Office Partitioning
Crittall Style
The standard for glazed partitions has always been clear glass panels with either glass to glass joints or vertical bars separating the panels. This gives maximum visibility coupled with improved acoustics, which will vary depending on the type of glass used. To conform to DDA requirements, manifestation may also be required, from simple horizontal bands of dots to complex patterns and printed vinyl to create the “wow” factor.
Introduction
In recent years there has been a greater demand for more contemporary designs which impact on the overall office aesthetics rather than simply being neutral. Glazed offices and screens are no longer “invisible” and now need to support the interior design of the office or home. Customers are constantly looking for new designs of office partitioning.
Whilst clear “invisible” glass screens will always form the basis of our portfolio, more advanced, futuristic and traditional designs have been introduced to meet the requirements of more selective and high end clients. In this instance we will be looking at the need for “Crittall” style screens.
The Challenge
The Crittall design was introduced in the 1880’s by Francis Henry Crittall, an ironmonger from Braintree, Essex who began to manufacture steel framed windows after inheriting the company from his father Francis Berrington Crittall.
Crittall windows and frames are still made to this day in the same way using black steel welded frames creating multi pane windows and partitions. Crittall is a registered design so cannot be copied unless under license so this is where the need for a Crittall style design comes in using aluminium profiles and bars.
The Result
With years of experience of different glazing systems and the ability to source and manufacture our own profiles from both the UK and wider afield we now provide Crittall style screens in aluminium and steel in black powder coated finish. Our aluminium Crittall style designs are off the shelf and can be installed almost immediately using standard glazing channels, both single and double glazed with horizontal and vertical bars bonded directly to the glass creating boxed panels to any size and configuration.
For Fire rated and external screens we manufacture stainless steel frames to order in only a matter of weeks with doors to suit. These Crittall style partitions are becoming extremely popular for commercial and domestic projects and lend themselves to most interior designs, being both modern and traditional at the same time dependant on the material and pattern selected.