Wicona unitised curtain walling system gets debut in Sheffield

Wicona's unitised curtain walling system has been specified for a new 32-storey tower in Sheffield - the first application in the UK of the time-saving panel system.

Developed by City Lofts, built by Shepherd Construction and designed by Conran & Partners, the tower is part of the £40m City Lofts St Paul's apartment scheme.

The £3.5m façade project will be delivered by Solaglas in partnership with Wicona Projects.

Some 6,000m2 of the panels will be factory glazed and sealed before being transported to site and installed in just three days per floor.

Jon Mangham, project manager at Shepherd Construction, said offsite manufacture of the panels would reduce the risk of remedial works and allow fitting out to begin earlier.

He added: "The Wicona system will remove the need for scaffolding or mast climbers on this project, which is an important safety benefit for the construction of such a high structure. The loadings on scaffolding would make it dangerous to work at this height."

The unitised façade will be glazed in clear low E glass to the vision areas, with enamel-coated opaque glass used as vertical strips to conceal partition walls.

The tower is due for completion in autumn 2009.