London Borough Of Newham Adds Pilkington Activ™ Blue

Installing Pilkington Activ™ Blue glass on the roofs of two primary school main entrances in the London Borough of Newham was intended to improve the quality of the buildings and to ease the cost of future maintenance, as Ron Draper from the Borough's Design Services Building Surveying Section explains.

'These two primary schools were built almost a century apart,' he says. 'Manor Primary School in Stratford is a Victorian structure which had an inadequate main entrance which we had to demolish and build a new structure, incorporating a glass roof which now houses the reception to the school. North Beckton Primary School is under 15 years old and the school wanted to add an extension for parents waiting area for their children and usable space.

'The extension was designed to fit into the winged entrance to the school with a lozenge shaped pitched roof. We decided to use Pilkington Activ™ Blue for both, because of its proven self-cleaning properties, which would affect long-term savings on cleaning and maintenance.

'Furthermore, from an aesthetic point of view, the blue tint of the glass added visual attraction and it allows the light to stream into the one storey high entrances cutting down on glare and heat gain, making them bright and welcoming to pupils, staff and visitors.'
Pilkington Activ™ Blue is basically the same as conventional glass, except for a unique dual action coating.

'Once exposed to daylight, the coating firstly breaks down and loosens any organic dirt (such as bird droppings), and secondly the hydrophilic coating on the glass causes rainwater to "sheet" down the glass to wash the loosened dirt away. Pilkington Activ™ Blue also dries faster leaving the glass cleaner and with reduced streaks, providing clearer external views.

Pilkington Activ™ Blue combines the benefits of self-cleaning with solar control performance. Its unique blue colour helps to keep internal temperatures cooler in the summer, whilst maintaining excellent light transmission.

Minimal maintenance and visually appealing, Pilkington Activ™ Blue has enhanced the external appearance of two schools, poles apart in design, thus proving the versatility and adaptability of the product to any application'

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