Members of the UK Green
Achilles Building Confidence
Ikea, Cardiff
What a great Ikea!
The new flagship Ikea store Cardiff, opened its doors to customers on
6th November 2003. The first store to open in Wales is already
attracting huge numbers of customers; 650,000 used to flock to the
nearest store in Bristol prior to the new store opening. The 26,000
square metre store is raised above the car park to make maximum use of
a tight site and is the second largest Ikea in the UK.
Ikea Cardiff was opened 38 weeks after starting on site, beating all Ikea construction records worldwide and is now being used as a benchmark for future stores.
protecting the glazed entrance area from overheating
Working with the new part L regulations Levolux and Stubbs Rich Architects developed a combination of horizontal and vertical shading to protect the double height glazed entrance area from overheating.
The Levolux installation comprised three parts. Two sections of Levolux 400mm aerofoil fins were installed at a pitch of 500mm, one as a vertical stack and one as a run installed ‘on end’ along the façade. Levolux also designed bespoke 11m high vertical fins individually mounted on mild steel columns.
These bespoke blades are painted bright yellow to contrast with the predominantly blue elevations, in conjunction with the Ikea’s corporate colours and they form a striking feature of the building. The portion of the entrance block facing south has a large ‘shop-window’ which frames an important merchandise display podium.
Levolux gave us real confidence
Michael Ross, Project Architect of Stubbs Rich Architects comments: “Levolux gave us real confidence at tender stage that the implications of the design had been fully considered. The technical staff then worked very hard to help us realize our design - commissioning structural calculations and supporting our design development with the frame and envelope contractor.”
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| Architect: | Stubbs Rich Architects |
| Products used: | Aluminium Fins |
| Bespoke Solution |