Kawneer provides Aluminium systems for iconic South Bristol Skills Academy

Glazing from leading architectural aluminium systems supplier Kawneer forms a "major part" of the façade to the stunning £23 million South Bristol Skills Academy. The latest campus addition to the City of Bristol College, one of the largest of its kind in the UK, is an iconic building with a distinctive curved façade that forms a gateway into Hengrove Park, itself a multi-million £ regeneration programme to transform south Bristol into one of the most sought after areas in the south west. Kawneer's AA100 curtain walling and sloped-drained shaped rooflights, together with AA 601 top-hung casement and AA602 horizontal pivot windows, were specified by AWW architects and installed by specialist sub-contractor Aluminium Sashes for main contractor Cowlin Construction.

The zone-drained vertical curtain walling with 50mm sightlines is a particular, facetted feature of the sides and front elevations of the academy which is a key component in the drive to improve standards of education and the levels of skills across the city. The reception area with the feature Kawneer glass walls is a large, open-plan space encompassing the full height of the 11,000m² four-storey building which was designed to achieve "Very Good" rating. At its heart is the Winter Garden and Terraces - a series of central interactive flexible spaces which come together to create a vibrant hub for meeting, working and socialising. It also features a library, café and restaurant.

Teaching facilities include car and motorcycle workshop spaces with double-height bays, and administration areas include open-plan offices, meeting rooms and seminar rooms. During the design phase of the project, Cowlin suggested the use of a steel, rather than concrete, structural frame for the academy. This allowed the frame to be manufactured off-site, allowing the college's programme targets to be achieved while maintaining on-site quality for a structure of complex curved geometry.

In addition to the frame, the entire external skin of the building was fabricated off-site - an amazing achievement for a building of such complexity, which achieved the client's quality target for a bespoke, eye-catching building. The design team also incorporated the use of climate beams, after visiting Sweden to see the system in action. This technology provides comfortable thermal conditions with quiet, energy-efficient operation.

A spokesman for Cowlin Construction said: "The Kawneer systems form a major part of the façade to the academy. They really enhanced the standing seam roofing and cladding and interfaced well. The end product mirrored the artist's impression and the client was extremely pleased with it."