"SageGlass" façade, Bellavista Eye Clinic

"SageGlass", a so-called electrochromic glass, can be electronically darkened and brightened – across four levels ranging from 1% to 60% to suit specific requirements. Activation can be automatic or manual and guarantees high levels of year-round comfort indoors.

SageGlass provides customised control of the amount of daylight entering a space as well as solar heat and anti-glare. SageGlass is an environmentally-friendly and energy-saving alternative to conventional mechanical sun protection systems. Using no mechanical system, it is soundless, wind-independent and requires no maintenance.

Find out how electrochromic glass works:
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligentes_Glas#Elektrochromes_Glas 

Architectural design

The basic Schüco FW 60 SG post-and-beam façade system with SageGlass makes it possible to create an all-glass effect with high architectural appeal on the outer façade. Flush with the exposed concrete façade or continued around corners, it is independent of weather conditions and has the same recognition value all year round, just like a corporate identity.

Alongside the SageGlass, we also installed 20 m2 of Contraflam EI30 fire-resistant glass consisting of two or more sheets of toughened safety glass. The cavity between the sheets of glass is filled with a transparent interlayer which expands when exposed to fire to absorb the energy.

Client: Klinik Bellavista
Location: Speicher, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Switzerland
Purpose: Eye clinic and residential building
Planning period: 2013-2015
Construction period: 2015-2016
Building volume (SIA 416): approx. 24,500 m3
Floor area (SIA 416): approx. 7,400 m2

Services by Krapf AG

• Post-and-beam façade in an all-glass design, 450 m2 of “SageGlass” electrochromic solar glass
• Fire-resistant sliding doors, Contraflam EI30

Project manager: Thomas Bechtiger, Krapf AG
Architect: Carlos Martinez Architekten, Berneck
Developer: Klinik Bellavista, Speicher, Appenzell Ausserrhoden
General contractor: HRS St.Gallen

Experience structures

SageGlass not only increases the value of a building, it also inspires us to see glass in a new light

• Creates the experience of connection between the constructed and natural environments, without blinds or curtains and with uninterrupted views of the outside world
• Thermal and visual comfort with energy requirements reduced by up to 20%
• Reduces glare and adjusts heat gain over the course of the day
• Up to three zones with adjustable tinting levels can be included in each panel

Looking at nature and high levels of natural daylight are highly beneficial in patient rehabilitation, for example. As a consequence, the installation of SageGlass in the façade of the Bellavista Eye Clinic provides patients with ideal conditions for a quick recovery.

Electrochromic glazing is used in department stores, office blocks, schools, healthcare facilities and cultural institutions