Saint Andrews Hospital
St Andrew’s Hospital is one of the largest private hospitals in Australia, having served Adelaide for over 80 years. The hospital prides itself in the delivery of excellent healthcare provision to the community, with a focus on the ongoing development of onsite services and facilities.
As part of the strategic plan the Hospital aims to be environmentally sustainable whilst enhancing the patient experience, and the recently upgraded third floor terrace certainly conforms to this ethos. Wiltshire & Swain Architects were engaged to create this functional and usable area for patients and visitors alike, with two Shaderunner® retractable sail systems being specified to provide much needed shade to the exposed terrace. A seating area of 7.2m x 7.2m was identified as requiring shade, and as the area exceeds the 6.5m maximum width for a single Shaderunner, twin systems were installed running side-by-side. By having twin retractable Shaderunner systems, greater flexibility is provided for users of the space.
Most Shaderunners feature an easy to use manually operated endless cord system but increasing in popularity is the option to have remote motorised control. At St Andrew’s Hospital motorised operation was selected, with each Shaderunner featuring a durable Somfy motor housed in a slimline powdercoated headbox. For the ultimate convenience, a simple to use remote controller is used to extend and retract the Shaderunners as and when required. Being a public space, further automated control is provided by the addition of sun, wind, and rain sensors to extend or retract the Shaderunners during weather events. At the touch of a button the twin Shaderunners can be deployed to provide thermal comfort to terrace users when required, or the automated sun control can also provide this function automatically. Similarly, the remote controller can be used to fold back the Shaderunners when not in use, but if winds pick up or it starts raining, the automated wind and rain sensors will automatically retract both systems.
The Shaderunner is manufactured from durable components, including marine grade 316 stainless steel fittings and Ronstan yachting ball bearing pulleys. As a result, the Shaderunner provides a robust retractable shade solution for a range of commercial and domestic applications. Using high quality components, most Shaderunner systems require only 2 x running wires on which the Shaderunner fabric extends and retracts. Being on the third-floor terrace, the twin Shaderunner systems at St Andrew’s Hospital were specified with an additional third running wire to provide greater stability for the location. Further to this, a weighted down tube was added to the front panel of each system which serves to lessen wind action on the retracted Shaderunner under extreme wind events, reducing the occurrence of fabric wear in windier areas.
The Shaderunner® is manufactured from a range of rigorously tested fabrics which are as durable as they are stylish, being designed to withstand high traffic applications and the demands of the harsh Australian climate with ease. At St Andrew’s Hospital the Shaderunners were manufactured from Outlook 95% Polyester Mesh fabric in the colour ‘Graystone’, providing excellent shade and glare reduction with a contemporary look. The Shaderunner can also be manufactured from waterproof PVC for a weatherproof solution, requiring side fall to shed water.
By including the Shaderunner® Retractable Sail system, this invaluable outdoor space now has the benefit of controllable shade on demand, providing thermal comfort to patrons and visitors as required.
The Shaderunner® Retractable Sail System is ideally suited for a range of commercial and domestic applications from outdoor terraces, to alfresco dining areas and beer gardens, swimming pools and aquatic centres. With thousands of Shaderunner® systems currently in use, this durable and dependable shade solution provides years of trouble-free shading with minimal maintenance.
Shaderunner® Australia
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