Perforated facade panels do three jobs at once: they shade, they screen, and they carry the architecture. ShapeShift Technologies makes them in glass fibre reinforced concrete and in architectural FRP, cut to a custom pattern from the architect’s drawing rather than selected from a catalogue of standard perforations.
Pattern is not an extra. Because moulds and CNC formwork are made in-house, a bespoke perforation pattern is a drawing and a tooling path, not a special order with a surcharge attached to a standard product. Parametric and gradient patterns that vary panel by panel are handled the same way.
What they are used for
Solar shading is the most common brief. A perforated screen set off the glazing line cuts solar gain while keeping the view and the daylight, which is a cheaper and more durable answer than deep reveals or external blinds. The open area is a design variable, so shading performance can be tuned across a facade by varying the pattern rather than by changing the system.
Screening is the second. Car park facades, plant rooms, substations and service cores all need ventilation and want to look like part of the building rather than a louvre. A perforated GFRC or FRP screen gives free area and a finished architectural face in one element.
Then there is pure expression: mashrabiya and jali screens, perforated soffits, feature walls, and lighting effects where the pattern is backlit. These sit close to public art fabrication, which the same plant and the same mould shop handle.
Choosing the material
Glass fibre reinforced concrete, ShapeShell-RC, gives an architectural concrete face and the mass and permanence that goes with it. Typical thickness is 15 to 25 mm. It is the right answer where the screen should read as concrete and where the panel sizes are moderate. See GFRC panels.
Architectural FRP, ShapeShell-RT, goes much lighter and much larger. Thickness runs 3 to 8 mm for a single skin and 10 to 50 mm for a monocoque panel, weight runs 5 to 32 kg per square metre, and the maximum stated panel size is up to 2.4 m by 10 m. Where a screen has to span far, hang off a light structure, or be lifted by hand, FRP is usually the answer. See ShapeShell-RT.
Both take integral colour and a range of surface finishes. Check the weight of a given panel size with the panel weight and crane calculator before the pattern is fixed, because open area changes the weight and the lift.
What to resolve at design stage
Open area and minimum web width drive everything else. Too fine a web and the panel gets fragile in handling and demoulding; too coarse and the shading performance drops. Bring the pattern to the manufacturer early rather than after it has been signed off in renders.
Wind load on a perforated panel is not the same as on a solid one, and the substructure and fixing follow from that. Edge conditions, corner returns and the junction where a perforated screen meets solid cladding are the details worth drawing first.
Where the screen forms part of an external wall rather than sitting clear of it, the fire pathway applies as it does to any cladding. See non-combustible cladding and the fire test evidence page.
Material comparison
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Typical thickness | 15 to 25 mm |
| FRP thickness | 3 to 8 mm single skin, 10 to 50 mm monocoque |
| FRP weight | 5 to 32 kg per square metre |
| FRP maximum stated size | Up to 2.4 m by 10 m |
| Perforation pattern | Custom, from the architect’s drawing. Parametric and gradient patterns supported |
| Geometry | Flat, single curvature, double curvature, freeform |
| Finish | Integral colour, acid-etched, sandblasted, polished, off-form |
| Tooling | Moulds and CNC formwork made in-house at the Batam factory |
Perforated panels are part of the bespoke facade range. For completed work see the project showcase, and for how the plant handles bespoke tooling see the GFRC factory page.
Terms explained
Short definitions of the terms on this page, in our facade materials encyclopedia.
Common questions
Can you make a custom perforation pattern?
Yes. Patterns are made from the architect’s drawing, including parametric and gradient patterns that vary panel by panel. Moulds and CNC formwork are made in-house, so a bespoke pattern is a tooling path rather than a special order.
Which material should a perforated screen be?
GFRC where it should read as architectural concrete and panel sizes are moderate. FRP where the panel has to be very large, very light, or span far. FRP runs 5 to 32 kg per square metre with a maximum stated size up to 2.4 m by 10 m.
Can perforated panels be curved?
Yes, including double curvature and freeform. The perforation pattern follows the surface.
What open area is possible?
It depends on the panel size, the material and the minimum web width the pattern leaves. Bring the pattern to the manufacturer early, because open area drives weight, handling and wind load.
Do perforated panels affect wind load?
Yes. A perforated panel does not load the same way as a solid one, and the substructure and fixing design follow from the actual pattern. This is facade engineering work on a specific project.
Do the fire rules still apply?
Where the screen forms part of an external wall, yes, on the same basis as any cladding. Where it stands clear of the wall the assessment differs. The pathway is set by the project fire engineer and approving authority.
Reviewed by Richard Halvorsen, General Manager, ShapeShift Technologies.