WRIGHTSTYLE

Wrightstyle, a leading international supplier of steel and aluminium glazing systems, is supplying advanced ballistic and fire-rated systems for King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The contract is one of the largest high-level security projects ever specified, according to a spokesman for the UK-based company.

“The contract underlines the extremely specialist nature of the protective glazing industry, with Wrightstyle’s integrated steel and glass systems being rigorously tested worldwide for a range of international markets, according to Lee Coates, Wrightstyle’s technical director.

“The contract is for some 2,000 sq m of ballistic external protection to VIP areas of the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, a 936-bed tertiary-care facility, with nearly 7,000 staff, and which opened in 1975,” he says.

The hospital, an international centre of excellence, is currently undergoing further building development to house facilities for cancer and liver disease, a national biotechnology centre and a Royal wing. The new facilities are expected to be fully operational later this year.

Wrightstyle provides high-performance steel glazing solutions for fire resistance, ballistic protection, blast resistance and large-span curtain-walling. All of its products and systems have full UK, EU and US certifications, says Coates, adding that Wrightstyle is the only steel system company offering a total design, manufacture and installation package.

“Our systems provide protection against ballistic and blast threats, as well as a range of protective levels against fire, smoke and toxic gases,” says Coates.

“We have independently tested our systems against both car and lorry bomb attack, and our systems are designed to provide up to 120 minutes of integrity and insulation. We also have specialist accreditation in the US and Far East, giving us worldwide reach.”

Meanwhile, Wrightstyle is also supplying fire-rated door sets to the Afghan National Security Forces, which numbers some 350,000 soldiers, police and air force personnel.

The company has recently supplied to hotel and infrastructure projects in Qatar, a major retail project in the Lebanon, and was a supplier to the Dubai Metro. Elsewhere, Wrightstyle has supplied to developments across the UAE and Egypt.

“The two Mena contracts are of real significance for us. It is the first time that we have supplied to Afghanistan and the Saudi Arabian project is exceptionally large,” he concludes.

Wrightstyle systems can be found from Australasia and the Asia-Pacific regions to the US, and from the UK and Ireland to the Middle East and South Africa.