Swarovski Curtain

In front of the Swarovski factory in Wattens near Innsbruck, a 250 m long and 10 m high curtain made of stainless steel mesh was created in the course of redesigning the forecourt. The mesh is composed of individual rings, each with a diameter of 12 mm. The curtain separates the public area from the factory and at the same time has a high representative effect.

At the Limit of what is Possible with a High Representative Impact

The fabric originally comes from the field of occupational safety and was used for the first time in this dimension in architecture. For this purpose, extensive studies of the material behaviour were carried out in advance at the University of Stuttgart. The design of the load-bearing steel supports (conical and curved steel tubes) is at the limit of what is technically feasible.

Werner Sobek was responsible for the structural engineering of this attractive project.