Design Specifications

Design of the Aluminum Cavity

Designing the proper aluminum cavity is paramount for an Insulbar system. The cavity illustrated here will accept the standard Insulbar "foot," which is the one used for most of our standard profiles. Typical Insulbar systems consist of two profiles working in tandem, allowing one to be in compression and one in tension when under load. This provides for maximum structural integrity and shear strength for the composite section.

Insulbar profiles are slid into the aluminum cavity while the "hammer" portion is in the relaxed position (either Version 1 or 2, depending on space limitations). This "relaxed" position represents the aluminum cavity before the rolling, or crimping process. The cavity design must allow for clearance sufficient to accept either hand or automatic insertion of the Insulbar profiles after the aluminum has been knurled.

After insertion of the Insulbar profiles, the composite section goes through a rolling process whereby the aluminum "hammers" are crimped into the Insulbar profiles. The knurled hammer surface and the backside of the aluminum cavity create a mechanical lock between the alumium and Insulbar. This effectively creates a structurally sound composite section.

Choosing the Right Insulbar Profile

Most Insulbar profiles share the same "foot" dimensions. This allows designers and window builders to alter the depth of a product by exchanging the thermal break profile while keeping the same aluminum extrusions. For example, a 2" curtain wall can be transformed into a 2 1/2" curtain wall by simply changing to a larger Insulbar profile.