The Importance of Integration and Exterior Window Shades


Interview with Gianni Stramandinoli – The Forth Skin

There is a revolution brewing. Never in the past thirty years have I seen such radical new products that are about to shake up the world of integration and exterior window shades. No longer will we see shades and blinds only as an interior solution. Window coverings are becoming the “fourth skin” in Architecture; our skin being the first, clothing the second, third – the building envelope and the fourth an exterior shading solution to protect the building itself.

This dramatic move to the exterior is happening with exciting new products from Europe and in particular from Italy. Last summer, while visiting Model System Italia, a manufacturer of incredible shading systems, I had the pleasure to tour the manufacturing facility of Stahlbau Pichler a provider of building facades worldwide. What I saw was the marriage between the envelopes of buildings and window coverings or the fourth skin.

Below is my interview with Gianni Stramandinoli, the Key Account Manager for Stahlbau Pichler in the USA.

NG: Tell me about the history of Stahlbau Pichler.

GS: For decades now Stahlbau Pichler has been planning, producing, delivering and erecting steel structures and facades for buildings on an international scale. We undertake every aspect of project management, thus improving quality while reducing time and costs.

Today, with over 200 employees and a track record of over 2,500 contracts completed, we can manage every phase of a project from the initial feasibility study to final construction, drawing on an annual production capacity of 25,000 tons of steel and 70,000 m² of curtain wall.

Our concept is a symbiosis of Italian design and German precision. Headquartered in Bolzano, we also have offices in Milan, Germany, Switzerland, Russia and Austria. Our core skills are in the realization of buildings used for industrial, commercial and administration purposes, bridge construction, protective buildings and traffic engineering. Architects such as David Chipperfield, Sauerbruch & Hutton, Massimiliano Fuksas, Norman Foster, Zaha Hadid and Kenzo Tange are all appreciating and making use of our know-how.

NG: Are you currently working on projects in the USA?

GS: We have done several buildings in New York over the past several years. Our current project is on 520 West 28th Street, next to the High Line. It’s a beautifully designed façade, designed by the internationally renowned architect Zaha Hadid.

NG: How has the building envelope and facades changed over the years?

GS: Building envelopes and facades become more innovative, energy-efficient and integrative. This is seen with the technological advances in glass. We have many commercial buildings all throughout Europe using the “double skin” concept, which are two layers of glass forming the building envelope typically installed with blinds in between.

NG: Why is it important to integrate window coverings into the facade during manufacturing?

GS: Architects are designing buildings with exterior window coverings as part of the façade. This may be a blind within the double skin or shades exposed on the outer walls. Either way, these are not afterthoughts and need to be designed by the architect so they are integrated into the facades we produce. We may be simply pre-mounting installation brackets or creating pockets for the shades.

NG: Describe some projects you have done where shades and blinds are integrated into Facades

GS: There are two projects we have recently completed in Switzerland that show two versions of window coverings. The first one is the Residence Du Parc in Nyon, where the blinds are exposed to the outside of the façade. Wind sensors are required to raise the blinds when conditions warrant. The second is the Maison de la Paix in Geneva, a beautifully designed building showcasing the glass facade with horizontal aluminum blinds within the double skin. 

NG: How do you envision the future between building facades and engineered shading solutions?

GS: We are convinced, that the demand of integrated building facades and engineered shading solutions will increase. There have been great advances in curtain wall technologies. Buildings today and in the future will be constructed with more glass and less visible structural support. This, in turn increases the need for effective window coverings to reduce solar heat gain and with all this natural daylight flooding into the open space – a need to effectively control glare.

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