Whether an organization sells clothes, food, or cars, the experience that brand offers each customer should differentiate the brand through visual expression. This is particularly important at brick-and-mortar stores, and it cascades to the selection of building materials. 

For the renovation of the Porsche of the Village – a car dealership selling both Porsche and Maserati vehicles in Cincinnati, Ohio – the owners sought to replace an old, drafty curtainwall with one that would parallel the performance of the brands’ industry-leading supercars. They entrusted next-gen material science from Deceuninck for the optimal solution.

Shifting Gears

“The previous curtainwall was very cold, and the dealership needed an upgrade,” said Sheldon Kahan, commercial program manager at Deceuninck North America. “We knew we needed a very high-performing window wall that would help with insulation, and we also needed to consider condensation resistance factor and how we could make it less likely to fog up when it is cold outside.”

For the framing, the project used the Tubelite^® 400T Thermal Curtainwall, a thermally broken curtainwall product that has been designed to meet or exceed the industry’s most stringent energy codes. Offered in 11 anodized finishes and 19 standard paint colors, the system allows specifiers to achieve any desired look. For Porsche of the Village, the project team selected clear anodized to match the exterior facade panels that are emblazoned with the Porsche name.

After aesthetics, the next box to check was performance. OKI Glazing Systems (Miami Township, Ohio) was in charge of the curtainwall installation. To meet the client’s needs, OKI knew they needed to bolster the system with a material that would deliver noticeable improvements in terms of heat/cold transfer.

Within the Window Wall

For this project, it was what was included within the curtainwall system that significantly boosted its thermal performance. The windows feature Deceuninck’s Innergy^® AP pressure plates, custom-designed components to fit any fenestration system and offer immediate and significant thermal benefits.

“The Innergy AP pressure plates are just one component of the window wall but they play a significant role in warming up the entire system,” explained Kahan.

In fact, using the pressure plates allowed the project to achieve a condensation resistance factor of 80 in the frame and 70 in the glass.

“By design, curtainwalls feature a lot of glass. Therefore, it is critical to make smart choices when it comes to their construction,” said Scott Haynes at OKI Glazing Systems. “Choosing insulating glass and high-quality framing components such as Innergy AP help ensure the overall curtainwall performance is very high.” In addition to thermal performance, the Innergy AP pressure plates provide structural strength for the entire system. In fact, they outperform polyamide alternatives in both compressive and flexural strength and exhibit no creep under sustained loads.

Oftentimes, architectural projects utilize pressure plates made from aluminum or other metals that do very little to thwart thermal energy transfer. The revolutionary science behind Innergy AP uses advanced composite material technology that offers extreme energy efficiency 900 times greater than aluminum. The material is also incredibly strong with 100% flexural memory, returning to its original shape even after severe stresses. In addition, Innergy AP products are unaffected by environmental conditions such as corrosion from salt air or water.

Crossing the Finish Line

The renovation of Porsche of the Village was completed in the summer of 2022 and is open for business.

With assistance from Deceuninck’s Innergy AP pressure plates, the new window wall is successfully maintaining a comfortable interior climate for staff and new car shoppers, and delivering a buying experience in line with what customers expect from such luxury brands as Porsche and Maserati. With a new sustainable wall system that keeps cold air out of the structure, Porsche of the Village can also expect a reduction in energy usage for a cleaner, greener footprint.

Project at a Glance:

To solve for an old, drafty curtainwall at the Porsche of the Village dealership in Cincinnati, Ohio, Deceuninck provided Innergy AP components for a system that now delivers next-level thermal performance and unmatched structural strength.