GLATT TOWER - Wallisellen, Switzerland

Description

Located between the Zurich city and the airport, the Glatt Tower gleams brightly over the Glatt, Switzerland’s highest-revenue shopping mall. Its 12 floors feature fully equipped, modern, cooled rooms, a lobby, and conference and event rooms. The 40-year-old tower, landmark of the Zurich agglomeration, was in need of renovation. The new building shell is made of SageGlass, the smart glass from Saint-Gobain. It unites architecture and sustainability in a revolutionary way.

The square floor plan and the external shape of the office tower were retained during the renovation. However, the tower was completely “skeletonized” in order to create a modern room layout and to implement the new façade which consists of more than 1,000 prefabricated façade elements that were fitted from floor to ceiling with triple-insulated electrochromic SageGlass.

The installation of an exterior solar protection was not an option due to the wind loads on the top of the façade. The innovative smart glass eliminates the need for blinds and shades as it automatically adapts to the weather conditions throughout the day. Each façade side silently and automatically changes its light transmission levels and solar factor in response to the measured solar energy with the overall aim of protecting the tower from overheating, effectively reducing air-conditioning costs. SageGlass also keeps the building envelope transparent even when the sun is shining, meaning that the tower’s occupants can see out at all times and benefit from the amazing views of the surroundings and a maximized daylight. This creates ideal working conditions for them to be more comfortable and thus concentrate better and be more productive.

Thanks to its dynamic glass facade, the Glatt Tower was able to keep its original shape while also meeting the latest modernity and ecological standards.