Premier Inn Hotel

The scope covered the design, manufacturing and installation of glazed architectural balustrades/flood barriers as well as aluminium temporary flood barriers.

Additionally, approximately 80 linear metres of architectural acoustic barriers were designed, supplied and fitted around the roof plant enclosure.

• Glazing 21.5mm
• Gasket design
• Posts
• Flashing

About this project

MG Group was appointed by main contractor Gilbert Ash Ltd to design and install a glazed floor barrier and balustrade system at the Premier Inn on Ufford Street, London.

A glazed floor barrier is a guarding element first and a piece of architecture second. It has to take the horizontal loads a barrier is required to resist, while looking like a sheet of glass.

What the work involved

• 21.5mm glazing. A laminated make up, so that if a pane is damaged the interlayer holds the glass together and the barrier keeps performing rather than failing open.
• Gasket design. The gaskets clamp and cushion the glass in the channel. Get them wrong and you get movement, rattle and point loading on the glass edge, which is where failures start.
• Posts. The structural supports that transfer barrier loads out of the glass and into the building structure.
• Flashing. The weathering detail where the barrier meets the floor construction, keeping water out of the junction.

The standards behind a glazed barrier

Guarding heights come from Approved Document K, and the horizontal loads a barrier must resist come from BS EN 1991-1-1 with its UK National Annex, with further guidance in BS 6180. Glass does not change either requirement, only how it is met. Our guide covers the guarding heights by building type and the standards that set barrier loadings.

See our balustrade systems service, or talk to us about a similar project.