The Movable Skylights are huge retractable roofs on top of the new Expansion Building of the Holy Haram in Mecca and come up with a whole set of superlatives: 28m in length, 14m in width, an elaborate construction of stainless steel and glass weighing 300 tons, and a total of eight carriers which lift and move the complete roof structure in an impressive, yet delicate way.

 

The Movable Skylights are truly one of the highlights of the range of Projects managed by Alpha. 54 nodes of solid cast steel retain 237 distinctly interconnected stainless-steel profiles to yield an exceptional roof construction, which supports multilayered laminated insulation glass panes.

 

Hundreds of glass prisms are attached on top of glass panes and nodes breaking the sunlight into a spectrum of colors. Underneath the roof construction, gilded blinds face the stainless-steel profiles.

 

This semi-shell shaped roof is located on a 7m high beam on top of a nearly 70-meter tall edifice and ventilates an imposing atrium spanning several floors.

 

Without a doubt, the Movable Skylights are built at the highest level of quality, comprising multiple redundant safety sensors, which include being capable of smoke extraction in case of a fire.

 

Altogether, twelve Movable Skylights are installed on the roof of the new Expansion Buildings. They can all be opened and closed individually or simultaneously by a central control room.

 

All components supplied are custom-engineered and manufactured exclusively for this project in order to meet the unequalled standard of quality and durability appropriate for a project like this.