Trade Journals for the Concrete Industry

Building façades have to meet a wide range of requirements. The overall appearance and the public perception of a building strongly depends on its external appearance, which is why architects and clients have always paid special attention to the design and finish of the façade. In addition to the design aspect, the façade is also the interface between the inside and the outside of a building. In this function it must fulfil increasingly stringent building physics requirements, not least in view of the recently revised thermal insulation standards specified in the building Energy Saving Ordinance (EnEV). As a result, the required insulation thickness keeps increasing while at the same time structural thermal bridges, for example anchors, have to be taken into account in the energy performance certificate calculations. Last but not least the façade is part of the supporting structure and must therefore be able to absorb wind and vertical loads. In addition to a functionally effective design this requires selection of suitable anchoring elements taking into account the respective façade type.