3.1 Al Bahar towers in Abu dhabi, UEA.

It is the world’s Largest Sun-Responsive Façade Shades , Located in the financial centre of Abu Dhabi, Al Bahar Towers represent one of the most impressive examples of adaptive architecture and integrated design completed in recent contemporary architecture. The idea was simple. To control the solar gains introducing an external shading system rather than just relying on the glass to filter the solar radiation. The inspiration came from the Mashrabiya, the traditional Arabic lattice shade used to protect from the sun and re-interpreted and applied to two 150m high towers. The Mashrabiya panels are currently covering 3 predefined positions – folded, intermediate, unfolded -, but could be re- programmed to stop in any required configuration. They are grouped in sectors and operated by a sun tracking software controlling the opening and closing sequence according to the sun’s position. The control system is linked to an anemometer and a solar radiation sensor, to adjust the position in case of extreme wind speed or prolonged overcast conditions.