Overview

Façades are the most visible part of a building, yet they do not receive the attention they deserve in education – and they should! Façades play an important role in creating a healthy indoor environment, contribute to sustainable building practices, and are key in reducing operational costs due to their potential longevity. Above all, they can give a building the beautiful look that sets it apart from any other in the surroundings.

A team of international experts from TU Delft, TU Darmstadt and Eurac Research have teamed up to create a series of courses on façades engineering to close this knowledge gap. In this course we deal with a rather complex part of façade design and engineering: the interface between two systems ventilated façades and windows, a key activity for façade designers.

We are going to do it in a thorough and practical way. You will be guided step-by-step through the development process of façade details using an example. From sketching out global geometries to requesting the feedback of experts in related disciplines, you will gain knowledge of detailing a ventilated façade system with integrated windows and the materials available.

The course is developed for (aspiring) architectural and structural engineers who seek more information about, and practice with, façade detailing. Here we understand the detailing process as the individual technical design development of an engineer, composing various technical solutions to fulfill various functions of façades.

Syllabus

Module 1 – Systems and Geometry

In this module, we talk about ventilated façades and windows as systems, and the important issue of how we design the interface between the two, as we hand-sketch the details of an example: the Gehry-Bauten in Düsseldorf, Germany. You will refine your understanding of ventilated façade systems and explore how windows are integrated into the façade, also covering key “line of defence” strategies.

Module 2 – Defining Geometry and Initial Details

Building on the example from Module 1, we now look at tolerances, and discuss the various details of the interface between the window and the ventilated façade: window sill detail, side detail and top detail.

Module 3 – Refining Details

Having developed the details for a metal cladding façade, we now focus on alternative materials: brick and plaster. This module focuses on the iterative development of standard details through a series of hand-sketching exercises.

Module 4 – Free-form Geometry and Solutions

We shift our attention to curved geometries, as we consider the same setting of a ventilated façade interfaced to windows, but in free form. You will critically evaluate whether the details sufficiently address all functional and performance requirements.

Module 5 – Expert Review

As part of the normal engineering process, we share the developed details with a façade engineer, a structural designer, a building physicist, and a construction expert to be assessed from their respective perspectives.

Module 6 – Final Drawings and Alternative Free-form Cladding Systems

In the final module, we refine our set of sketches incorporating the feedback from the experts, and we explore alternative solutions for free form cladding systems: GFRP cladding, textile cladding, natural stone and green façades.