A hub with room to breathe: FIEGER louvre windows at Queen’s University Belfast
At Queen’s University Belfast, a compact but distinctive new Student Hub has transformed part of the historic David Keir Building into a more open, flexible, and collaborative learning environment. Designed by Burwell Deakins Architects, the Student Hub sits within the environs of the David Keir Building and works together with a revitalised lecture theatre to extend the use of university facilities beyond the standard academic day. The project was commissioned by Queen’s University Belfast, constructed by Graham Construction Ltd, with curtain walling delivered by WFM Ltd. With its warm-toned cladding, tall glazed sections, and carefully integrated louvre vents, the building offers a clear example of how façade design, natural ventilation, smoke control, and learning space design can support one another.
Visit a reference projectSolution
Natural ventilation , Smoke Ventilation
Location
Belfast, Northen Ireland
Sector
Education
Project Type
New build
A new learning landmark in an established setting
The David Keir Building is part of Queen’s University Belfast’s post-war campus expansion. Opened in 1959, it marked a significant moment in the university’s physical development and has long been associated with teaching and research activity.
The Student Hub was created as a new intervention within this established setting. Burwell Architects describe the project as a response to the university’s need for a clear identity and a catalyst for new pedagogies, while also encouraging greater use of the David Keir Building’s courtyard. The new pavilion was placed in the main courtyard, with a refurbished adjacent lecture theatre forming part of the overall learning environment.
Architecturally, the building is deliberately contemporary, but sensitive to its surroundings. Its Corten steel-clad pavilion echoes the colour of the existing brickwork and reflects Belfast’s shipbuilding heritage, while the glazed façades incorporate glass louvres and rooflights. The heavily insulated walls help create a low-carbon, naturally ventilated environment with local controllability, designed to meet BREEAM Very Good standards.
The Student Hub was created to support a more flexible and collaborative learning environment, extending the use of university facilities beyond the standard academic day. That placed clear demands on the building envelope: the new space needed to feel open and comfortable during everyday use, while also supporting energy efficiency, weather protection, and life safety.
The need: fresh air, smoke control, and a low U-value
For a learning environment designed around extended use, indoor comfort was a central priority. The building needed effective day-to-day natural ventilation, allowing fresh air to support a comfortable atmosphere for students and staff. At the same time, the façade had to contribute to the building’s emergency smoke control strategy. In the event of a fire, smoke and heat must be extracted efficiently to support safer evacuation conditions and help protect escape routes. The project also placed strong emphasis on thermal performance. A key design principle was achieving a very low U-value, helping the glazed façade contribute to the building’s energy-efficient envelope rather than becoming a weak point. To meet these combined requirements, Burwell Deakins Architects specified the FIEGER FLW 40 system.
FIEGER FLW 40 SmoTec: integrated into the façade
The selected solution was the FIEGER FLW 40 SmoTec system, used for both ventilation and smoke control. The vents were specified as triple-glazed units with insulated frames and Krypton gas in the glazing cavities, enabling overall vent U-values between 1.12 and 1.33 W/m²K.
The louvre vents were finished in Anthracite Grey, RAL 7016, allowing them to sit discreetly within the glazed façade and complement the wider architectural expression of the Student Hub.
One of the project’s most distinctive technical features is the tall glazed section shown in the FIEGER case material. This 8.9-metre-high section was built using FIEGER’s “plug & socket” arrangement in the side frames. The set-up also includes fixed louvres with back-painted glass to mask the floor levels, allowing the façade to maintain a continuous vertical appearance while accommodating the practical realities of the building behind it.
Everyday ventilation, emergency response
In daily operation, the FIEGER louvre vents support natural ventilation by allowing fresh outdoor air into the Student Hub when conditions are suitable. This helps maintain a more comfortable indoor environment for learning, group work, and social interaction. The vents were supplied with 24V DC motorised actuators, enabling operation by the building management system and the fire protection control system. The actuators also provide anti-finger-trapping as a standard feature, supporting safe everyday operation in a student environment. In an emergency, the same façade-integrated openings can support smoke control. This dual function is one of the strengths of the SmoTec approach: the openings are not separate technical add-ons, but part of the architectural façade itself. For the Student Hub, that means the façade can support comfort during normal use and respond as part of the building’s safety strategy when needed.
Performance built into the details
The FIEGER FLW 40 SmoTec vents are tested to EN 12101-2 for natural smoke ventilators. The FLW 40 system has also been tested to a range of European standards, including EN 12207 Class 4 for air permeability, EN 12208 Class 8A for watertightness, and EN 1627 RC2 for resistance classification. The system has also been barrier-load tested to BS 6180:2011.
These tested characteristics matter in a project like the Student Hub, where the façade has to do several things at once. It must help protect the building from the weather, limit heat loss, support natural ventilation, provide smoke control functionality, and remain safe and reliable in daily use.
The result is a façade solution that is technically robust without becoming visually heavy. The louvre vents are present, functional, and carefully coordinated – but they do not dominate the architecture.
A small project with a clear purpose
The Student Hub shows how a relatively compact architectural intervention can have a much wider impact on the way a building is used. By connecting the new pavilion with the revitalised lecture theatre, the project gives students a more flexible local focus for learning and social interaction. The spaces support the shift between formal teaching, collaborative work, and independent study, helping the university make better use of its existing estate. The FIEGER louvre system contributes to this ambition by supporting the building’s indoor climate and safety strategy directly through the façade. Fresh air, smoke control, thermal performance, and architectural integration are handled in one carefully considered solution.
Fresh air for collaborative learning
Queen’s University Belfast’s Student Hub is a strong example of how louvre window technology can support both design intent and building performance.
The FIEGER FLW 40 SmoTec vents help the building breathe during everyday use and provide smoke control functionality in an emergency. Integrated into the glazed façade, they support a low-carbon, naturally ventilated learning environment where comfort, safety, and architectural character work together.
For a project created to encourage new ways of learning, that balance feels exactly right: a building that opens up space, supports fresh thinking, and gives students a hub with room to breathe.