Inside Munich's Olympiapark is the four-cylinder" building which has helped create public awareness of BMW for many years now. This is where the BMW Group gets all the ideas in the more than 150 countries it operates in. Therefore, this is also were BMW 325i parts are being conceptualized.
Just in time for the Olympic Games in 1972, Karl Schwanzer, an architecture professor from Vienna, completed the building. It consists of more or less four 100 meter high cylinders that are positioned crosswise. It was subjected to complete renovation and modernization measures from 2004 to 2006. The reinventions were supervised by the Hamburg based architectural firm ASP Schweger Assoziierte Gesamtplanung GmbH.
The decision was also aimed at redesigning the conference rooms. Plans required installing many huge format TV monitors in one of the rooms, without allowing them to become distracting to the persons having conferences. So in order to suffice the needs of this challenge, a total of 40 square meters of the specialized glass "Mirona" from SCHOTT were mounted onto the front side of the tables. This surface serves as a mirror, for as long as the monitor behind the pane is turned off. But once the monitor is turned on, the glass provides a crystal clear view of the screen.
This effect is attained through the help of an extremely thin, burned in titanium oxide coating. The unique way in which light is refracted with reflection and transmission also played a very important role. The optical interference coated mineral glass serves as a mirror, giving a silvery, esthetic brilliance in front of a dark surface. But suddenly becomes transparent in front of a light background or backlighting.
GÃ?nter Bauer, the Managing Director of Bauer innovativ GmbH in Altotting, Germany, said Mirona is truly something very special as regards its lighting performance, color and processing capabilities. He added that the ability of this glass to appear transparent on the one hand, though it serves as a reflective surface on the other, enabled them to incorporate the monitors into the conference room in a more temperate manner. Bauer's company was the one responsible for the construction of the tables for use in the conference room.
SCHOTT product manager Stephan Pfaff explained that the functional metamorphosis from glass to a mirror offers huge potential for premium quality applications, specifically interior decorators, designers and shop fitters. He further explained that lighting fixtures, partitions or basic mirrored wall paneling can be turned into elegant design objects at a press of a button with the help of Mirona.
