Custom Aluminum Panels for Children’s of Alabama – Lee Building
Project Details
- Client: Metal Panel Company
- Location: Children’s Hospital of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama
- Scope: Design, fabrication, and finishing of large aluminum panels for LED-integrated exterior cladding
Project Overview
The Children’s of Alabama campus in Birmingham, Alabama, is known for its vibrant exteriors, which create a welcoming and uplifting environment. When construction began on the new Lee Building, the hospital sought to maintain this signature aesthetic.
A metal panel company engaged Astro to assist in designing and fabricating custom aluminum panels that would match the bright color scheme and integrate LED lighting. Some of these panels measured up to thirty feet long and required precise engineering and expert handling. Astro played a key role in developing a solution that met the project’s architectural and functional requirements.
Challenges & Solutions
1. Accommodating LED Lighting in Metal Panels
- The design needed to allow for concealed LED lighting, ensuring a smooth and polished exterior appearance.
- Astro collaborated with the client to develop panel designs with hidden compartments for LED lights, maintaining a simple and efficient fabrication process while ensuring accessibility for installation and maintenance.
2. Handling Oversized Panels (Up to 30 Feet Long)
- The sheer size of some aluminum panels posed transportation and structural challenges.
- Astro collaborated closely with the client to identify the best panel lengths and seam placements, ensuring structural integrity while simplifying handling, shipping, and installation.
3. Achieving a Durable & Vibrant Finish
- The panels needed to be coated in the hospital’s distinctive bright colors: red, blue, green, and yellow.
- After fabrication, the panels were meticulously sorted by color and sent for Kynar painting, ensuring a durable, fade-resistant finish capable of withstanding outdoor elements.
4. Ensuring Safe Transport Across States
- Considering the size and finish of the completed panels, proper packaging and crating were crucial to prevent damage during transport from Texas to Alabama.
- Astro implemented protective packaging methods to securely crate the panels, ensuring they arrived at the job site in pristine condition.
Fabrication & Installation Process
- Design & Engineering Collaboration
- Collaborated with the client to enhance panel designs, ensuring aesthetic appeal and structural integrity.
- Integrated hidden LED compartments while simplifying fabrication techniques.
- Precision Fabrication
- Panels were laser cut and precision-formed according to the approved specifications.
- Seam locations were strategically planned to maintain a seamless appearance while ensuring proper structural support.
- Kynar Painting & Finishing
- The panels were sorted by color and coated with high-performance Kynar paint, which provides UV resistance, weather protection, and long-term vibrancy.
- Packaging & Logistics
- Panels were carefully packed, crated, and secured for safe transport over long distances.
- Quality checks ensured all components met dimensional and finishing standards before shipment.
- Installation & Final Results
- The client successfully installed the panels on-site at the Children’s of Alabama – Lee Building.
- The panels fit precisely as planned and provided the desired daytime vibrancy and stunning nighttime illumination when the LED lights were activated.
Results & Impact
- Seamless Aesthetic Integration: The new building maintained the hospital’s distinctive, colorful exterior, enhancing its identity and welcoming atmosphere.
- Durability & Performance: Kynar-painted panels ensured long-term color retention and weather resistance, reducing maintenance requirements.
- Functional & Visual Appeal: Hidden LED compartments enabled a clean, modern design, allowing the building to stand out both during the day and when illuminated at night.
- Efficient Collaboration & Execution: Astro’s engineering expertise, precision fabrication, and careful logistics planning ensured a smooth design and installation process.
Conclusion
Astro’s role in the Children’s of Alabama – Lee Building project exemplifies our ability to tackle complex metal fabrication challenges while maintaining architectural integrity and functionality. By combining innovative design, precision engineering, and high-quality finishing, we brought this dynamic and engaging architectural vision to life.
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