All Change For Sheherds Bush Station With Pilkington Planar™

The refurbishment, installed by Birchdale Glass, uses 500m² of Pilkington Planar™ in a breath-taking project.
 
Shepherd’s Bush has been a recent focus for regeneration thanks to the multi million pound Westfield White City Shopping Centre that has been a huge success with shoppers since it opened over a year ago. The redevelopment of the 108 year old Shepherd’s Bush Underground station saw the ticket hall entirely demolished and rebuilt with toughened 12mm Pilkington Optifloat™ in a Pilkington Planar™ structural glazing system. The imposing facade uses glass and stainless steel to create a bright and fresh foyer that wraps around three elevations.
 
Michael Deanus, Director, Birchdale Glass said, “Redesigning the Shepherd’s Bush Underground was a huge project that we felt privileged to be part of. Having a specialist glazing division and accredited by Pilkington to install the Pilkington Planar™ system for the last 18 years, we felt that it would be perfect for this project. The facade design makes the station much brighter and more welcoming and is in a similar style to the other recent redevelopments in the area.”
 
Birchdale Glass faced a number of challenges during the project at Shepherd’s Bush Underground station. The internal screens and balustrades were required to meet a line load of 3.0kN/m, therefore the Pilkington Planar™ system used consisted of two layers of toughened heat-soaked Pilkington Optifloat™ Clear that was laminated together with a 1.5mm Sentry Glass Plus (SGP) interlayer. The system designers were then required to design a bespoke clamping arrangement to be hidden at the base of the glazing to hold the glass in place. At almost 2 metres high, this was a necessary safety measure.
 
Phil Savage, Commercial Contracts Sales manager, Pilkington said: “It is in projects such as this one that the Pilkington Planar™ system really excels. On an average weekday, more than 500,000 people use the London Underground line that goes through Shepherd’s Bush, so the new station had to be resilient and safe, as well as aesthetically pleasing. The structure incorporates toughened heat-soaked glass fins that not only look spectacular but also support the entire facade.”
 
Pilkington Planar™ incorporating Pilkington Optifloat™ helps to create highly attractive working environments allowing more light to enter, and consequently creating a greater feeling of space. The Pilkington Planar™ system has given architects the freedom to create stunning glass facades and canopies that have become such a feature of modern day landscapes.