[CCMC 13640-R] CCMC Canadian code compliance evaluation

The Lumon Glazing Retractable system is a frameless glazing system consisting of an upper extruded aluminum telescopic loadbearing profile and a lower extruded aluminum guiding profile, which are mounted to the balcony ceiling and on the handrail or floor. Toughened glass panes, with glass beads top and bottom, are mounted between the upper and lower profiles.

The glass panels slide along the upper profile and are guided by the lower profile. The panels then fold open, with the assistance of roller bearings and hinge components that are fixed to each glazing bead. All glass panels can slide and be opened, except for one hinged panel at the end of the glass portion, which is fixed in place but can be opened by folding either inwards or outwards. A latch mechanism keeps the fixed-in-place glass panel closed or partially open for ventilation. The other glass panels can be moved laterally, swung open at 90° and locked in place with the hinges of adjacent panels.

To fully open the system, the movable glass panels can all be shifted to the end with the fixed-in-place panel. An integrated stacking device secures the glass panels while they are in the open position. A locking groove is milled to the top and bottom of the glass to ensure a fail-proof connection between the glass and the glass bead, in addition to the adhesively bonded connection. Glazing beads are cut wider than the glass panels to prevent glass-to-glass contact when in the closed position and to provide ventilation between the glass panels.

The Lumon Glazing Sliding system is a frameless glazing system consisting of an upper extruded aluminum guiding profile and lower extruded loadbearing aluminum profile, which are mounted to the balcony ceiling and on the handrail or floor. Toughened glass panes, with glass beads top and bottom, are mounted between the upper and lower profiles. The glass panels slide along the lower profile and are guided by the upper profile, and the panels are interleading. A locking groove is milled to the top and bottom of the glass to ensure a fail-proof connection between the glass and the glass bead, in addition to the adhesively bonded connection.

The Lumon Balcony Balustrade portion is composed of tempered glass in-fill panels, galvanized steel anchors and extruded aluminum handrails, posts and sills. The extruded aluminum handrail connects to the posts with stainless steel bolts and rivets, while the extruded aluminum sill connects to the posts with stainless steel bolts. The top of the glass in-fill panels is held in the track formed by the edge of the handrail. This track is lined with an ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber seal and a clip-in extruded aluminum retaining profile. Another extruded aluminum sill with an EPDM rubber seal holds the bottom of the glass panels in place, along with a clip-in extruded aluminum retaining profile. The extruded aluminum posts, which are connected by a friction wedge plate, fit over the top of the steel foot anchors, to which they are held with stainless steel threaded rod inserts and stainless steel cap hex nuts.

The prescriptive requirements in this evaluation are the limits for the geometry of the assembled product as well as the chemical compositions and physical properties of the materials used for the manufacture of the product, as summarized in the table below.

The performance of the product in this evaluation mainly involves the ultimate limit states to ensure the resistance of the balustrade part to the applied loads as guards for fall protection. The performance of the product specimens under wind and seismic effects are provided as benchmarks for the design engineers to adopt, in correlation with their calculations for wind pressure and earthquake equivalent force based on the provisions of Part 4 of Division B of the NBC 2015 or NBC 2020. Other performance requirements to ensure the functionality and ease of operation mainly involve the glazing part, while the fire performance involves the whole system when applicable. 

The information in this section has informative nature and must not be used as the main source for design. 

The proponent has voluntarily tested the performance of a specific sample of the product with 1 660 mm length under a loading that resembles wind pressure in accordance with ASTM E330/E330M-02, "Standard Test Method for Structural Performance of Exterior Windows, Doors, Skylights and Curtain Walls by Uniform Static Air Pressure Difference," and reported the following results. 

In order to resemble the performance of the system under seismic loading, the proponent has voluntarily performed dynamic racking testing on three samples of the product with 1 660 mm length under the increasing displacement time-history up to 150 mm, in accordance with AAMA 501.6-09, "Recommended Dynamic Test Method for Determining the Seismic Drift Causing Glass Fallout from a Wall System." The horizontal members of the specimen were mechanically fastened to the vertical mullions of the testing frame with two M5x12 star-drive machine screws per connection. All test units employed two 10-mm-thick tempered glass units and two 6-mm-thick tempered glass units. Three anchor clips were attached using two M12x140 threaded rods with washers and nuts to a 6 × 8 steel I-beam at the base of the test apparatus. The head of the specimen was fastened to a 6 × 6 steel I-beam at the top of the testing apparatus with seven 5/16" × 2" hex head bolts with washers and nuts. Based on the results of the dynamic racking testing, the final fallout deflection of 152 mm was met for all three specimens with no glass fallout or other damage to the system.