Hall 3 of the Messe Frankfurt exhibition centre, inaugurated in August 2001 with the world’s largest consumer goods fair, Tendence, was enthusiastically received by exhibitors.

Exhibiting light, air and space

The steel construction of the roof spanning the Hall bestows on it its very special character which makes it unique among exhibition halls. Built to accommodate 20,000 visitors, the Hall 3 offers an exhibition surface area of around 40,000 m² on two floors. A feeling of light and openness is the central theme of the Hall. The vast glass front on its north side provides lots of daylight and makes possible new forms of exhibition.

The requirement for the best possible lighting, combined with outstanding energy properties, was realised through the use of a range of Pilkington glass products. On the northern façade, thermally insulated glazing was used; based on Pilkington Optitherm™ SN, providing the best internal heat retention with a Ug- value of 1.1 W/m²K. In specific areas the thermally insulating glass was used in a safety glass combination.

In order to cope with the seasonally changing demands on the east and west facades, high performance solar control glass Pilkington Suncool™ 50/25 with selectivity index of 2.0 was used. This protects from strong sunshine beaming in during the summer, and in winter exhibits the best heat retaining properties.

In the security areas on the ground floor, laminated safety glass was used. This is generally Pilkington Optilam™ and consists of two equally thick Pilkington Optifloat™ Clear glass sheets, bonded together with a pvb interlayer sandwiched between.

Exhibition hall 3, designed by the British architects Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners, further enhances the value of the third largest exhibition centre in the world. The short construction time of 18 months was achieved through the use of prefabricated components. The total cost of construction was 138 million euro, with the value of the glass around 1 million euro.