Project Case Study
A 7.2-star Sydney residence, glazed without compromise
How Seamless thermally broken aluminium windows and doors let a warm-temperate climate-zone home keep its floor-to-ceiling glazing, clear AS 2047 and lift its NatHERS rating — precision-fabricated to the architect's drawings.
Project snapshot
Engineered for its climate, certified for its code
Every figure on this project was driven by one requirement: precise thermal performance that holds up to its climate zone and clears the National Construction Code on the first assessment.
Challenge & solution
A precision-engineering problem, solved at the frame
Thermal efficiency on this build was won or lost at the window line. Here is the constraint the design set, and the engineered response that protected the architecture and the energy rating.
Floor-to-ceiling glazing without losing the energy rating
The architect specified expansive north and west glazing to capture the view and winter sun. In a warm-temperate climate zone that glass area is also the building's biggest thermal liability — left unchecked it would have driven summer heat gain up, pushed the NatHERS rating down, and forced the design back to smaller windows.
- —Large west-facing openings exposed to afternoon heat load and a stricter wind region
- —A whole-of-home NatHERS target that single-glazed aluminium could not reach
- —Slim, consistent sightlines required across windows, sliding doors and corner junctions
Thermally broken frames, precision-fabricated to the drawings
We specified our thermally broken (broken-bridge) series with double-glazed argon-filled sealed units, isolating the inner and outer aluminium with a polyamide thermal barrier. Each unit was fabricated to the project's exact opening sizes, so frames installed square with minimal on-site adjustment and the glazing line stayed continuous across the facade.
- —Polyamide thermal break cuts conductive heat transfer through the frame
- —Double-glazed IGUs tuned for a low U-value and controlled solar heat gain (SHGC)
- —CNC-cut, factory-assembled units held to tight tolerances for true, weather-tight installs
Specific AS 2047 compliance
Compliance on this project wasn't generic. Each rating was selected for the site's climate zone, wind region and glazing area, then documented per series for the certifier.
| Standard | What it governs | Applies to | Docs available |
|---|---|---|---|
| AS 2047:2014Windows & external glazed doors in buildings | Water penetration resistance, ultimate-limit-state structural performance and operating force — every window and door on this project was tested and rated to clause. | All glazed openings supplied to the build | ✓ |
| AS 2047 — water & airWeather-tightness for the wind region | Serviceability water-penetration and air-infiltration ratings selected to match the site's design wind pressure rather than a generic default. | West & north exposed elevations | ✓ |
| AS 1288Glass selection & installation | Human-impact safety glass and structural glazing thicknesses specified for the large fixed and sliding panels in the double-glazed units. | Floor-to-ceiling and corner glazing | ✓ |
| AS/NZS 1170.2Wind actions — N3 rating | Design wind pressures for the site's terrain and exposure category, used to rate frames and glass for serviceability and ultimate limit states. | Whole-of-project wind rating | ✓ |
| AS/NZS 4666Insulating glass units (IGUs) | Durability and seal-integrity requirements for the argon-filled double-glazed sealed units used in the thermally broken frames. | Thermally broken / double-glazed series | ✓ |
Product-specific test certificates, wind-pressure ratings and energy values are issued per series — request the documents below or contact our technical team.
Builder testimonial
“We brief Seamless on the window schedule and the drawings, and the units arrive made to spec — square, consistent sightlines, and the thermal numbers our assessor needs. The double-glazed thermally broken frames got us across the NatHERS line without value-engineering the architect's glazing back. It's the part of the build I no longer worry about.”
Planning a build with a demanding glazing brief?
Send us the window schedule and elevations. We'll engineer thermally broken units to your climate zone and NatHERS target, and supply the AS 2047 documentation your certifier needs.
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