An Introduction to Curtain Walling Systems

Choosing the appropriate facade for your building is a difficult undertaking since there are several factors to consider. You must consider the prices, the practicality, the upkeep, the durability, and the aesthetics. The outside of your building may be used to convey how you want your business to be regarded by customers and passers-by.

That is where curtain walling comes in, with its modern appearance and elegance that can completely transform the face of a structure.

Unless you work in construction or project management, managing the construction and building of enormous structures, high-rise towers, and skyscrapers, curtain walling may be a phrase you are unfamiliar with. In this article, we are going to explore the basic advantages of curtain walling systems and why you might want to consider them for your building.

What Is Curtain Walling?

A curtain wall is an outside covering for a structure whose outer walls are not structural and instead serve to shelter the building's interior from the elements. Because the curtain wall facade carries no structural stress beyond its own dead load weight, lightweight materials can be used. The wall distributes lateral wind loads to the main building structure via connections at the building's floors or columns.

Curtain wall systems, as opposed to storefront systems, are designed to span multiple floors while taking into account building sway and movement as well as design requirements such as thermal expansion and contraction, seismic requirements, water diversion, and many more things that can affect tall buildings.

The Advantages of Curtain Walling

Curtain walling is a lightweight addition to the building. Because they are non-structural walls, they can be fashioned of lightweight and durable materials such as aluminum.

True, curtain walls are more expensive to construct than window walls. However, because curtain walls are not load-bearing in the same way as structural walls, their foundation does not need to be able to take the same heavy load that window walls would. And, because foundations are one of the most expensive aspects of a building's structure, curtain walling might actually save you money on the construction work.

When built from aluminum and glass, curtain walls let in a large amount of light, keeping your building bright and airy even while protecting it from the elements. This allows for smooth glass frontages and facades, with all the benefits associated with that, built to an enormous height over the structural skeleton of your building.

The Practicalities of Curtain Walls

Curtain walling is primarily planned and built for high-rise buildings due to their exposed location, and curtain walls must fulfill highly stringent regulatory criteria in all conditions and across all projects.

Curtain wall systems, which are popular for usage on tall buildings in cities across the world due to their flexibility and custom designs, can be built and installed as customized curtain walls or as "off the shelf" systems.

In most cases, they are made from aluminum, which is a flexible and pliable material that can be formed into new forms and sizes and installed in a variety of locations. This makes it possible to achieve almost any design you can imagine.