Window design: typology, dimensions, orientation and position

Window design is strictly connected to some essential factors such as dimensions, orientation and position.

The aesthetics and functionality of doors and windows depend on them, but that’s not all. The study of a project based on these assessments allows for better energy efficiency and significant savings on consumption.

Furthermore, these factors are very important for the environment. Thanks to their ability to protect rooms from heat and cold, good windows allow us to reduce the activity of heating systems. In this way we also reduce CO2 emissions on the planet, projecting ourselves through a green perspective that we can no longer renounce.

Type of windows

Today, specialization in the window and door sector requires to dedicate ourselves to the design, construction and installation of each type of windows, keeping a focus on certain concepts:

• innovation;
• customization;
• sustainability;
• energy efficiency;
• drawing.

Creating doors and windows and satisfying the demands of customers from all over the world means engaging in continuous research towards cutting-edge technologies.

Thus, our name is strongly connected to the idea of modern windows, made for buildings with high architectural significance. They stand out for the beauty and minimal lines that distinguish their design. They also conceal the result of study and research that is embodied in the high technology of our products.

It is no coincidence that Capoferri windows and doors are chosen for historic and public buildings commissioned by world-renowned architects and designers such as Renzo Piano, Michele de Lucchi, David Chipperfield, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, Antonio Citterio & Partners and other famous names.

In accordance with the most contemporary environmental needs, our doors and windows, regardless of type, are made with attention to sustainability, which is embodied in the use of innovative and efficient solutions that take care of the environment

Energy efficiency was once not the primary concern of our business, but today it is the core concept of our work. Our innovative doors and windows are qualitatively superior, resistant to wear and they have the highest thermal insulation values.

The thermal break distinguishes our doors and windows, ensuring an excellent seal even on large windows.

Each type of window has specific characteristics based on its intended use:

• private buildings;
• private residences in Italy and abroad;
• hotel and hospitality;
• companies and industrial buildings;
• cultural and religious buildings;
• government buildings.

Each of these contexts requires a different type of frame that performs the necessary functions of:

• safety;
• thermal insulation;
• functionality;
• aesthetics.

In fact, we manufacture safety doors and windows for buildings with a medium and high degree of risk. Even with the BL200 model we reach very high levels of safety by exceeding the limit of resistance to civilian weapons up to the 3rd level of the “STANAG” standard used to classify NATO military weapons.

The use of different materials allows us to satisfy the aesthetic needs of the clients and to identify the perfect solution for the building to which they belong.

The M50 metal frames, which we make by combining solid and tubular elements, are efficient thermally broken, drawn or laminated windows with interposed wooden profile. They allow us maximum customization based on the expected dimensions. They can be created with openings of any shape, size and type. Maximum efficiency in a minimum size, invisible welds, and profiles without glazing bead offer the absolute essentiality that goes well with the different aesthetics.

The wooden doors and windows SC80 and SC100, 80 and 100 mm thick, are designed to mount insulating and safety glass.

The possibility of customization makes them flexible to each project, without constraints about shape and size.

SC80 and SC100 in laminated wood ensure high weather resistance, stability against deformation and incomparable thermal and acoustic insulation as well as a high level of safety.

Even Serrabito 98, i.e. our SA98 joinery laminated wood and metal windows and metal and wood MW70 allow a very high level of customization that makes them flexible to the most varied designs, drawing the great protagonists of international design closer to our company.

We choose for them the type of opening which is suitable for the context, the spaces, the dimensions and the required function:

• hinged;
• pivot;
• sliding;
• automated, motorized or manual.

Window dimensions

The dimensions of each window determine our design choices.

Plathéa is our line of large windows characterized by extra thin fixtures with a very high level performance.

Thanks to their minimal structure, they break down any visual barrier with the outside, allowing a wide and bright view from the inside and a light and minimal visual impact.

Their light look does not affect resistance to winds and water, meriting compliance with the highest quality standards.

A result of advanced technology, this is not the only Capoferri window that is amazing for its shape and size.

Ferrofinestra is another window that combines large dimensions and style in a single high energy efficiency product.

Based on the size, we choose the best solution for each opening. For particularly large windows, we prefer motorized and fluid openings, which facilitate movement and guarantee the performance, durability and quality of the window itself.

Regardless of the dimensions, our doors and windows are the result of a meticulous design and careful processing that ends only with a precise installation by our assembly staff.

Orientation and position

The study of orientation and position of buildings and windows is essential for its energy efficiency as for heat and lighting.

In addition, the choice of the right orientation has a healthy value for the body and mind of those who live in the building. This is the area that bio-architecture takes care of, looking beyond the mere technical aspect and dealing holistically with the world of living. The oriental disciplines are masters in this field, providing information on the orientation of the rooms and the position of the furniture in order to promote rest and all daily activities. In our field, position and orientation are closely related to the choice of the most suitable fixtures.

Following generic design guidelines, we could summarize that southern exposure favors solar radiation, but many other factors interfere with this general indication:

• latitude and climatic factors;
• exposure to wind and rain;
• presence of permanent natural or artificial shade (trees, buildings, etc.)
• dimensions of the window frame.

The focus of our investigations before starting the design phase is to understand whether we must retain heat or reject it, if we must keep the rooms cool even when it is very hot outside or if we have to block the cold coming from outside.

The choice of the type of doors and windows to be installed, its technical characteristics and its efficiency depends on these evaluations.