The dynamic possibilities presented by technology have brought kinetic façade architecture to exciting new visual levels. The traditionally static nature of architecture has, thanks to kinetic façade design, learned to respond to environmental stimuli in bold ways. There remains an environmental factor, just as in ages past, but it’s no longer based on how the material used in the construction of the façade is affected by the elements.
Kinetic architecture facades aren’t just transforming the way that architects design structures. They’re broadening our understanding of the way that a kinetic façade system can incorporate personal comfort, environmental sustainability, and even finances into the buildings in which we spend our days.
How Does Kinetic Façade Architecture Transform The Design Of A Building
Although incorporating kinetic features into building design may seem more like a niche than an established practice, the truth is that kinetic façade design creates buildings that are multipurpose in their function. The structural integrity of the building is not compromised. Kinetic façade architecture buildings are versatile and can be utilized for more than a single purpose. Along with the flexibility of a kinetic façade system comes a more holistic design that can enhance the interior comfort for the occupants while supporting an environmentally friendly performance.
Daylighting is a feature of kinetic façade shading that enables the people inside the building to control the amount of heat and glare coming from outside. When the need for air conditioning is reduced, the building itself becomes more sustainable. While the panels in kinetic façade architecture are participants in that function, they also serve an esthetic role as well, adding beauty that dazzles.
Technology And Kinetic Façade Architecture Team Up
In the earlier days of kinetic façade systems, the operation was more mechanical in its nature. Polymers, now possessing “memory”, react to water and temperature changes by forming different new shapes before returning to their former shape.
Technology is always a part of the process, but kinetic façade architecture is actually less technological in bioclimatic kinetic façade systems. Vegetation is integrated into the kinetic façade design so that the appearance of the building changes in response to the changing seasons. One of the most dramatic examples of this innovative kinetic architecture façade is Lisbon’s Travessa Do Patrocinio. Designed by architect Luis Rebelo de Andrade, the vertical garden of the walls is filled with 4500 plants.
The allure of kinetic façade design that brings nature into the architectural equation doesn’t just please the eye. It also soothes the soul, demonstrating the way that, in the right setting, with the right design, a building and its occupants can reach a level of excellence that ancient buildings could never have imagined.
The Economics Of A Kinetic Shading System
Abu Dhabi’s Al Bahar Towers development is admired for its beauty and for the artistic manner in which the kinetic façade design mirrors its cultural environment. However the kinetic shading system, with its fiber-glass coated panels, responds to the movement of the sun so that heat gain and solar glare are reduced during daylight hours. What are the financial benefits? The cost of heating and cooling was reduced by 50 percent. When visual appeal, personal comfort, energy efficiency, and financial savings join forces through kinetic façade architecture, customer satisfaction is assured.
Customer satisfaction is an established Danpal priority. With half a century of experience in the building industry, Danpal products and systems have been in the vanguard of kinetic façade design. By remaining faithful to our motto, Global Vision, Local Focus, Danpal recognizes that architects, buildings, and people are not separate entities. They form a community and our planet is their home.
