special double-glazing spacers that are generally used by other systems. This allows the curtain-wall system to utilise standard double-glazing units for structural glazing applications.
“Another feature of Decovec BL 54 is that it has a narrow gap of 14 mm in between the glazing units, which are secured to the structure by special aluminum retaining clips fixed at regular intervals directly onto the mullions and transoms.
“All openable panels are concealed and can be installed on the smallest of mullions.”
“This product is the result of close collaboration with our partner in Dubai, Alumco, and was used in the prestigious Dubai police headquarters. The project stands testimony to the capability of the company to develop specialised products based on the requirements of the projects and the market, he comments.
The system has also been supplied to Ahlia Aluminium, Installux’s fabricator in Kuwait, and Al Saie is confident that many more projects will utilise the new system in the near future.