To have exclusive architectural buildings all over the world fitted with Solarlux´s glass folding façades can hardly be regarded as special any more but to have such folding façades fitted at a height of almost 8 000 feet above sea level has been somewhat unusual, even for the market leader Solarlux from Bissendorf in Germany. Solarlux are the supplier of all the vertical glazing for the new “glacier garden” glass pavilion on Germany´s highest mountain, the Zugspitze. Thus Solarlux´s folding façades have literally made it to the top.

It was Solarlux´s active partner Engelbert Wolf GmbH who initiated the project. The Bavarian Zugspitzbahn Bergbahn AG awarded the building contract to Engelbert Wolf GmbH who are from Heufeld in Southern Germany. Solarlux supplied in total 46 units comprising three folding façades with 6 panels each and seven window units with four panels each.
Wolf won the order because Solarlux was the only supplier who could meet the client´s specifications and who could prove their capability by test certificates.
Two conditions essential for winning this unusual contract were based on the climatic conditions which prevail on the highest mountain of Germany. One is that the windows ensure tightness despite temperature variations ranging from icy -40° C to spring-like +15° C. The other condition is that the windows must not give way at wind speeds up to 125 mph (wind force 16) with the associated pressure and suction.

The folding façade type used was the hurricane-tested SL 70e which is certified by institutes such as “ift” Rosenheim and A.T.I. Florida. Apart from its strength in the face of such enormous wind forces the system incorporates the so-called “travelling” posts which offer structural advantages. The integrated hinges of the SL 70e system offer better adjustment facilities for individual panels so that tightness is always guaranteed within high temperature variations.

All window units were pre-assembled on Wolf´s premises and then transported by the rack and pinion railway to the 8 000 feet high peak. Solarlux´s active partner managed to install all 46 units in five days despite the adverse weather conditions of frost and ice-cold winds. But not only the weather was a challenge. The height difference of 6,900 feet between the manufacturing location and the installation site was a challenge on its own. For this reason, the sealed units were manufactured with an air pressure of 1645 feet above sea level. The considerably lower air pressure on the Zugspitze would have led to a bulging of the panes since the air between the panes, which is more dense, would have expanded.

The problem was solved by fitting the edge of the sealed units with a valve which ensured that the pressure was equalised during transport. After the sealed units had “acclimatised” themselves at the height of 8,000 feet, the valves were shut and sealed.

The glass pavilion which is meant to be a hospitality venue for skiers is to be officially opened in October at the start of the skiing season.

SOLARLUX, 14.09.2007  Approx. 620 words
Copyright is granted free of charge. Please send specimen of publication to

SOLARLUX Unternehmenskommunikation (for editorial questions and posting of specimens please contact:)
Frau Nicole Holtgreife • Johann-Georg-Str. 6 • 10709 Berlin • Tel:. 030-30 10 89 12 • Fax: 030-30 10 89 13 •  Email: n.holtgreife@solarlux.de

Headquaters Bissendorf:
SOLARLUX Aluminium Systeme GmbH • Gewerbepark 9-11 •  49143 Bissendorf • Tel. 05402-400-0 •  Fax 05402-400-200 • e-mail: info@solarlux.de •  Internet: www.solarlux.de

Solarlux has made it to the top, the Zugspitze, the highest mountain in the German Alps. At the lofty height of 8,000 feet above sea level, the hurricane-testes SL 704 Solarlux folding façades were installed.

Photo: Bayerische Zugspitzbahn Bergbahn AG