CREATING A HEALTHY AMBIENCE

This specialist school in the South of England educates children and young people with special needs including autism and learning difficulties. Set in stunning grounds, the school has recently completed a major construction project, designed by Lee Evans Partnership, to ensure that all its buildings are suited to pupils with their wide range of neurological and developmental disorders.

One of the most important facilities is the new aqua centre. Designed to be used by all the students, one of the features of the state-of-the-art hydrotherapy pool is its extraordinary calming internal ambience created by the installation of Kalwall translucent cladding.

Insulating Kalwall was specifically chosen by the architects because of its unique ability to convert and diffuse daylight, as well as providing privacy. It also eliminates brightness, glare and shadows which are common with normal glass. This is particularly important as it helps students with visual problems such as hypersensitivity to light, or those affected by glare, colour contrast or brightness. Research suggests that traditional glazing in this kind of environment can be counter-productive due to shifting patterns of daylight which can complicate the visual environment causing distress.

Unlike glass, the translucent system resists solar gain so air-conditioning costs can be reduced without the need for external shading devices or internal blinds. With increased natural daylight, energy-consuming artificial lighting can be dramatically reduced. Technically the system is highly insulating, with panel U-values as low as 0.56W/m2K.

Kalwall structural panels can be used for walls, roofs and skylights and are increasingly specified for the refurbishment of cladding or rooflights in older buildings. At night when viewed externally, the panels exude a gentle and attractive glow.

Project and technical information are available from Structura UK, the exclusive distributor for Kalwall translucent daylight building systems for England, Wales and Northern Ireland and a leading supplier, fabricator and installer of glass curtain walling, rainscreens, glass atria, windows and other architectural glass building products. Case studies and technical information are available from Structura UK Ltd, tel: 01233 501 504 or visit www.structura-uk.com/kalwall.