SubscribeWith its three glass domes forming an unmistakeable part of west London’s skyline, the Chelsea Harbour development combines luxury flats and premium office space with an exclusive three-storey shopping mall.
Stunning they may be, but the glass domes have been problematic for the owners, with excessive summer temperatures making the mall uncomfortable for staff and customers. In December 2004, architects Din Associates sought the help of CPFilms to address the problem.
As well as making temperatures uncomfortable, the solar heat gain significantly increased the load on the air conditioning plant. Din Associates was looking for a performance window film that would reduce the solar heat gain, but which was also almost imperceptible. In other words, they needed a film that had a high visible light transmission but with good solar energy rejection properties.
The architects enquired about the use of externally applied film because of the problems with access internally to each dome, but CPFilms offered a selection of three internally applied films because of the aesthetic, performance and durability benefits internal films afford, plus the specialist access methods that could be employed to apply the film. CPFilms realised from the outset that this would be a specialist job, so they called on the expertise of Solarshield - a CPFilms Accredited Installer - who have handled such projects in the past.
Budget prices were given to the architect and a CPFilms LLumar® solar control performance film was selected - LLumar® Film Type VS61 SR CDF. Taking into consideration the glazing within the dome, this film provided a visible light transmission of 54% and a total solar energy rejection of 47% - and it came with a 10 year warranty.
Once a trial of the film was approved, several meetings then took place between the architect, the project managers (Buro Four) and the main contractors, ISG plc, to address the issue of access for the installers whilst leaving the shopping centre trading as normal. Solarshield suggested using a platform above the second floor of each dome from which mobile towers could be used to reach the top of the domes - a method approved by all the parties, including health and safety officers.
Due to the often extreme heat experienced within the domes during the summer, it was agreed that work would start at dawn, stop at midday and take two weeks per dome. "The work was completed by Solarshield on time and within budget without any problems - quite a feat considering the difficulty of the project," comments Ray Copping of CPFilms.
"Once the film had been applied, the temperatures in the dome were considerably lower - which the client noticed immediately." Not only were the films working by reducing solar gain but the film worked well in terms of aesthetics - it is very difficult to see the visual difference between a "filmed" pane and an "un-filmed" pane.
