Architectural Systems
Curtain Wall and Façade Systems
A curtain wall carries no floor load. It carries itself, the wind and the weather — and it has to keep doing so while the structure behind it moves.
What it is
Curtain wall systems form a continuous, non-load-bearing envelope in front of the structural frame, spanning floor to floor and anchored back to the slab.
Reliance sources both stick-built and unitised systems, together with the window wall assemblies that serve high-rise residential programmes.
Where it is used
- —Commercial office towers
- —Institutional and civic elevations
- —Mixed-use podium façades
- —High-rise residential window wall envelopes
What it resolves
The envelope must handle wind load, water penetration, air leakage, thermal transfer, structural movement and — in many markets — seismic displacement.
It also has to be installable in sequence, on a programme, at height.
Configurations
Unitised curtain wall
Factory-assembled panels for rapid, sequenced installation on high-rise elevations.
Stick-built curtain wall
Site-assembled grids for complex geometry and low-to-mid-rise elevations.
Slab-edge window wall
Floor-to-floor units set between slabs with concealed anchoring and movement allowance.
Spandrel and thermal packages
Insulated back-pans, slab covers, thermal breaks, gaskets and drainage detailing.
Specification considerations
- —Wind load and the resulting mullion depth
- —Slab tolerance, anchoring and movement allowance
- —Fire-stopping and acoustic separation at the slab edge
- —Thermal continuity through the anchor and spandrel zone
- —Installation sequence, crane access and site logistics
Standards and documentation
Air, water, structural, thermal and seismic criteria differ substantially between markets. Reliance establishes which apply and requests the manufacturer's documentation for the specific system before it is proposed.
How Reliance supports supply
- —System selection against elevation geometry and exposure
- —Manufacturer evaluation and compliance documentation review
- —Factory oversight and pre-shipment inspection coordination
- —Consolidation and delivery sequenced to the installation programme