| No source of lighting is more perfect than natural daylight. . . |
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Project: Kent County Airport An EXTECH® Unique Project
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| The Grand Rapids, MI (Kent County) Airport was undergoing an expansion which called for a canopy skylight to cover the entire sidewalk of the terminal building to protect passengers waiting for buses and shuttles. It is over 580 feet long. HOK Architects chose a unique EXTECH system. The glazing is an opal colored 5/8" thick cellular polycarbonate which is treated to promote colorfastness and weatherability. Polycarbonate is an extremely tough thermoplastic. Because of the low slope of the canopy, it was determined that there should be no horizontal framing members. This meant that the individual canopy panels would be 27' long. HOK wanted a light feel to the leading (outer) edge of the canopy. EXTECH designed a cantilevered system that incorporated fiberglass pultruded channels to support the glazing panels where they extended beyond the metal framing. The result is a canopy which looks good and which will protect passengers for many years to come. |
 Protection from rain and solar heat.
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