SFS Intec Keeps Heathrow T5 Roof On

When planning the design and construction of the elegant wave roof on the new Heathrow Terminal 5 (T5) building, Hathaway Roofing turned to SFS intec for the essential fastening detail.

The complexities of the hybrid roof design, its curved shape, the requirement for off-site manufacture and the difficulties of installation demanded the highest performance and cost-effective ease of use from the SFS intec fastening systems.

Probably the biggest single span building in the UK, the T5 roof has to perform many functions in one structure, and is constructed in two main parts.

These are the aluminium outer weather layer (KalZip), and the subsidiary layer comprising structural decking, perforated lining, vapour control, thermal insulation, galvanised carrier and acoustic insulation, with the soffit support framework and cementitious acoustic board.

The subsidiary layer is manufactured on a production line at Hathaway Roofing's factory as 6m x 3m cassettes, for delivery and assembly on-site at Heathrow.

Through careful analysis SFS intec were able to reduce the potentially 12 different fastening applications on the cassettes to 8 and, by colour coding the fasteners, SFS intec were able to save significant time in selection, wrong application and quality checking during production.

For phase A of the T5 roof, the aluminium weather layer is rolled on site from sections of 400mm width by up to 110m long.

As there is potentially considerable expansion and contraction, a special fastener already designed and manufactured by SFS intec was used for securing the halters that support the weather layer in these extreme circumstances.

Construction of the roof on-site is complicated by height limitations on cranes due to possible interference with airport radar systems.

To comply with this, a specially adapted crane has been used to erect the supporting abutments.

The roof structure will be built at ground level on site in six modular sections, then each section - weighing around 2500 tonnes - will be lifted in turn by immense hydraulic jacks, over a period of two days and using temporary lifting towers.

Handover to the roof construction team was at the end of October 2003, and roof completion is scheduled for the end of 2005.

Terminal 5 is scheduled for completion in 2008.

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