What is “double skin facade”?
A double skin façade is a structural term that refers to the two façades of a building, typically the vertical element, with a cavity in between them. Within that cavity is an air flow. The benefit of this system is the way that it maintains a consistent temperature, a sign that energy is being used efficiently. If you’re cozy and warm in the winter, and cool in the summer, then you probably don’t even think about whether or not your heating and cooling systems are operating at their most efficient levels. But when energy is being lost, and temperatures have to be adjusted, it’s a sign that you’re losing energy. Energy lost is energy wasted and that means money is spent for energy you aren’t using. Installation of an architectural curtain wall can restore the balance of your heating and cooling systems so that the double skin façade takes on some of the work of keeping a building’s interior spaces warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
The matter of energy is particularly apparent in big-city construction, where limited space makes high-rise buildings an inevitable part of the landscape. However, these buildings carry immense weight, an obstacle in architectural design. An architectural curtain wall alleviates the issue of weight by adding polycarbonate, which carries a high convection coefficient rather than a construction material that would lead to greater thermal loss.
The subject of façades leads to an examination of polycarbonate. When a segment of a building’s front exterior employs a polycarbonate curtain wall system as part of daylighting architecture, we’re reminded of the powerful visual appeal of glass. Thanks to the major improvements made in façade engineering, polycarbonate is a primary construction material for contemporary buildings.
Curtain walling describes the nonstructural outer wall of a building whose purpose is to block weather from penetrating the structure’s interior while at the same time ensuring the comfort of the people within.
The nonstructural status of a double glazing curtain wall allows it to be made out of lightweight material like polycarbonate. A primary aspect of double skin façade detail is its ability to present a barrier to the air and moisture that wind, rain, and snow could bring inside. These double façade systems can withstand the wind loads while absorbing the wind sway.
The polycarbonate of a double skin façade system adds flexibility to the design of the building, because it can be molded into
different shapes. A double-skin curtain wall’s performance is matched by its attractive aesthetic benefits, with transparent and translucent capabilities that feature natural light as part of the internal setting. By its ability to allow sunlight to enter into a building, a curtain wall façade helps to economize on energy costs. That’s because you’re using more natural light and less artificial light. The way that technology has enhanced the properties of polycarbonate has turned polycarbonate into an ally in the regulation of building heating and cooling. Further investigation into the properties of the architectural curtain wall will validate your decision to install it in your home or office building.
Architectural Curtain Wall Energy Efficiency
You might think that a nonstructural component of a building design would be an insignificant part of the structure, but that’s not the case. polycarbonate panel façades assist a building in the crucial area of energy efficiency, a topic which has become a shared concern of a growing majority of the world’s population. Keep in mind that the double skin façade, because the intermediate cavity between the two layers reinforces the system’s insulating capacity against winds, extremes in temperature, and also sound, offers a multifunctional advantage.
A building’s thermal efficiency needs to be able to perform in both high and low temperatures, a task which a polycarbonate curtain wall can easily accomplish. Double skin façades, because of their adaptability to hot and cold temperatures, add diversity to the heating and cooling process. If you live in a cold climate, the air buffer serves as a barrier to prevent heat loss. On the other hand, when the cavity in the polycarbonate curtain wall has absorbed heat, it’s able to provide warmth for space outside the polycarbonate, thereby lowering the demand on your indoor heating system. Your architectural curtain wall can also be enhanced with modifications such as inlets, outlet fins, or air circulators to benefit the performance of the façade.
The double skin façade system, which readily adapts to the temperature changes brought by the different seasons of the year, improves the internal insulation by keeping it dry, lowering utility costs, and supporting environmental standards designed to benefit the planet and the people who live on it.
Another feature of a double polycarbonate curtain wall system that enhances its ecological value is the fact that polycarbonate is inherently better able to keep its appearance and integrity longer than more traditional building materials. For one thing, polycarbonate doesn’t rust the way metal does. It doesn’t become weathered the way that wood does. A polycarbonate curtain wall provides a dual purpose by supporting energy efficiency, always a priority in our climate-conscious world, and at the same time, strengthening the system itself. This immunity to the danger posed by the elements makes your double curtain wall environmentally superior in performance.
How Danpal’s Double Skin Façades Benefit the Environment
We all know that in poorer countries, maintaining sustainable environmental practices can be a challenge. But did you know that in industrialized countries, buildings account for 40% of the energy usage? Our buildings are modern and technologically advanced, but it’s our responsibility to make sure that they adhere to the federally regulated environmental standards which are intended to protect the planet. Double skin façades are proven to effectively improve thermal efficiency. This advance in the architectural curtain wall structure achieves that highly desired win-win combination: thermal efficiency that promotes responsible energy usage while, at the same time, providing a financial benefit to the individual. Danpal is committed to customer satisfaction and environmental responsibility; with our polycarbonate curtain walls, we fulfill both
Danpal, which because of its commercial presence on five continents is acknowledged as an international leader in the building industry, is especially diligent in developing and maintaining systems like the double skin wall for façade which please our clients and protect our environment.
The quest for improved energy efficiency has led to the development of a double skin façade that not only supports good environmental stewardship but also provide better overall weather protection for buildings. The double skin curtain wall system is one of the ways in which Danpal research and innovation have helped the company remain true to its Global Vision, Local Focus philosophy in its business practices. With half a century of experience in the building industry, Danpal has become a leader in new and innovative product manufacturing that is as high in performance quality as it is holistic in its effects on the environment.
