Shackerley’s glass blocks enhance Odeon Liverpool One
The new multi-screen Odeon cinema in the award winning Liverpool One development features two distinctive facades built from large format glass blocks supplied by Shackerley, one of the UK’s largest and most experienced distributors of these versatile construction materials.
The blocks were specified by architects at BDP - masterplanners of the 42-acre city regeneration project, concept architects for five of Liverpool One’s new buildings and executive architects for a further nine.
An anchor building in the £1 billion development, and one of the tallest, the new cinema consists of 14 screens on two levels stacked on top of three levels of retail space below. Whilst structural glazing has been used on the south elevation to enclose the main cinema foyer area, a different light enhancing solution was required for the east and west ends of the building which are predominantly back of house circulation areas.
BDP Associate Chris Hernon said: “Large format glass blocks provided us with an attractive and cost effective way to achieve a visual connection between the cinema and the immediate streets below and the rejuvenated Chavasse Park beyond. They provide a controlled degree of transparency which not only enhances the interior environment but also opens up numerous branding opportunities for the cinema tenant. The scope for visual promotion on a cinema building like this is obvious and by using these large format blocks we’ve paved the way for various kinetic lighting effects to be effectively incorporated in the future, especially on the west elevation which is clearly visible from miles around.”
Chris Hernon explains: “Shackerley supplies 30 x 30 mm glass blocks for use in large wall surfaces and these were of the right scale to meet our aesthetic requirements. We decided to work with prefabricated glass block panels to fast track the installation on what was a tight and very busy site. We used painted steel plate split frames each containing ten rows of ten blocks to create panels of the maximum recommended size. These were reinforced with stainless steel rods running through specialist mortar joints and then pointed with sealant. The panels were set within a secondary grid of painted steel channels which had to sit outside the primary steel so that it was independent of floor levels and not constrained by structural steel tolerances. On both glass block facades the upper storey is a continuous band of block walling supported above and below. ”
BDP selected the 30 x 30mm block from Shackerley’s Technology range, a specialist collection of glass blocks manufactured by Seves which have all been designed to meet specific performance criteria such as light control, fire safety, impact resistance, thermal insulation and soundproofing. Whilst superior transparency was a key requirement at the Odeon cinema, the 30 x 30m glass blocks are also offered with a satin finish to one or both sides and also with a choice of surface textures enabling specifiers to control illumination and to satisfy privacy requirements where necessary.
For further information on the extensive range of glass blocks now supplied by Shackerley for architectural and interior design applications please call the Technical Team on 0800 783 0391, visit www.shackerley.com or email info@shackerley.com
Shackerley (Holdings) Group Ltd | 139 Wigan Road | Euxton | Chorley |
PR7 6JJ
Company registered in England No: 01704765 | Vat No: GB 379 7940 81
Tel: 01257 273114 | Fax: 01257 262386
The new multi-screen Odeon cinema in the award winning Liverpool One development features two distinctive facades built from large format glass blocks supplied by Shackerley, one of the UK’s largest and most experienced distributors of these versatile construction materials.
Chris Hernon explains: “Shackerley supplies 30 x 30 mm glass blocks for use in large wall surfaces and these were of the right scale to meet our aesthetic requirements. We decided to work with prefabricated glass block panels to fast track the installation on what was a tight and very busy site. We used painted steel plate split frames each containing ten rows of ten blocks to create panels of the maximum recommended size. These were reinforced with stainless steel rods running through specialist mortar joints and then pointed with sealant. The panels were set within a secondary grid of painted steel channels which had to sit outside the primary steel so that it was independent of floor levels and not constrained by structural steel tolerances. On both glass block facades the upper storey is a continuous band of block walling supported above and below. ”
BDP selected the 30 x 30mm block from Shackerley’s Technology range, a specialist collection of glass blocks manufactured by Seves which have all been designed to meet specific performance criteria such as light control, fire safety, impact resistance, thermal insulation and soundproofing. Whilst superior transparency was a key requirement at the Odeon cinema, the 30 x 30m glass blocks are also offered with a satin finish to one or both sides and also with a choice of surface textures enabling specifiers to control illumination and to satisfy privacy requirements where necessary.