Pilkington Planar™ has been specified in a centre of excellence for
dance in Leeds. The new home for Northern Ballet and Phoenix Dance
Theatre is situated on Quarry Hill next to the BBC and the Leeds
College of Music.
The pièce de résistance of the building is a grand entrance area
which showcases Pilkington Planar™ as the focal point of the
six-storey building. There are also two glass box balconies on the
side of the building which offer stunning views of the surrounding
area.
Howard Sykes, HW Architectural Ltd, said, “Northern Ballet’s new
building is a creative and cultured environment so we needed to
specify an architectural glazing solution that reflected the beauty
and creativity of the work taking place inside. With Pilkington
Planar™ we could be imaginative and design a whole façade that is
eye-catching and contemporary.”
The Pilkington Planar™ system allows architects to apply bold
designs whilst affording them unrivalled stability and safety. It is
qualities such as these which ensure that Pilkington Planar™ remains
world market leader in the cutting edge market of bolted glass
systems. The Pilkington Planar™ structural glazing system provides a
flush glass surface by utilising stainless steel fittings housed in
countersunk holes to fix the glass façade back to the structure
instead of using the more conventional framed systems. The result is
a fully engineered system with the minimum amount of support
structure and the maximum possible visual clarity. A silicone seal
between adjacent panels provides weatherproofing.
Consisting of seven dance studios including a 200-seat studio
theatre, office space, a health suite and a costume workshop; the
dance centre provides professional dancers and young students with a
stunning setting to develop their skills. Alongside the two
professional companies the building will eventually house a
full-time classical dance school as well as Leeds Metropolitan
University's dance degree courses. The new building has received
wide support from across the region with Leeds City Council
investing £6.7million, including a contribution from Yorkshire
Forward, and Arts Council England, Yorkshire, investing £3.5million
through the National Lottery.
Pilkington Planar™ specifications
Grand entrance
12mm toughened and heat soak tested Pilkington Optifloat™ on the
exterior
6mm toughened and heat soak tested Pilkington K Glass™ on the
interior
Supported by 18.5m toughened and heat soak treated glass fins that
are 19mm by 750mm.
Glass balconies
Thick toughened and heat soak treated Pilkington Optifloat™ with
acid etch effect screen printing
1.52mm thick polyvinyl butyral interlayer
6mm heat strengthened Pilkington Optifloat™ inner pane
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