Structural Logic of Façade Systems: A Comparative Guide
The Structural Hierarchy, Load Path, and Critical Element of Every Common Façade System — From Stick Curtain Wall to Cable Nets
Course Description
Every facade system has a structural hierarchy: a chain of elements from the outermost surface to the primary structure. The load path through a stick curtain wall is different from a rainscreen, which is different from a precast panel — yet the same building could be clad in any of them, under the same wind. This comprehensive technical CPD course gives architects and building design professionals the map of that chain for every common facade system, because if you do not know what the elements are, the loads have nowhere to go. .
You'll learn the universal load path principle — panel, intermediate elements, connection — and see it traced through stick and unitised curtain walls, rainscreen cladding, precast concrete panels, masonry cladding, double-skin facades, point-fixed glazing, cable nets and cable trusses, and louvres and balustrades. For each system the course shows what the elements are, how they connect, which one carries the greatest responsibility, and what the critical calculation is: the mullion in stick curtain wall, the panel joint in unitised, the shelf angle deflection in masonry, the handling case in precast, the pre-tension in a cable net. .
Presented by Eugene Korch (facade engineer and IAST Programme Director), the course also draws the professional boundary: standard curtain wall and rainscreen calculations sit within the competence of any trained facade engineer, while structural silicone joints, glass fins, and cable-supported facades cross into specialist territory — and knowing where that line runs is part of the discipline. .
Combining system-by-system walkthroughs with a comparative summary table listing every system, its elements in order, its primary load path, and its critical calculation, this course is designed to give you the reference you will use on every project: look at any facade section and read its structural logic.
Included in Facade Intelligence Professional Membership (FI PRO)
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
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Identify the structural hierarchy of any common facade system and name every element in the load path from panel to structure
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Apply the three functional categories present in every system — the panel, the intermediate elements, and the connection — even where one component combines roles
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Distinguish statically determinate load paths from indeterminate ones, and understand what the choice of model means for reserves and reactions
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Explain what makes the mullion the primary structural element of a stick curtain wall, and what every element in the chain must be checked for
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Understand structural silicone glazing: what the bonded joint carries and why its calculation is specialist work
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Describe the two connection arrangements of unitised curtain walls — with and without a spigot — and why the panel-to-panel joint is the defining structural challenge
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Trace the short load path of a rainscreen — panel, rail, bracket — and understand why the challenge is systematic coverage rather than any single calculation
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Recognise how panel material changes the rainscreen calculation: stone, metal, fibre cement, terracotta, and composite panels with their fire history
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Understand why precast panels are governed by reinforced concrete design and why the crane lift can be the worst load case
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Explain masonry cladding behaviour: shelf angles, wall ties, movement joints, and why brick cracks rather than deflects
What's Covered
Why This Lecture Comes First
The structural hierarchy: a chain of elements from the outermost surface to the primary structure.
The same building, different systems: same wind, different load paths.
What you will be able to do after this lecture.
The Universal Load Path Principle
Three functional categories in every system: the panel, the intermediate elements, and the connection.
Systems that separate the roles and systems that combine them.
Vertical and horizontal actions: dead load down, wind sideways, and the loads that can act in either direction.
Determinate and indeterminate load paths: what the model choice costs and what it buys.
Stick Curtain Wall
Site assembly from individual profiles: mullions, transoms, glass, brackets.
What every element is checked for: glass, transom, mullion, bracket, anchor, pressure plate.
Axial load in multi-storey runs and the eccentricity moment at the bracket.
Structural silicone glazing: what the bonded joint carries and who calculates it.
The mullion as the primary structural element: everything else serves it.
Unitised Curtain Wall
Factory-assembled panels: speed, quality, and the price of the joint.
The two connection arrangements: with a spigot and with interlocking stack joints.
Load redistribution between supports under building movement.
Sustained load on factory-bonded silicone: transport, handling, and creep.
The panel-to-panel joint as the defining structural challenge.
Rainscreen Cladding
The ventilated cavity and the short load path: panel, rail, bracket.
Panel materials and what each changes: stone, metal, fibre cement, terracotta, composite.
Composite panels, sandwich action, and the fire lessons.
What is checked: panel bending and pull-through, rail deflection, bracket and anchor.
Simplicity by element, complexity by volume: thousands of independent brackets.
Precast Concrete Panels
Reinforced concrete design, not thin-walled profiles.
Support arrangements: gravity bearings, lateral restraints, and stacked variants.
Handling loads: demoulding, transport, and the crane lift as a possible worst case.
Weights of 350 to 500 kilograms per square metre and what they mean for connections.
Masonry Cladding
Shelf angles, wall ties, and the outer leaf spanning two ways.
Why brick cracks rather than deflects, and why the design codes are different.
Movement joints against irreversible moisture expansion and frame shortening.
The shelf angle deflection limit as the critical check.
Double-Skin Facades
Two skins, one wind: how the cavity ventilation splits the load.
Sealed and ventilated cavities and what each does to the inner skin.
Two separate façade calculations and the interaction between them.
Point-Fixed Glazing, Cable Nets, and Cable Trusses
Spiders, patch fittings, and glass as a plate on point supports.
Glass fins as structural elements.
The cable net: the tennis racket principle, pre-tension, and boundary forces of hundreds of kilonewtons.
The cable truss and how it differs from a net.
What the façade engineer calculates, and when to step back and bring in a specialist.
Louvres, Brise-Soleil, and Balustrades
Framed louvre modules as infill panels and standalone fins as cantilevers.
Vortex-induced oscillation and fatigue.
Balustrades as barrier elements: forms, loads, and the critical check for each type.
Comparative Summary
The summary table: every system, its elements in order, its load path, and its critical calculation.
Where ordinary competence ends and specialist territory begins.
Reading the structural logic from any façade section.
Course Schedule
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Course Objectives
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Introduction Video
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Lecture
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Post-Lecture Reading List
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About this course
- £120.00
- Practice test questions
- CPD Certificate: 1.5 hrs
- Interactive 3D models
Your Instructors
Programme Director, IAST Eugene Korch
Eugene is a façade engineer and educator with extensive experience in building envelope design and technical specification. Through the Institute for Architectural Science and Technology (IAST) and Facade Intelligence, he delivers CPD training to architects and construction professionals across the UK. His teaching approach emphasizes practical application and accessibility, making complex technical subjects understandable for design professionals.
Who Should Enrol
This course is designed for:
Architects needing to understand the structural consequences of choosing one façade system over another.
Architectural Technologists working with façade details and specifications.
Envelope Designers seeking to identify the critical element of each system early in design.
Façade Specialist Contractors requiring a working knowledge of the load paths behind their systems.
Junior Façade Engineers building the system knowledge every later calculation relies on.
Building Envelope Consultants advising clients on system selection and engineering scope.
Structural Engineers needing to understand what the façade hangs on and what reactions to expect where.
Project Managers overseeing projects where the façade system choice drives cost, programme, and risk.
Cost Consultants understanding how system choice changes the engineering effort and the critical components.
Design Managers coordinating façade and structural packages.
Course Details
Format: Self-paced online course with video lectures.
Duration: Approximately 1.5 hours.
CPD Points: 1.5 hours structured CPD / 1 Learning Unit.
Access: 12 months from enrolment.
Certificate: CPD certificate issued upon completion.
Prerequisites: None — introductory level.
Materials: Downloadable resources and reference guides included.
What Makes This Course Different
Every common façade system in one course: from stick curtain wall and rainscreen to double-skin façades, cable nets, and balustrades.
The critical element named for every system, so you know where the engineering effort and the risk concentrate before any calculation starts.
The professional boundary drawn explicitly: what any trained façade engineer calculates, and where specialist structural glass and cable engineering begins.
A comparative summary table you will keep: every system, its elements in order, its load path, and its critical calculation.
International outlook with the United Kingdom as primary reference and real system variants as they are built today.
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For a bespoke quote, please contact our team at [email protected].
