The gem of Sheffield University reflecting the skill of Czech glassmakers

The University of Sheffield is a public research university that was established in 1897 through the merger of three institutions. In 2015, it was expanded with the addition of a faculty of engineering building, providing students with what may be the best-equipped technical teaching spaces and laboratories in the UK. The building, with a usable area of 19,500 m², accommodates about five thousand students.

The main goal of the architects was to create an environment suitable for work across the entire spectrum of engineering disciplines, from education and research to practice. In the central part of the building, there is an atrium with facilities for students, from which there is a view into the glass classrooms, laboratories, and offices. The interior is illuminated thanks to skylights and other glass elements.

Tempered Glass with Solar Control Coating

The façade of the faculty of engineering consists of 803 glazed modules, each containing between two and twelve pieces of insulating triple glazing. A total of six basic types were needed, with each of the six groups including glass of various shapes, sizes, colors, and finishes. According to Martin Najman, technical and project manager at HELUZ IZOS, this project represented the most challenging order in the company's history.

Ninety percent of the glazing was made from thermally toughened glass (IZOS Protect) for safety reasons. All the glass used on the façade has a solar control coating (IZOS Shadow), preventing overheating of the interior even without the use of external shading techniques that would disrupt the aesthetics of the façade. Additionally, some glass was fitted with a special milky film.

The modules, which form system aluminum profiles in black, typically measure 1.8 × 4.5 meters, with the largest reaching a height of 5.5 meters. The final façade cladding is made of specially bent aluminum sheets of various lengths with a thickness of two millimeters. The exterior façade consists of a total of 10,814 pieces of these sheets with a bronze finish, while the interior façade consists of 2,707 pieces in black.

The building is designed as a smart building with controlled energy management, featuring a naturally ventilated atrium and rainwater harvesting. The aluminum façade with galvanized steel sheets is made from recycled materials. The supply of the envelope was provided by the Prague company Sipral, which has one of its foreign branches in London.

HELUZ IZOS
Photo: Sipral archive
www.izos.cz