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Bremen Technology Park Innovative architecture

Refined foam aluminium sliding shutters

Facts & Figures

Architect: Johannes Schneider Architekten BDA

Building owner: Materialise GmbH

Region: Bremen

 

 

 

New premises with an unmistakable metal facade

Materialise commissioned the building of its new premises in the Bremen Technology Park. The 3500 m2 building is home to a 4-storey office wing, a hall stretching two floors high and a linking building with a roof terrace. The facade is clad with large-format aluminium panels and, as a special feature, is fitted with a new kind of sun protection system that has unusually thin shutters made of aluminium foam. The particularly fine design creates dramatic lighting moods that cannot even be imagined just by looking at the panels.

Nature and metal in brilliant synergy

Aluminium foams have been turned into attractive design elements to cover surfaces in recent years. But this is the first time foam aluminium panels have been used as sun protection elements. Their 60% closed-cell structure in conjunction with neutral sun protection glass offer excellent sun protection. Aluminium foam is not just especially light, thermally-insulating and sound-absorbing, it also combines the brilliant beauty of metal with the stylish appearance of a porous natural stone.

Sun protection with an organic feel

228 sliding shutter sheets were installed in total – 85 of them are electric, 96 can be opened and closed by hand, and 47 are fixed design elements. The electric sliding shutters can be operated either via a central unit or in the room. The particularly light frame in RAL 9007 (grey aluminium) was pressed with a special aluminium alloy to fulfil the static requirements of wind load zone 3. Each panel is distinctively unique with an organic cell structure that not only provides excellent sun and glare protection, but also creates translucent lighting effects with undeniable flair.