Overhead Glazing: Regulations and Applications

Geralt Siebert

Overhead glazing can be held by linear bearings or point fixings. For applications with linear bearing rules for overhead glazing do exist and design is more or less simple.

In case canopies made of glass panes held by point fittings the use of a system with a general national approval (Allgemeine bauaufsichtliche Zulassung) is suggested. And also bigger areas can be covered using “ready (and simple) to use” system with a general national approval.

Special applications not according to a technical rule or general national approval make a special building permit (Zustimmung im Einzelfall) necessary. To get such a permit several verifications (which sometimes require comprehensive knowledge of designer, engineer and experts) are needed.

New codes on European or German level are under construction at present. The actual state of work shows that one can expect modern and not too complicated rules for an even wider application of glass in architecture and structural engineering.

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The Authors

Prof. Geralt Siebert Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. Universität der Bundeswehr München Geralt Siebert, born in 1966, received his civil engineering degree from TU München. The doctor’s thesis about the application of architectural glass as load carrying structural element was accepted 1... Read more