Sporting daylight from Structura UK

Kalwall® diffused daylighting is playing a major role at Wakefield’s new Sun Lane Leisure Centre designed by the NPS Group and winner of the RICS Pro-Yorkshire Winner in Tourism & Leisure award – CIOB Yorkshire Project of the Year award and LABC Building Excellence award.

The Centre was constructed by Willmott Dixon Construction Ltd and fulfils both the Client’s and Wakefield District Council’s requirement for a BREEAM Excellent rated building, comprising a large swimming pool and learner pool, health suite, large gymnasium and exercise studio plus meeting room, cafe and offices.

Kalwall is used for translucent floor to ceiling walls in the Centre’s gymnasium and at clerestory height over the pool. The light diffusing qualities of the product is ideal for sports halls because it eliminates stark contrasts of light and shadow and creates an ideal playing surface. It is of particular benefit for swimming pools because the diffused daylight eliminates glare and veiling on the water which means that lifeguards can see underwater swimmers better.

Kalwall is the most highly insulating diffuse light transmitting system available and is widely specified for enveloping every type of building. It comprises a translucent structural composite sandwich panel permanently bonded to a grid core constructed of interlocked thermally-broken aluminium I-beams.

On both sunny or cloudy days, Kalwall will flood the interior with calming and attractive daylight, eliminating any need for curtains or blinds and with less reliance on artificial lighting. Importantly, because the system is highly insulating, energy costs are reduced. U-values as low as 0.28W/m2K, equivalent to a solid wall or opaque roof, can be achieved by including translucent aerogel insulation within the panels.

Structura UK is the leading supplier, fabricator and installer of glass curtain walling, rainscreens, glass atria, windows and other architectural glass building products and is the exclusive distributor for Kalwall translucent daylight building systems for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Case studies and technical information are available from Structura UK Ltd on Tel: 01233 501 504 or visit www.structura-uk.com/kalwall.