Construction of the Façade Systems. Production and Assembly Procedures of the Advanced Building Envelopes

The study, developed inside the experimental laboratory Material Balance Research within the Architecture, Built Environment and Construction Engineering-ABC Department at the Politecnico di Milano, examines the advanced façade systems according to the productive and constructive contents. The work is determined in the form of a knowledge and design concept tool for the construction of advanced façade systems, used for the realization of multiple types of envelope. The book is configured in a cognitive and operative form, with the aim of providing researchers, technicians and professionals with the contents to proceed with the analysis, design and constitution of façade systems with the aid of the components, materials and assembly methods typical of the advanced and experimental contemporary scenario. Moreover, the work goes into detail on how to form, connect and plan for the construction of the advanced façade systems, specifying itself as a manual text to provide guidelines for professionals in charge of design, production and construction. The work involves the building characters of the envelopes with respect to both the range series (determined by the basic profiles) and the customized or “outside system” components. The scenario under consideration accommodates, in the range series, the types of envelopes transferred by complex, large-scale interventions, with the inclusion of appropriate tools and accessories aimed at widespread use: therefore, the components are proposed in the form of “integrated” elements, characterized by “specialization” processes. Then, the contemporary experimental production observes the application of the archetypal and tectonic properties of envelope systems and the hybridization of established façade typologies through the use of profiles and frames of different material, mechanical and connective invoice. The study deals with the main building elements and technical interfaces, explaining the anchoring structures and their connections to the load-bearing structures, examining the criteria for the assembly between the mullion and transom profiles. The study of the façade systems focuses on the methods of collecting and draining rainwater, considering the execution of the sealing and the criteria of vapour pressure compensation and drainage for glass enclosures. The analysis of framing is completed with an explanation of the methods of mechanical and structural fastening of the enclosures, noting the criteria for pressure and structural silicone assembly. In particular, the text examines the technical interfaces of the main advanced envelope systems with respect to the functional, constructive and applicative coordination procedures of the mullions and transoms framing, of the structural sealant glazing façade system, of the unit façade system, of the suspended façade system and of the double skin façade system. The technical and manual character of the book is also expressed through the analysis of the functional and application procedures of the gaskets with respect to the façade systems in order to prevent the transmission of air and water loads: the analysis focuses on the connections between the framing and the enclosure elements of the envelope, in accordance with the compensation of height differences in order to guarantee impermeability, airtightness and insulation. The study observes and investigates the types of framing elements in which the gaskets are inserted, emphasizing the specific function with respect to the connection interfaces. Then, the study examines the assembly and interface conditions between elements of different composition and production within the façade systems: in particular, the examination of the technical interfaces involves the development and application of sealants, based on the loads exerted on the jointing devices, in order to fulfil the requirements of sealing and tightness with respect to mechanical, thermal and hygrometric, water, air and wind stresses. Moreover, the study of the envelope systems examines the methodologies directed towards fulfilling the requirements with respect to the actions caused by fire loads, considering the contents related to both components and connections and fixing surfaces. The design study involves the specific sections of separation with respect to the fire compartments: this is to limit the propagation of a fire originating inside the building, the fire of a façade and its propagation, the fall of the façade elements.