Saint-Gobain has equipped One Africa Tower in Nairobi with over 7000 m² of selective solar control glass. Designed by Bowman architects and built by Esteel, it will open its doors in May 2019 Changing Nairobi’s skyline, One Africa is today one of the city’s first LEED gold building and the first unitised curtain building.
Construction on the grade A office development, with an unusual and refined oval shape, commenced in September 2014, and the final piece of glazing was installed at the end of February 2019. The challenge for Saint-Gobain was to combine aesthetic requirements with ambitious environments performance together with a strong focus on thermal comfort.
For the development, SGG Cool-Lite KNT 140, a selective solar control glass was specified. Designed for use in double glazing applications, or in laminated glass assemblies, this type of glass provides more economical use of air conditioning thanks to solar control. It also improves visual comfort by reducing glare while keeping natural light. Eventually, it is an environmentally friendly glass thanks to the less CO2 output of the buildings.
“The most challenging aspect of the installation was that the sequence of each pane of glass in each row has a different size.
Hence, stringent quality control for the duration of the build was paramount.
“The most challenging aspect of the installation was that the sequence of each pane of glass in each row has a different size. Hence, stringent quality control for the duration of the build was paramount. In an installation of this nature, it is key for us to be involved from the outset of the development. In this case, we worked closely with the architects Bowman, contractor Esteel and façade consultant Alu Façade to ensure optimal product use fully meets development’s design and construction requirements,” says Lionel Diarra, East Africa Manager at Saint-Gobain Glass.
